Why Early Access?

“The core of Kazfall — the combat, the three-stage progression and the run economy — is built and stable enough to play for hours at a time. The game around that core is not finished and I do not want to finish it alone

A year of content is planned and deliberately not locked down: a new endgame mode for players who have cleared the three stages, additional bosses, an online leaderboard, and a steadily growing pool of items, skills, rooms and enemies. What those become, and the order they arrive in, is what I want Early Access players to decide with me. The endgame mode especially is a direction question rather than a polish task — there are several ways it could work, and the right one depends on how people actually play this game, not on how I imagine they will.

I am ready for the commitment that involves: a year of active development, regular content updates, patch notes that explain the reasoning behind a change instead of only listing it, and being present in the Steam Discussions to read and reply. I intend to see Kazfall through to its 1.0 release and to keep supporting it afterwards.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“Around a year, with the 1.0 release — codenamed The Siege — targeted for 2027. That window is sized for the content planned during it rather than for a bug-fixing period, and if player feedback redirects what gets built, I would rather adjust the plan than the deadline.”

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

“The 1.0 version adds a new endgame mode, additional bosses and an online leaderboard, and expands the rooms, enemies, items and skills throughout the existing stages.

The specifics are deliberately open. The shape the endgame mode takes, which bosses are added and what the leaderboard actually ranks are the three decisions I most want Early Access feedback to influence, so I would expect the details here to change during the year — that is the point of releasing this way. Everything already in the Early Access build stays and keeps being expanded; the full version is Early Access plus, not Early Access replaced.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“Playable from start to finish and stable. The build has three stages of NPC-gated progression, two bosses, a vast roster of enemy types, 63 pieces of equipment, 29 skills, the complete meta-progression economy, a Codex with 28 achievements, full controller support and accessibility options.

It does not yet have the endgame mode, the additional bosses or the leaderboard described above, and the item, skill, room and enemy pools will all grow during Early Access. Balance across the later stages is still settling, which is normal for a roguelite at this point and is one of the things player feedback corrects fastest.”

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

“The price will increase modestly at the v1.0 release. Buying during Early Access is the cheaper route, and the update is free to everyone who already owns the game.”

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

“Through the Steam Discussions and the community hub, on two levels.

The first is direction. The endgame mode, the additional bosses and the leaderboard are all still open, and I would rather put options to the people playing the game than pick alone. When there is a real choice to make, I will describe it in the Discussions and decide with the feedback in hand.

The second is the game as it stands. Every descent is generated fresh, so players will walk into situations I never will — layouts I did not anticipate, builds I did not think were possible, combinations that are quietly far too strong. Those reports change what gets built next, not just what gets tuned. Changes will be posted with the reasoning behind them rather than as a bare patch note.”