Instead of playing a full game this week, I decided to talk more about Steam Nexfest demos. Like I said before, I played a lot of games this time around and a majority of them were really good, so I want to talk about them. This week is a game based around being the producer of a new and upcoming trash TV show. This week is The Crush House.

The Crush House is the first-ever Thirst-Person-Shooter from Nerial and Devolver Digital. The game is slated to be released for the PC in August.

You take the role of Jae, a young woman who has achieved her dream of becoming a producer of a reality TV show named The Crush House. It’s only you and your camera as you walk around and capture all of the happy, sad, and fighting moments in the house to keep the show and your job alive. The studio demands so much from you and as you give your all to keep the show alive, Jae will learn what is really going on in the house after hours why the stars are drinking so much Crush Juice, and where they go in the slide of success.

Jae lives on set, in a little dinky room with a small cot and every morning you can check the work PC and get your work for the day. This is where The Crush House gets interesting. You are there to record the stars, sure, but you need to make money and satisfy audiences. This requires recording objects and interactions, and obtaining points until the audiences are satisfied by day’s end. For instance, plant lovers will want you to record people near the potted plants while older women will want you to record the younger men and plumbers who want to see some fucking water.

There is also a live chat on the right-hand side of the screen that gives you suggestions for more points if you get stuck. People will want to see things from a higher view, see some ass, or even want to watch people fight. It really adds to the whole reality show vibe the game is already achieving really well.

Running ads get you money and you can use that money to purchase sweet stuff for The Crush House. Karokee machine, a huge fountain, and some Chorby’s that stare at the house guests. Run too many ads though and you will lose viewers and lose out on the maximum money from the ads. Taking commercial breaks is important.

It’s a good system that allows the player to essentially play any way that they want to satisfy the needs of the weird audience that watches the show.

So far The Crush House’s demo contestants are fun and believable. You have one woman who “wants everyone to like her” housemate, the surfer dude bro, and the open shirt hairy chested foreign guy. They all have personalities and sometimes they butt heads and sometimes they get along but it is always so fun to watch them interact with each other.

The Crush House is a colorful game and it really reminds me of a cheezy trash TV show. The Crush House is a Malibu dream mansion with its own gym, karaoke stage, basement living spaces, a huge pool, and a nice garden to romance in. The wobbly stature of the contestants makes them even funnier to watch while the first-person camera view really captures the reality TV show vibe.

The Crush House demo is a dope look into a really clever video game. You can sit down with someone who doesn’t play video games and watch as their eyes light up as these stupid contestants argue about dumb shit and fawn over each other while working out. It is a breath of fresh air to play The Crush House and cannot wait to play the full game in August.