Character House Demo Download: What You Get and What You Need

The only build you can download today is the free demo. It has its own Steam page and launched on 16 September 2026. The full game still shows as not yet available on Steam, with 2026 as its only release window, so there is nothing to buy or pre-order. Set aside 512 MB of disk space at minimum, and 1 GB if you want the recommended figure.

The download in three steps

1. Open the demo page on Steam. Its name is Character House -Desktop Companion- Demo.
2. Choose the download option. Steam adds the demo to your library like any other free item.
3. Launch it from your Steam library. The app does not open a normal game window; your character appears on the desktop itself.

There is no separate installer, no account on a third-party site, and no launcher outside Steam.

Size, platforms and requirements

The store page lists two platforms, each with its own requirement table.

Steam also lists single-player, Steam Cloud and Family Sharing. Steam Deck compatibility is marked as unknown, so do not assume it works there.

The full game’s store page carries the same platform listing, so the requirements above are the best available guide to what the release will need.

What the demo already contains

The demo is not a 10-minute sample. The build already includes the character studio, the three desktop behaviours, the key counter and the accessory collection loop. Player reviews describe sitting a character at a desk while typing, earning the currency, and buying expressions and hats with it.

What you cannot do in the demo is evaluate the finished product. The store page for the full game has no user reviews at all, because it has not launched.

Why there is no browser or mobile version

Character House is a desktop overlay. The whole point of the app is that the character is drawn on top of your own desktop while you use other software, which is not something a browser tab can reproduce in the same way.

Both the demo and the main release list Windows and macOS only. There is no web build, no mobile build and no console version. One reviewer suggested a mobile app that counts steps instead of keystrokes, but that is a player idea, not an announcement.

If the download button is missing

Check the store page for your own region rather than a page cached from elsewhere, and make sure you are signed in to Steam on the desktop client. Some regions and some storefront views hide the download control until the client is involved.

Once installed, if the character appears but the background is black instead of transparent, that is a known issue with its own fix page.

Related reading

• What the game costs and what is still unknown: price status
• Running it on a Mac: Mac requirements
• Something looks wrong after installing: fixes