New Indie Game Challenges Players to Tackle Their Steam Backlog

Steam is a fantastic place to snag deals during major sales, but it also serves as a graveyard for countless unplayed titles, leading many gamers to waste money. In a clever twist, indie developer Nic Taylor is turning this reality into a unique gaming experience with his upcoming title, Game Quest: The Backlog Battler, where players can battle their neglected games in a gladiatorial setting.

Recently, this concept has gained traction online, with numerous discussions popping up about Taylor’s project. The premise is straightforward: the more unplayed games you have, the tougher the enemies you’ll encounter. But it doesn’t stop there; you can also challenge the unplayed libraries of your Steam friends, provided they’ve made their backlogs public.

While the full game is slated for release sometime in 2026, a demo is currently available, and I decided to dive in. The combat is fairly simple, and the visuals aren’t groundbreaking, but there are some interesting mechanics that I hope Taylor will develop further in the final version.

For example, during battles, your least-played Steam games will come at you, while your most-played titles will cheer you on from the sidelines and may even jump in to assist during the fight. I got a good laugh when Baldur’s Gate 3 suddenly appeared to help me out while I was struggling against Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition.

I can’t shake the feeling that this game would be a lot tougher if I could use my Epic Games account. All those free, unplayed titles would be gunning for me, and the only game I’d have to back me up would be Alan Wake II.