Steam Hype Playlist: February 2026

Keeping up with all the new games on Steam can be a job unto itself, and potentially disappointing if you're rushing to grab stuff the second it launches. That's why every month we wait for the dust to settle before picking the best new Steam games we've played and adding them to our Steam Hype Playlist. It's time to fill your wishlist with our must-play picks from February 2026.

Resident Evil Requiem PC

Resident Evil's winning streak continues, and aims to please everyone this time, with a story bouncing between two protagonists. New FBI agent Grace, who gets a more traditionally evasive survival horror adventure, and high-action segments starring returning RE4 hero Leon Kennedy and his sack-full of weapons. It's shorter and more densely packed than RE8 or even the RE4 remake, but that means very little filler, making the NG+ loop (complete with new fights and remixed item placement) all the more satisfying. Requiem is set to grow for a while yet, adding an arcade mode in a free post-release update, and more adventures coming as DLC down the line.

Creature Kitchen PC

One of this year's most-loved indie titles. Creature Kitchen is short, sweet and a fantastic concept. Living alone in a haunted cabin in the woods, you are menaced by eyes in the darkness, cryptids and creatures lurking in the shadows... hungry... So you hit the cookbooks, rustle up some dinner for them and serve it up - voila, new friends! No jump-scares, no pressure, just a casual cooking experience in a creepy-cute setting, your efforts slowly building you a circle of strange little forest-dwelling pals. Pure low-fi charm, whimsical writing, and if you're not hungry after playing this, then you probably already ate.

Super Battle Golf PC

Great multiplayer fun, this. It's golf, but with no rules, other than 'you need to move the ball with a club'. There's no taking turns, no waiting to get into place, and nothing saying that you can't just grab a rocket launcher and blast your rivals into the ocean. All that matters is getting to the goal first, making this a mad, messy scramble. There's a console release due next year with full cross-play support, but where the PC version is going to shine is with the upcoming Workshop support, meaning an endless collection of community-made courses to fight over.

Mewgenics PC

Over fourteen years in development, the crew behind The Binding Of Isaac and Super Meat Boy returns with... a turn-based tactical RPG. Don't worry, it's every bit as rude, crude and soaked in bodily fluids as you'd expect. The meat of the game is fighting through roguelike-style chains of fun little tactical battles, your four-cat party bringing an assortment of attack, crowd control or status-spreading abilities to the fight. The potatoes is that after each adventure, your cats retire, breed, and pass on their abilities, stats and quirks to their heirs. Oh, and all the bosses have vocal battle themes, which elevates the whole experience.

Horsey Game PC

The smartest dumb game (or dumbest smart game?) you'll play this year. Breed and race wobbly low-fi horses to raise enough money to cure your partner's Horse Flu. But that takes a while, and luck, so you can just head down to the shady research lab to gene-splice your horses (with every gene being fully simulated), or cross-breed them with trucks. Oh, you had to let one of your prize mutants loose? Well, their genes will spread into the ecosystem, making the whole world weirder still. Every playthrough is different, every player has their own approach, and every run has some painfully funny moments.

Demon Tides PC

A great, incredibly bright and vibrant open-world 3D platformer, and sequel (although experience with the original isn't necessary) to Demon Turf. Set across the oceans of the cartoon underworld, you're free to explore freely, shapeshifting between air, ground and water-optimized demon forms, hopping between islands in search of new move customization options, treasure and outfits. It has a couple rough edges due to being a tiny studio working on nearly the same scale as Mario Odyssey, but it sticks the landing more often than not. And if you like your platformers a bit more linear, then Bubsy 4D is from the same developer and shares an engine with Demon Tides.

Hermit and Pig PC

Tragically undersold, but you can fix that right now and give this one a try. A clearly Earthbound-inspired comedy JRPG with a strong identity of its own. You're an ageing forest hermit, living with your best friend, a bespectacled pig. Weird corporate and cosmic forces have forced you to start interacting with the world, using your knowledge of local critters (and mushrooms, your favorite food) to handle threats. But the real danger is in dealing with people - conversations are battles too, with you having to pick the most coherent, least cringe dialogue options to get people to trust you. Hermiting ain't easy.

MENACE PC

The sci-fi followup to fantasy mercenary turn-based tactics game Battle Brothers. Menace has you carefully deploying small squads of units, each vehicle or infantry team operating in a single square, their commanders determining their stats and gear. While you start out fighting half-witted space pirates and swarms of alien bugs, the conflict escalates around you, forcing you to upgrade and hire to fill holes in your lineup, and prepare for when the titular Menace shows up: A biomechanical alien plague that repurposes corpses and tanks alike into monsters, and if not stopped, it might just eat all of the clients that would otherwise hire you.

Crisol: Theater of Idols PC

Resident Evil wasn't the only great survival horror game out this month. Despite many calling a Bioshock clone, the only thing Crisol has in common is a nautical theme, set in a coastal town that worships forbidden old sea gods. You, however, a disciple of the Sun, gorily sacrificing your own blood to fuel holy weapons that can kill the living effigies stalking the streets. Think Resident Evil Village, only set in alt-universe magical Spain. Tragically, despite being a critical hit and selling decently, it wasn't enough to keep Seville-based Vermila Studios open, and the studio is now defunct after just one excellent game.

Another month with a big Capcom headliner, followed by a swarm of absolute indie gems that will likely to making some Game Of The Year lists when the dust has settled. While we're pretty sure we got all the big hits here, let us know what you've been playing from this lineup and beyond. Any must-haves we missed? Sound off in the comments!