Steam About Section Bullets and Demo Scope Parity - Next Fest 2026 Checklist for Micro-Studios

Your About this game section is where marketing teams hide the biggest lies. Short descriptions get trimmed; tags get audited; trailer frames get timestamp tables—but bullet lists still promise co-op campaigns, chapter four, and mod tools your Next Fest demo never loads. Players scroll past the capsule, read three confident bullets, install, and refund when hour one contradicts bullet two.

This checklist treats About copy as G2 long-form metadata in your Wednesday export ritual—same evidence tone as short description and store-demo mismatch recovery. Anchor field expectations to Steamworks written description documentation. No invented studios or metrics—only patterns micro-teams can run this week.

Time to read: ~32 minutes. Time to run first bullet audit: ~2 hours with cold install and exports wired.

Why this matters now (May–October 2026)

1. Fest readers skim bullets before FAQ — Long-form is not unread; bullets are the skim layer.
2. LLM drafts love bullet lists — FAQ LLM pipeline failures often start in About, then spread to FAQ.
3. Partners paste bullet blocks — Under intake compression, diligence PDFs quote bullets beside build_id.
4. Visual stack must match — Screenshot gallery sequence gate five and About bullets must tell one story.
5. May is the edit month — October locks creative; fix bullet drift in May, not fest eve.

Direct answer: Export live About text to git, list every bullet as a claim, mark pass/fail against fest demo hour one on BUILD_RECEIPT branch, delete or rewrite failures before promotion, and diff weekly like G1–G3 surfaces.

Who this is for

Prerequisites

About structure map (what to audit)

Skip auditing patch history sections in About if you maintain separate news posts—still ensure no bullet in About references unshipped modes.

Bullet proof table (core artifact)

about-bullet-proof.md:

Pass rule: Engineer reproduces claim without dev console cheats in fest zip tied to current build_id.

Twelve gates before Steam paste (About-specific)

Triangle diff (About + short description + tags)

1. Extract verbs from first three About bullets.
2. Compare to 300-character short description.
3. Compare to scope tags in tag table.

Any verb in two surfaces but failing hour one is P0—fix all same day.

Opening paragraph discipline

The paragraph before bullets sets expectations. Required elements for fest demos:

• Genre in plain words (two terms max).
• Demo boundary ("Next Fest demo includes…" or "vertical slice covers…").
• Honest platform list (Windows only if only Windows ships).

Forbidden without proof: "massive," "infinite," "genre-defining," "award-winning."

Bullet rewrite lenses (ten)

1. Scope shrink — replace world-spanning nouns with one biome name.
2. Mode downgrade — "online co-op" → "single-player demo."
3. Future tense removal — "will feature" → delete or move to news.
4. Combine redundant bullets — five vague bullets → three proof-backed bullets.
5. Split overloaded bullets — one bullet claiming three systems → three bullets each tested.
6. Control honesty — list only tested devices.
7. AI clause — sync AI disclosure challenge.
8. Monetization strip — price/DLC bullets belong in G5 checks, not feature bullets.
9. Compare / competitor strip — remove "like Game X" unless counsel approved.
10. Accessibility — only claim features players can use in demo.

Ninety-minute About audit sprint

Wednesday ritual integration

Add G2 About export explicitly to weekly packet—many teams export G1 only. Pair with 14 metadata tools if manual copy-paste is still your path.

Truth audit week placement

Seven-day wishlist truth audit — assign Day 2 to About bullets + opening paragraph; Day 1 short description; Day 4 trailer; Day 5 specs.

Vertical slice and metadata freeze

Vertical slice challenge Day 4 store parity must include About proof table green. Five-day metadata freeze can dedicate Day 2 to G2 About field group.

LLM drafting governance

Never paste raw LLM bullet lists. Pipeline:

1. Prompt with demo boundary and banned words (co-op, MMO, open world if untrue).
2. Generate bullets in git only.
3. Engineer marks each bullet pass/fail.
4. Writer merges passing lines only.
5. Run FAQ Gate D honesty on surviving bullets.

Mock audit tabletop

Mock audit dimension seven: producer reads bullets aloud; engineer plays hour one silent; writer marks mismatches.

Partner ZIP README row

Per partner ZIP naming:

About bullets signed 2026-09-12 in about-bullet-proof.md; maps to BUILD_RECEIPT build_id.

Fest marketing cap

Pause fest marketing spend when About proof table has any Fail row—ads amplify bullet lies.

Release-evidence folder

Store under release-evidence/03-store/about/:

• about-approved.md
• live-about-YYYY-MM-DD.txt
• about-bullet-proof.md
• about-diff.patch

Matches release-evidence taxonomy.

Failure modes (eight)

1. Copy-paste full-game About on demo page.
2. Bullets written after trailer hype session.
3. Ignoring opening paragraph because "bullets matter more."
4. Letting contractors paste without proof table.
5. Changing bullets without re-exporting same day.
6. English bullets fixed while localized pages lie.
7. Using bullets as patch notes changelog.
8. Arguing "players read full text" in support tickets.

Recovery sketch (bullet yellow)

Same cadence as 48-hour store-demo mismatch recovery.

Pro tips (nine)

1. Keep bullets to six max for fest demos—density ≠ trust.
2. Start each bullet with a verb players do.
3. Mirror top three bullets in demo patch notes.
4. Tag git store/about-2026-09-12.
5. Run tag drift sprint after bullet scope cuts.
6. Pair with capsule discipline opinion.
7. Teach interns: bullets are claims, not adjectives.
8. Archive Steam HTML export monthly.
9. Add About checkbox to operating review Block 2.

Worked example (anonymous)

Bad bullets: "Explore a vast open world" / "Raid with friends online" / "Hundreds of weapons." Demo: one arena, solo, twelve weapons.

Fixed bullets: "Next Fest demo — tactical arena combat in one handcrafted zone" / "Single-player slice with twelve prototype weapons" / "Full game roadmap in development updates."

Roadmap bullet quarantine

If you need roadmap energy, use a single bullet prefixed "Full game (not in demo):" with sub-bullets clearly labeled non-playable—or move roadmap to event posts only.

Long prose between bullets (paragraph audit)

Writers sometimes hide lies in connective paragraphs between bullet groups—marketing poetry that never appears in the proof table. Audit rules:

Highlight risky sentences in yellow in about-approved.md; engineer does not need to repro lore, but gameplay implications in lore still need proof (e.g., "sail the six seas" when demo has one dock).

Bullet ordering is an argument

Order matters as much as wording—same law as gallery order in screenshot gates. Recommended fest-demo order:

1. What the demo is (boundary bullet).
2. Core loop verb (what player does repeatedly).
3. Controls / platforms (honest).
4. Content depth in slice (one chapter, one biome—specific).
5. Full game pointer (optional, clearly labeled non-demo).

Do not lead with full-game fantasy bullets above demo truth bullets—players stop reading after bullet one.

Accessibility and content descriptor alignment

If About bullets mention photosensitivity, online interactions, or mature themes, align with store content descriptors and what the demo actually triggers. Mismatch invites policy questions faster than performance lies. Cross-check AI disclosure when bullets reference generative dialogue.

Multiplayer and social bullets (expanded)

If proof is "almost works in debug," the bullet is Fail until promotion includes the fix.

Engine and toolchain bullets

Avoid bullets like "Built with Unreal Engine 5" unless you need engine SEO—engine names do not help players and sometimes imply features (Nanite, Lumen) absent in your demo build. Prefer player verbs. If you mention engine for credibility, pair with what the demo actually runs (e.g., "Demo built on UE 5.4 — single biome lighting path").

UTM and campaign landing consistency

UTM discipline campaigns that land on your Steam page inherit bullet expectations from ads. If an ad promises "free weekend co-op," About bullets cannot say solo-only without updating the ad—triangle diff extends to ad copy as a fourth vertex when spend is active.

Two-storefront and press kit parity

Two-storefront rule teams must diff About bullets per surface. Press kits that copy Steam bullets verbatim need the same proof table—journalists quote press kit bullets in articles that drive Steam traffic.

Asia–EU handoff for copy edits

Asia–EU handoff teams: forbid overnight About paste without morning export diff—EU morning often discovers US marketing added three bullets at midnight.

Evidence cycles vs daily bullet churn

Evidence cycles opinion applies—batch About edits weekly. Daily bullet tweaks train returning readers that your store page is unstable, and partners cannot snapshot consistent diligence PDFs.

Publisher diligence appendix

Under publisher diligence packets, attach:

• about-bullet-proof.md (signed)
• live-about.txt export hash
• Screenshot of Steam store About section with date

Publishers care that long-form copy is governed, not that it is poetic.

Post-October retro (four questions)

1. Which bullet appeared in refund reviews?
2. Did we change bullets without build_id change?
3. Did localized About drift from English proof table?
4. Did partners cite a bullet we later deleted?

Archive in operating review Block 2.

May–October About cadence

Align promotions with demo depot playbook.

Cold-hash and manifest tangents

If diligence questions build integrity more than copy, pivot to cold-hash challenge—but still fix About bullets if they caused the reviewer to install expecting wrong modes.

Support macros for bullet disputes

Our About bullets describe the Next Fest demo slice. Bullet #2 was updated on <date> to reflect solo-only scope. Please confirm you are on build <build_id> from BUILD_RECEIPT notes in patch notes.

Macros reduce improvised support promises that reintroduce co-op language.

Git diff workflow (practical)

1. about-approved.md is source of truth.
2. Export Steam to live-about-YYYY-MM-DD.txt.
3. Run diff -u about-approved.md live-about-YYYY-MM-DD.txt (or VS Code compare).
4. Non-empty diff without approved PR → incident—revert Steam or merge git forward.
5. Attach diff output to release-evidence/03-store/about/ for partner packets.

Empty diff is the only acceptable state before fest marketing cap increases.

Contractor and agency guardrails

Agencies love rewriting About for "conversion." Contract clauses that work:

• No Steamworks paste rights until internal proof table is green.
• All drafts live in your git repo, not their Google Doc.
• One round of bullet edits per evidence cycle unless build_id changes.
• Agency may not add comparative adjectives ("best," "only") without legal review.

Comparison to hash mismatch recovery

Hash mismatch case study is bytes; About bullets are expectations. Packet shape matches: timeline, exports, cold install, prevention habits—keep incidents in one folder tree.

Quick start (solo dev, one evening)

Export About, list your top five bullets in a table, cold install fest demo, mark pass/fail, delete one failing bullet, re-export, commit. You will finish faster than rewriting the entire page from scratch—and you will learn which bullet hurt trust most.

Snippet-friendly answers

How many About bullets for a fest demo?
Three to six proof-backed bullets beat twelve aspirational ones.

Should About repeat short description?
Align meaning, do not duplicate sentences—short description is browse; About is depth.

Can About mention full game price?
Keep commerce in G5 workflows—see regional pricing worksheet.

Do reviewers read About?
Partners do; players skim bullets—both matter.

Key takeaways

• About bullets are claims—each needs hour-one proof on fest build_id.
• Maintain bullet proof table with engineer sign-off.
• Run twelve About gates plus triangle diff with short description and tags.
• Export G2 About weekly in Wednesday ritual.
• Integrate with truth audit, vertical slice, and visual stack audits.
• Quarantine roadmap bullets or label them non-demo explicitly.
• LLM drafts require engineer pass/fail per line.
• Recovery uses rewrite + cold install + receipts, not tone arguments.
• Anchor to Steamworks written description field expectations.
• May–October 2026: fix bullets in May, freeze by September.

Common mistakes (ten)

1. Treating About as immune because FAQ was audited.
2. Leading with full-game bullets before demo boundary bullet.
3. Letting lore paragraphs imply playable scope.
4. Copying press kit bullets without re-proofing.
5. Changing bullets when only screenshots changed.
6. Ignoring localized About after English fix.
7. Using bullets as patch notes.
8. Skipping opening paragraph audit.
9. Approving LLM lists without per-line engineer marks.
10. Shipping October edits without September freeze discipline.

Integrating with crash and retention signals

When crash-log challenge rows are red, pause About bullet edits that claim stability. When demo patch retention triage shows misleading spikes, search bullet diffs in the same week you changed copy—correlation is not proof, but it is a useful alarm.

FAQ

Is the About section the same as FAQ?
No—audit both; FAQ drift is a separate pipeline.

Can bullets include emoji?
Only if brand requires—never hide scope in emoji fluff.

What if Steam UI merges paragraphs?
Export after save; diff exports, not memory.

Should students use one markdown file?
Yes—about-approved.md is enough.

How tie to BUILD_RECEIPT?
Note build_id at top of proof table each promotion.

What if bullet is "coming soon"?
Remove from About for demo page—use news hub.

Can we quote press awards?
Only real, verifiable awards—otherwise delete.

Does this replace screenshot gates?
No—complements screenshot composition gates.

How often refresh in October?
Typo-only unless demo scope changes.

Link to AI patch notes?
Yes when bullets change gameplay—human-gated patch notes.

What if we have no bullets, only paragraphs?
Treat each gameplay-implying sentence as a pseudo-bullet in the proof table—same pass/fail rules apply.

Conclusion

Players forgive ugly capsules faster than they forgive confident bullets about features that never load. Your About section is the manifesto they quote in refund reviews—make every bullet a line item engineers would sign.

Export live copy, build the proof table, run the triangle diff, and paste Steamworks only when Fail rows hit zero. That is how micro-studios survive October with long-form copy that reads ambitious and plays honest.

If you change one habit this week: open about-approved.md, delete the single bullet you cannot prove on a cold install, and sleep better before fest traffic arrives.

The metadata cluster you already built—short description, tags, trailer, specs, events—was never complete without long-form bullets. Finish the cluster by giving About the same receipt discipline you gave build_id, and October traffic meets a store page that reads ambitious in prose and plays honest in the first hour.