Palworld’s John “Bucky” Buckley Says Steam Next Fest Is “Still Worth Taking” Despite AI Slop, Explains Why Indie Developers Shouldn’t Give Up

Palworld publishing and communications lead John “Bucky” Buckley believes indie developers should not abandon Steam Next Fest despite concerns about AI-generated games flooding the platform. In a post on X published on October 20, 2026, Buckley argued that struggling to attract players is not a new problem for smaller studios, even as concerns about low-quality AI-generated releases continue to grow. Buckley acknowledged that AI slop can make discovering worthwhile games more difficult. However, he argued that developers should not blame…