Why Early Access?

“Early Access will allow us to share the core Under Canopies experience with players while we continue to complete and refine the systems planned for the full release.

During this period, we want to see how players explore the Sanctuary, build, manage resources, and interact with its animals. This feedback will be especially valuable for improving balance, progression, tutorial clarity, building system usability, performance, and overall quality of life before the full release.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“We currently plan for Under Canopies to remain in Early Access for approximately three months.

We will use this period to complete and refine the main systems, address bugs, improve balance, and prepare the game for its full release.

After version 1.0, we plan to continue supporting the game with fixes, improvements, and potential content expansions. These plans may evolve based on community feedback and the ongoing development of the game.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“We plan to expand and complete Under Canopies in several areas throughout Early Access and through future updates:

• The Cave and the Great Axolotl: We would like to add a new underground area, a questline centered around discovering it, and a series of interactions focused on finding the Great Axolotl and earning its trust.
  
• Sanctuary Lore: We plan to add more hidden narrative elements throughout the world, as well as new journal entries exploring the history of the Sanctuary, its former inhabitants, and its creatures.
  
• Progression and Content: We aim to expand the resource and crafting tiers, including additional uses for stone, steel, gold, and other uncommon materials. This may include new recipes, food, placeable objects, buried treasures, and rewards hidden behind environmental obstacles.
  
• Cozy Building: We plan to continue improving the building system and add modular pieces for creating cabins, bridges, treehouses, watchtowers, camps, and animal habitats. We also want to provide more flexible tools for decorating and personalizing these spaces.
  
• Photography: We would like to expand the camera tools and the ways photographs can be used to document creatures, the world, and player creations.
  
• Animals: We plan to introduce more animals and deepen interactions with existing species, including recurring activities after earning their trust and additional connections to the food and crafting systems.
  
  These are our current intentions and may evolve based on development and the feedback we receive during Early Access.

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What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“The Early Access version provides a playable experience focused on the main systems of Under Canopies. Players can explore the Sanctuary, gather resources, craft and cook items, build and decorate shelters, use the camera, discover letters, and interact with different animals.

The tutorial and initial progression introduce these systems across several hours of gameplay, although playtime may vary depending on each player's approach to exploration and building.

The game does not yet include its narrative conclusion or the full depth of its planned content. Throughout Early Access, we will continue working on balance, stability, optimization, progression clarity, and bug fixes.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“Yes. We plan to increase the game's price once Early Access ends to reflect the additional content and improvements added during Early Access.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“We will actively monitor feedback, bug reports, and suggestions shared through the Steam forums and our official Discord community.

We plan to publish development updates and patch notes to keep players informed about the game's progress. Recurring feedback about balance, building, progression, animals, performance, and quality-of-life improvements will help us identify priorities throughout Early Access.

While we may not be able to implement every suggestion, we want to maintain open communication with our community and explain how player feedback influences the development of Under Canopies.”