Why Early Access?

“We're using Early Access because Ciao Pizza is a co-op game, and co-op games are shaped by how real groups actually play them. The core loop of pressing dough, cooking sauce, grating cheese, loading toppings, running the oven, serving customers, and handling deliveries is already there, but chaos is hard to balance in a vacuum.

We want to see how real crews split the kitchen between them, which stations turn into bottlenecks, how hard the rush should hit, and where the panic becomes fun instead of frustrating. Early Access gives us the chance to tune that together with the community instead of waiting until everything is locked in.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“The current plan is for Ciao Pizza to stay in Early Access for around 12 to 18 months.

That timeline may shift depending on development progress and community feedback, but our goal is to take the time needed to grow the game properly rather than rush it out before it's ready.”

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

“The full version is planned to be a bigger, deeper, and more polished version of the game. During Early Access, we plan to expand Ciao Pizza with:

- More recipes, ingredients, and menu items
- More kitchen stations and equipment to master
- More customer types, events, and daily modifiers
- More delivery routes, vehicles, and street chaos
- Deeper progression, upgrades, and shop customization
- Full localization and accessibility options
- More polish, optimization, and quality-of-life improvements”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“The Early Access version already includes the full pizzeria loop. You and your friends run the shop together in first person: press the dough, cook and ladle the sauce, grate the cheese, load the toppings, then slide the pizza into the oven with the peel and pull it out before it burns.

Customers walk in, queue at the registers, order, pay, and wait with a patience timer running. You pour drinks at the fountain, plate orders on trays, hand them over the counter, and restock from delivery boxes when the fridge runs dry. Orders also come in by phone, so you can send them out by delivery robot or ride them across town yourself on the scooter.

The full service day is playable, with the cooking stations, the customer AI, the money and sales history, the delivery system, and the difficulty curve all implemented. What's still ahead is more content, more variety, and more polish to bring the game to its full vision.”

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

“Yes. The plan is to launch at a lower price during Early Access and gradually raise it as major content and improvements are added.

That way, early players get in at the best price and help shape the game as it grows.”

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

“We want the community to be a real part of the development process during Early Access. We'll be listening through:

- Steam discussions and reviews
- Our Discord server
- Bug reports and feedback forms
- Regular dev updates and patch notes
- Community polls on upcoming features and changes

A big part of Early Access for us is figuring out what players respond to most: which stations create the best teamwork, how much pressure a shift should carry, and what makes a group want to run one more day when the kitchen is already on fire.”