A couple of days ago, the RTS game Stormgate was launched into Steam Early Access by Frost Giant. Although it’s ultimately intended to be free, this Early Access stage does require a $25 payment. Potential players, some of whom were backing the game on platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo with amounts reaching up to $360, were aware of this.
This large player investment was motivated by the expectation of receiving all the content Frost Giant had developed during the Early Access period. However, they were surprised to find that one of the game’s Heroes, Warz, was immediately available for purchase. Backers and those who bought the Ultimate Early Access Pack directly from Steam at $60 were displeased with this development.
Frost Giant confronted this issue recently in a published post, sharing their experiences and lessons from Early Access. They stated they attempted to clarify the bundle content during the Kickstarter campaign, but they now understand some players might have misinterpreted the “Ultimate” bundles as a means to acquire all of the game content available at the time of their Early Access release.
In an effort to repair relations, Frost Giant has pledged to award the subsequent paid Hero to both Ultimate backers and those who purchase the Pack on Steam, as a way of saying “thank you” and making backers feel appreciated. However, the free Hero is not going to be Warz because it’s already been purchased by some players.
Currently, the game receives mixed reviews overall, and the Ultimate pack has garnered several negative reviews. It remains to be seen how this will affect their standing. Worth noting, other aspects also contributed to the negative reviews, as Mike shared on the day of the launch.
