The archive · Business Models · Product decision · 2013
Steam Early Access (2013): players pay for unfinished games as they're built
Valve sells unfinished games with an Early Access label: players pay now, play during development, fund the work, and their feedback shapes the finished game.
Valve Corporation · Steam
What it had to solve
In March 2013, Steam carried more than 2,000 finished titles, but small developers — many already using Steam Greenlight — lacked a formal way to get money and player feedback before launch. Valve wanted to let developers 'ship early, involve customers, and build lasting relationships' without pretending the game was done.
How it works
On March 20, 2013, Valve added an Early Access section to Steam, its store of more than 2,000 games. The idea: let developers sell a game while it is still being made. Buyers pay a set price, download what exists today, and receive automatic updates as the developers keep building — with forums, screenshots and guides so the community's feedback becomes part of the development loop.
The launch lineup of 12 titles ran from small experiments to Arma 3, Kerbal Space Program and Prison Architect, priced from $6.99 to $32.99. Valve framed the section as a chance for players to 'go behind the scenes' of the development cycle, and developers gained the flexibility to discount early and raise the price as a game got closer to completion — early buyers effectively funded the work.
Valve's press release quoted developer Sean Pollman of Badland Studio saying Steam Greenlight had raised awareness for Kinetic Void, and Early Access would let the studio continue development 'while gathering crucial feedback, input and support.' GameSpot's coverage carried Valve's line that 'this is the way games should be made' — an explicit pitch that paying for unfinished work was a feature, not a bug.
Why it lands
- The warning does the selling: an honest 'this is unfinished' label turns a flaw into a reason to buy early and join the process.
- Players' money arrives when developers need it most — before launch — instead of after, which changes which games can exist.
- Feedback is built into the product: automatic updates, forums, screenshots and guides make playing a form of work.
- Pricing can rise as the game matures, so early buyers are rewarded for the risk they take.
What it did
Early Access launched with 12 titles priced roughly from $6.99 to $32.99, and Valve's press release framed it as a way for the community to 'go behind the scenes' of development. The first lineup included Kerbal Space Program and Prison Architect, which grew with their players' money and feedback, and the release pushed the idea that paying for unfinished work was 'the way games should be made.'
What you can take
Sell the process, not just the finished product: when customers pay during development, money funds the work and their feedback improves it — but only if the unfinished state is admitted up front.
Since then
Early Access outgrew its first 12 titles and became a familiar fixture of PC game releases, used by studios from tiny indies to large publishers to raise money, test design and build communities before launch. The model also produced visible failures — games abandoned mid-development or stuck unfinished for years — and competitors later adopted similar programs on other storefronts and consoles, making 'early access' a recognized business format rather than a Steam quirk.
Sources
- Steam Opens Early Access
- Steam Early Access lets gamers buy and play titles still in development
- Steam introduces Early Access
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