One of Microsoft's two games that it will publish this year from third-party developers has just launched on the PC via Steam as an Early Access title. It's Towerborne, the fantasy-themed side-scrolling action RPG from developer Stoic that was first announced in June 2023.
As was first revealed a few weeks ago, Towerborne is launching as a paid Early Access game on Steam. The Silver Founder's Pack costs $24.99 while the Gold Founders Pack costs $44.99. In a post on the Xbox Wire site, Trisha Stouffer, the CEO and President of Stoic, stated:
We chose Steam Early Access for two main reasons: first, it offers the ideal space for a studio like ours to gather feedback and iterate quickly — a process fully supported by Xbox, as it ensures the best experience for players. Second, starting with Steam helps us build a solid foundation before expanding to the larger, global audience that comes with Xbox Game Preview.
Purchasing one of the Founders Packs will give players access to exclusive in-game cosmetic items, along with monthly rewards. Stoic says the Early Access version will still offer the full-scale experience with exploring new areas of the game world, taking on missions, and battling in combat. The developer promises "dozens of hours of gameplay" during Early Access.
If you need to see some gameplay before you take the plunge into Early Access, the latest Towerborne video developer diary on YouTube offers over 20 minutes of footage from the game including pre-mission features in the game's central area, the Belfry, along with lots of combat footage.
Towerborne will launch on Xbox and Windows PC via the Xbox Game Preview program later in 2025. When it does reach version 1.0, it will become a free-to-play title with optional paid content. We will soon see if this business model will work.
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