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Steam Early Access

Also called: Early Access, Early access game, Early Access launch

Steam Early Access lets a studio sell a playable but unfinished game on Steam while development continues, with the store page saying so.

12 months: Without an update, Steam flags the store page

Steam Early Access is a way to sell a game on Steam before it is finished. Valve describes it as selling a game while it is still being developed, for games that are playable in an alpha or beta state and will keep getting updates (Steamworks documentation, partner.steamgames.com/doc/store/earlyaccess, accessed 28 Oct 2026). A tech demo is too early, and a game that only needs final bug testing should launch as a full release.

The same page limits what a studio can say and charge. A studio must not promise a completion date or future features, and the Early Access price must be no higher than on any other store. If a game gets no build on the default branch and no update news for 12 months, Steam shows a notice that it has not been updated in a while. Steam opened Early Access on 20 March 2013 with 12 games (Wikipedia, "Early access", accessed 28 Oct 2026).

For QA, an Early Access launch is still a launch. Players pay, review the game from the first hour and carry their saves into every later update. Testers focus on the first session, save compatibility between updates and a regression pass on each patch.

Updated · Written by , founder of Jumbo Jelly.

Where to read more

  • Regression pass

    A regression pass retests features that already worked after a code change, to catch bugs the new patch broke in old parts of the game.

  • Steam beta branch

    A Steam beta branch is a separate build of a game that players opt into from the game's properties, often locked with a password for testers.

  • Steam review score

    The Steam review score is the rating label on a store page, built from positive and negative reviews by players who bought the game on Steam.

  • Day-one patch

    A day-one patch is an update released on or right after launch day to fix bugs found after the release build was locked or once players arrived.

All glossary terms