Co-op sandbox fans have been eagerly awaiting the Funcom-published title Aloft all year as the Ghibli-inspired game trekked through a demo and con season. It was meant to hit early access this very fall, but you can tell by the headline and tense here that it’s not happening.
“A couple months ago, we announced that Aloft would be entering Early Access in the [f]all of 2024,” studio Astrolabe Interactive says today. “Following many discussions and much consideration, we have decided to move the game’s Early Access release to January 2025.” The reason won’t be a surprise to anyone: The devs want more time to polish since the world continues to treat early access as soft launches.
“We realize this may be disappointing news to many of you, and that’s why we want to assure you that this decision was not made lightly. We’re very happy with the game’s progress at this stage, but there is a certain amount of extra polish, detail, and fine-tuning that we would love to complete before truly raising the anchor. While we are launching in Early Access, we’re committed to delivering a level of quality that surpasses all our previous updates. We want you to be blown away by your very first leap into the skies of Aloft – so this extra time will be of utmost importance for the betterment of the game, and ultimately, the player experience.”
Ahoy, Sky Sailors! A couple months ago, we announced that Aloft would be entering Early Access in the Fall of 2024. Following many discussions and much consideration, we have decided to move the game’s Early Access release to January 2025. Please read our full statement on Steam.… pic.twitter.com/nlNVHkziac
— Aloft (@Aloft_Game) October 17, 2024
