#TurnBasedThursdayFest is a seven-day online festival celebrating turn-based video games. Back for its fourth year with an amazing variety of turn-based games, a massive Steam sale, and tons of Let’s Plays on Twitch and YouTube, and a new Featured Reveals Show trailer showcase.
Brought to you by the team behind #TurnBasedThursday on Twitter and Bluesky, and The Turn-Based Games Discord!
Games Games Games
Hundreds of participating RPGs, sims, grand strategy, deckbuilders, 4X, roguelikes, puzzlers, city builders and more… see just how much variety there is in turn-based games, all united by fun based on smart choices & clever planning instead of reflexes & reactions.
Discover hidden gems, find hits on sale, and check out all the upcoming games that might be your next favorite.
Content Creator Showcase
We’re highlighting excellent content creators who enjoy these kinds of games and regularly introduce their audience to new ones.
Check out their streams for a ton of fun and over 40 game giveaways!
Featured Reveals Show
This year we’re adding our first ever Featured Reveals Show, a ~45 minute trailer showcase featuring a mix of new game announcements and featured new content from popular games.
Stay tuned for info on where to watch.
Applications for 2026 Now Open
Gamers, represent!
We know millions of gamers love these kind of games, and we’re bringing them together. Hop into the Turn-Based Games Discord to share your stories, ask for game recommendations, and have some fun with your fellow gamers during the event, before, and after.
Content Creator Showcase
The popular Content Creator Showcase returns with awesome turn-based creators showing off the games participating in the event. It’s a way to not only see how these games play, but find great communities with creators who discover and show your favorite kind of games regularly.
This year’s schedule is still being assembled. Check out last year’s schedule below:
Participating Games
Over 400 participating games! This year’s Steam sale page will go live Monday, March 9th, at 9am Eastern, so stay tuned for lots of great deals & discoverability; ~25 hand-curated sections from “Unique Styles” to “Genre Breakers & Blenders” to “Gaming on a Budget.” You’ll also be able to easily filter all games in the festival for your favorite genres and Steam tags.
Last year’s Steam Sale page can be accessed here, and a spreadsheet breakdown of last year’s participants is embedded here:
Frequently Asked Questions
Why turn-based?
There are many kinds of turn-based games — grand strategy and precise tactics; fast-paced focus and relaxing watch-and-savor; old school classics and clever new concepts. What unites them all is a playerbase that enjoys games where you can take your time when you want to, that loves the payoff of careful choices and a clever plan, that want victories based on smarts, not speed.
I’m an interested studio / publisher, what can you tell me about the Steam sale? Have you been approved? Will it be featured?
We have been approved by Steam. We have twice previously received Steam front-page featuring, but each year front-page featuring decisions aren’t made until they see the full list of participants, the event page setup, and what their overall schedule is looking like closer to the event. At minimum we will be included in the Steam deals section and have banners across the hundreds of participating games in the event.
We also had great success in getting press coverage, reddit support, and social media sharing for each year’s event. Combined with the roster of ~60 featured content creators we partner with to showcase participants and spread the word about the festival, we bring a lot of attention to the event.
What is the Featured Reveals Show trailer showcase? How can we participate?
The #TurnBasedThursdayFest Featured Reveals Show will be a ~45 minute presenter-hosted trailer showcase featuring a mix of new game announcements and featured new content from successful games, in the style of other popular showcases like Wholesome Direct or DreadXP’s Indie Horror Showcase. This show will play on the Steam sale page throughout the event, and be featured on our partner Turn Based Lover’s 40k-subscriber YouTube channel. We’ll be promoting the showcase to press and gamers before and during the event.
If you’re part of a studio or publisher with an announcement that would fit the bill, and you can commit to having a trailer ready to showcase your announcement by February 2nd, 2026 (our deadline to begin assembling trailers and recording presenter commentary for the showcase), we’d love to consider your trailer for inclusion. Examples of the type of news announcements and trailers we’re looking for:
- New game announcements
- New trailers for upcoming games
- Demo releases
- New expansions or major DLC
- Anniversary or other major milestone updates
While exclusives (never-before-seen trailers / announcements) will be given priority, we are very open to recent news from indies that have not received widespread attention from other sources. Recency, visual quality, and newsworthiness are our primary criteria.
Applications are due by December 12th, 2025. We will let you know if you’re accepted by January 5th. Trailers will be due 4 weeks later on February 2nd.
Can I participate in both the Steam Spring Sale and #TurnBasedThursdayFest?
Yes, Steam’s major seasonal sales do not count for any discount cooldowns. Your last sale before #TurnBasedThursdayFest 2026 should end before February 7th to be able to go on sale for TBTFest, and you’ll be able to go on sale for the Steam Spring Sale immediately after our event.
If you’re unable to go on sale for #TurnBasedThursdayFest due to other sale scheduling conflicts, you’re still welcome to apply. We can only accept a limited number of released games that aren’t able to go on sale for our event, but you’ll still be considered and accepted games will still be included within the Steam event.
What is the deadline to sign up for #TurnBasedThursdayFest?
Developer applications for TBTFest 2026 close on December 12th, 2025.
Did the event name change from #TurnBasedFest to #TurnBasedThursdayFest?
It did; Steam requested we change it to help distinguish from their own themed sales events. The new name helps make clear the connection to the weekly #TurnBasedThursday community showcases our team organizes on twitter and Bluesky year-round.
I have another question not answered here.
Please join the Turn-based Games Discord at https://discord.gg/zfmrtb2FkQ – look for the #tbtfest channel and let us know there. (Please check Pinned messages for any updates and the latest resources. 🙂) Thanks for your interest in #TurnBasedThursdayFest!
Follow @TurnBasedThurs(day) on Bluesky or Twitter, and join the Turn Based Games Discord for updates.