Why Early Access?

“Ships At Sea is an ambitious and evolving maritime simulation experience featuring single and online co-op gameplay, advanced vessel systems, fishing operations, cargo transport, exploration, and more. As development continues, we plan to further expand the game with new mechanics, ships, industries, and simulation features.

From the beginning, community feedback has played an important role in shaping the game's direction. Early Access allows us to work closely with our players while continuously improving and expanding the experience.

With an active community, we can refine gameplay systems, improve multiplayer functionality and overall stability, balance progression, and prioritize the features players care about most. Our goal is to create one of the most immersive maritime simulation experiences possible, and Early Access gives us the opportunity to build that experience together with the community throughout development.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“We currently expect Ships At Sea to remain in Early Access for at least another 1–2 years as we continue expanding and polishing the experience.

The upcoming updates planned for 2026 will complete the planned Class 4 progression, including wind turbine supply operations with deployable daughter crafts, ferry gameplay, and crab and lobster fishing. After that, development will continue toward the final planned Class 5 ships and their related gameplay systems.”

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

“The full version of Ships At Sea is planned to significantly expand upon the current Early Access experience with additional ships, industries, gameplay systems, and overall content.

Future updates will introduce the planned Class 4 progression, including wind turbine supply operations, ferry gameplay, and expanded fishing mechanics such as crab and lobster fishing. Development will then continue toward the final planned Class 5 ships, including trawling vessels, mid-size container ships, and offshore service ships alongside their related gameplay systems.

We also plan to continue improving multiplayer gameplay with dedicated server support, progression and skill tree systems, animations, sound design, vessel mechanics, stability, optimization, and overall immersion throughout development.

While the Early Access version already offers a substantial co-op maritime simulation experience, the full version is intended to represent a more polished, feature-complete, and content-rich vision of the game.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“The Early Access version of Ships At Sea currently offers a playable maritime simulation experience with both single-player and online co-op multiplayer. Players can explore the game world, visit ports and harbours, purchase equipment, take on different activities, manage vessels, sell catches, transport cargo, and progress through multiple ship classes.

The game currently includes 13 playable boats and ships across Classes 1, 2, and 3, with the planned Class 4 ships now being introduced in upcoming updates. Existing gameplay systems include fishing, cargo transport, fish farming support, vessel rigging, upgrades, repairs, maintenance, wheelhouse instrument interaction, sonar, radar, autopilot, radio support with external radio channels, twin and triple engine throttle support, map, logbook, character customization, and several core UI systems.

We are also actively improving the overall experience with new animations, updated sound effects, dedicated server support, dynamic and manual weather options, weather forecasts, character customization improvements, and a fully accessible shipyard and dry dock system for larger vessels.

As an Early Access title, Ships At Sea is still in active development. Some systems are still being expanded, balanced, optimized, and polished, and players may encounter bugs or incomplete features as we continue improving the game together with community feedback.”

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

“There will be no price increase during the Early Access version. However, the price will be adjusted once the full version is completed.”

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

“Community feedback plays an important role in the ongoing development of Ships At Sea. Our primary communication channels are our Discord server and the Steam forums, where players can share feedback, report issues, discuss gameplay systems, and suggest new features or improvements.

We actively monitor community discussions and use player feedback to help prioritize improvements, balance gameplay systems, and shape future updates throughout the Early Access development process.”