Looking for serious marketing tactics for a late-stage Steam indie horror launch
Hi everyone,
I’m looking for practical advice and marketing tactics for a Steam indie game that is now close to release. The game itself is a first-person psychological horror title called Reality Breach.
I’ll keep this straightforward.
I started developing my first Steam game in July 2024. Following a marketing advice at that time (which was quite against my knowledge but I followed anyway), I opened the Steam page quite early with limited content on July 2024. I released a demo (again early stages) in September 2024 and participated in Steam Next Fest in October 2024.
At that time, I had around 160 wishlists and reached ~477 after Next Fest, which was a strong boost. Now I don't have Next Fest opportunity.
However, after that, followed with unexpected positive feedbacks development scope expanded significantly, content was reworked, and progress slowed in terms of visibility and marketing consistency. As a result, the game has only grown organically to 576 wishlists as of April 2026. Mistakes were made yeah...
The original demo has been removed, and a new one is currently in polishing.
Now I’m at the door to finalize the game and have set a release date around late June 2026 (before the Steam Summer Sale period).
Current situation:
- 576 wishlists
- ~58 days until release
- Very low to non-existing marketing & social media presence
- Steam page has minimal traffic
I’m aiming for 3,000 wishlists before release, however this might not be realistic for my case. A more realistic target for me would be around 1,500 wishlists. But I deliberately set the 3K target for a challenge.
I’m now actively starting marketing efforts across:
- Reddit (dev + story-driven posts)
- TikTok / YouTube Shorts / Instagram Reels
- Steam page updates and trailer improvements
- X (announcements + dev updates)
- Outreach to streamers / YouTubers once demo is ready
Given the short timeframe and current visibility, I’d appreciate any honest feedback or tactics. I’m open to blunt feedback as well.
Thanks in advance.
Link to Steam Page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3118910/Reality_Breach/