The official digital demo for Touhou Kinjoukyou: Fossilized Wonders, Touhou Project’s 20th mainline installment, was released on May 8, 2025, three days following its exclusive physical launch at Reitaisai 22. However, even though the demo was announced for a Steam release, it seems that Steam users won’t be able to play it for the time being, as it did not match Steam store’s criteria and ended up getting rejected.
In a recent X post, Touhou series creator ZUN apologized to his fans for Fossilized Wonders’ demo version being late to launch on Steam. He explains that the reason for the demo’s rejection from Steam is “the game’s description being too simple.” He jokingly adds that he’s sorry for cutting corners, leaving fans wondering just how “simple” the description actually was. In his defense, with the Touhou series’ massive history, the games hardly require lengthy introductions anymore.
While ZUN is on his way to get the game back up on Steam, if you’re feeling impatient, you can download the demo of Touhou’s new installment from DLstore.
In celebration of reaching a new milestone with Fossilized Wonders, Touhou will be returning to its roots – according to the description on DLstore, the game will be a classic bullet hell reminiscent of the early Touhou titles, with only Reimu and Marisa as the two playable characters. Another distinctive feature of the game will be the “wonder stones,” items that can, when equipped, alter the gameplay and story.
The full version of Touhou Kinjoukyou: Fossilized Wonders is set to release in August 2025, at Comiket 106.
