Valve has introduced a new feature on Steam Early Access that alerts users if a game hasn’t been updated in over a year.
This change, highlighted by SteamDB, introduces a prompt at the top of the Early Access developer Q&A section. This notification informs consumers of the date when the game was last updated.
Valve has made alterations to Steamworks to reflect this new addition. According to Valve, if it’s been more than a year since developers have updated their game or posted an update notification for players, a message will appear on the store page. This message, positioned above the Developer Questionnaire, will inform players that the game hasn’t been updated for a significant amount of time.
The notice is triggered under two conditions: if it’s been over 12 months since a game build was assigned to the ‘default’ branch in Steamworks, or if a developer hasn’t posted an ‘update’ type event within the same timeframe. This encompasses all update types, including Major Update, Regular Update, or Patch Notes.
Since its inception, Early Access has hosted titles that developers have, for various reasons, chosen to abandon entirely. This new feature aims to address that issue by keeping players informed.
