Free Experimental Games on Steam
Steam currently has 1,459 Experimental games available to download and play. Explore our list of the best free games ranked by popularity and ratings. Data for this list is calculated from reviews and player counts reported directly by Steam and will be updated in real-time. Free Experimental game rankings were last updated on 2/18/2025.
Looking for more? Explore other lists such as:
- Best experimental games on Steam
- Best experimental Steam Deck games
- Best experimental Steam games for Mac OS
- Best experimental Linux games on Steam
- Free Steam games
- Most played Steam games
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1. Eternal Return
Eternal Return is a free-to-play, 2.5D perspective Battle Royale game. Search, Craft, Hunt, and Fight using a variety of characters. Plan your strategy and become the last survivor on this eternal experiment.
Eternal Return holds the #1 spot for "best free Experimental game on Steam" with a Player Score of 79. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 63,354 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 50,490 positive reviews and 12,864 negative reviews — making it "Mostly Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Eternal Return on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Release Date | 7/20/2023 |
| Developer | Nimble Neuron |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 1049590 |
2. Idle Slayer
Idle Slayer is an incremental game with idle and active playstyle mechanics, medieval pixel art visuals and retro 8-bit sounds and music.
Idle Slayer has achieved a Player Score of 83, placing it in the #2 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 8,192 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 7,032 positive reviews and 1,160 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. Valve has also verified it as playable on the Steam Deck and will run well.
| Release Date | 12/21/2020 |
| Developer | Pablo Leban |
| Publisher | Pablo Leban |
| Steam App Id | 1353300 |
3. Animaze by FaceRig
Livestream, chat, or create videos as world-class 2D and 3D avatars. Use one of the over 60 avatars provided or import your own 2D, 3D, VRM, or Ready Player Me model. Animaze is powering PuffPuff, one of the top real-time mocap virtual beings on TikTok with 4.7 million followers.
Animaze by FaceRig has achieved a Player Score of 67, placing it in the #3 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 3,204 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 2,202 positive reviews and 1,002 negative reviews — making it "Mixed" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is not possible to play or run Animaze by FaceRig on the Steam Deck.
| Release Date | 11/17/2021 |
| Developer | Holotech Studios Inc. |
| Publisher | Holotech Studios Inc. |
| Steam App Id | 1364390 |
4. Virtual Cottage
Virtual Cottage gives you a comfy place to rest and be productive without any distractions. Open the game, set yourself a goal and enjoy the atmosphere.
Virtual Cottage has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #4 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 10,078 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 9,859 positive reviews and 219 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Virtual Cottage on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
5. Magic Archery
Train a commoner to become the greatest archer in this short incremental game! Increase your stats, gather wealth from quests, buy upgrades, and infuse your arrows with magic.
Magic Archery has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #5 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 4,821 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 4,768 positive reviews and 53 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
| Release Date | 10/4/2024 |
| Developers | |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 2905170 |
6. Yume Nikki
This is a game in which you traverse the extremely dark world inside a dream.
Yume Nikki has achieved a Player Score of 91, placing it in the #6 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 8,197 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 7,712 positive reviews and 485 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Yume Nikki on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
7. TELEFORUM
TELEFORUM is a found-footage-styled horror game exploring the unknown side of media. You’re visiting a widow’s apartment to conduct an interview about her husband's death. But that’s not the main reason why you’re here. It’s all about the tape, isn’t it?
TELEFORUM has achieved a Player Score of 88, placing it in the #7 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 2,743 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 2,528 positive reviews and 215 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on both Windows and Mac systems. Valve has also verified it as playable on the Steam Deck and will run well.
| Release Date | 10/19/2023 |
| Franchise | CRITICAL REFLEX |
| Developer | Monumental Collab |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 2186570 |
8. Simplode Suite
Simplode Suite is a toolset which does all kinds of things. You can dynamically balance microphone and speaker volume, force borderless fullscreen, optimize your CPU power settings, take partial screenshots, create click through borderless/windowed mode overlays, and so much more.
Simplode Suite has achieved a Player Score of 60, placing it in the #8 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 46 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 30 positive reviews and 16 negative reviews — making it "Mixed" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is not possible to play or run Simplode Suite on the Steam Deck.
| Release Date | 9/17/2020 |
| Developer | Simplode LLC |
| Publisher | Simplode LLC |
| Steam App Id | 1242710 |
9. MineSweeper Tetris
Minesweeper Tetris is a new 2D casual game that combines the best elements of two classic games, Minesweeper and Tetris. The minefield constantly grows upward, and row is cleared when player finds all mines in it.
MineSweeper Tetris has achieved a Player Score of 87, placing it in the #9 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 731 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 676 positive reviews and 55 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is not possible to play or run MineSweeper Tetris on the Steam Deck.
10. Universe Generator: The Golden Sword
Universe Generator: The Golden Sword is a short FMV puzzle game about the search for a powerful sword through the manipulation of dreamscapes.
Universe Generator: The Golden Sword has achieved a Player Score of 74, placing it in the #10 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 37 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 32 positive reviews and 5 negative reviews — making it "Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
| Release Date | 6/8/2021 |
| Developer | Yeli Orog Games |
| Publisher | Yeli Orog Games |
| Steam App Id | 1646410 |
More Free Experimental Games
Explore even more rankings for the 100 best free Experimental games available on Steam.
| Image | Name | Actions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9,607 | 7/20/2023 | 79 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 982 | 12/21/2020 | 83 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 326 | 11/17/2021 | 67 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 287 | 10/7/2020 | 95 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 105 | 10/4/2024 | 95 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 20 | 1/10/2018 | 91 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 10 | 10/19/2023 | 88 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 6 | 9/17/2020 | 60 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 6 | 12/15/2022 | 87 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 6 | 6/8/2021 | 74 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 5 | 12/22/2022 | 94 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 4 | 6/19/2021 | 61 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 8/31/2016 | 68 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 8/31/2024 | 73 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 2/14/2014 | 90 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 3/22/2024 | 73 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 9/15/2014 | 70 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 2/26/2021 | 83 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 4/17/2023 | 63 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 6/19/2017 | 70 | Free | Steam Charts |
Soures & References
Steambase has best-in-class data powered directly by Steam, our data partners, and in-house experts. Player counts and rankings are enriched, analyzed, and updated in real-time to ensure we surface the most up-to-date insights. Learn more about the Steambase approach to data collection and our review methodology.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, February 18). Steam Store. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, February 18). Eternal Return on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, February 19). Idle Slayer on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, January 9). Animaze by FaceRig on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, January 16). Virtual Cottage on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, December 8). Magic Archery on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, February 17). Yume Nikki on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, February 19). TELEFORUM on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, January 24). Simplode Suite on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, February 14). MineSweeper Tetris on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, December 23). Universe Generator: The Golden Sword on Steam. Steam Store.