Steam Officially Makes Hit Story-Driven Game Completely Free For 24 Hours

Steam is in one of its most pivotal eras since it launched. It's debuting multiple hardware lines this year, and the Steam Machine pricing has everyone on edge. It's also a fantastic time for fans, with the Steam Next Fest underway.

If you haven't checked it out before, Steam Next Fest is a massive celebration of games, including demos for upcoming titles, in the effort to "connect players with developers." It's not just demos either, as many studios are taking advantage of the festival to drop in freebies.

This newest free game is a hit story-driven experience with rave reviews. You can pick it up on Steam now, just note that you only have a limited time to redeem it.

Live on Steam right now, you can pick up The Red Lantern for free. Normally priced at $24.99, this wilderness exploration game is a narrative featuring dog sledding, as you attempt to survive and thrive on a quest to find your way home.

Here's a quick breakdown from the developer: "The Red Lantern is a narrative, dog sledding game about survival. You play as the Musher who, along with her team of 5 sled dogs, must find her way home. Care for your dogs, discover their stories, and learn how to navigate the unknowns of the Alaskan wilderness and prepare for your new life."

The reviews for this unique story driven game are "very positive" at the time of publication, with some citing the setting as one of the reasons why it stands out. Some reviews call it "beautiful" and "short," but to "expect death" on the first few runs while you get your footing. It's also being described as "hardcore cozy" if that confusing yet totally sensible subgenre interests you.

Others are frustrated with the lack of control: "This game suffers from the same issue that made me throw away a number of other games that use this particular mechanism. You are presented with choices in the form of prompts and a list of possible responses. However, those choices often don't make any sense, and often the little 1-2 word options don't really tell you what's on the far side of them."

Just know that this deal won't last forever. You'll only be able to pick up The Red Lantern until June 18 at 10AM ET, so you don't have a lot of time. Remember, redeeming Steam freebies is one of the easiest processes on the market. All you need to do is stay logged in through a browser, then click the "add to account" button.

Unlike the Epic Games Store, Steam won't even give you a pop-up with any provisos and the like. It's instantly added to your account for a rainy day, even after the promotion ends.