Open-world space shooter Everspace 2 was on-pace to deliver on its longstanding promise to Kickstarter backers that Early Access would launch this December. But there was one thing Everspace 2's developers didn't plan on, which was yet another delay for Cyberpunk 2077. As a result of Cyberpunk 2077's release moving to December 10, Everspace 2 will be moving to a less competitive release window. Early Access is now planned to launch in January.
The message came via developer Rockfish's Kickstarter page as an update to backers. Rockfish says that the decision wasn't made impromptu. Rather, Rockfish consulted with its PR partners heavily before making the decision. Rockfish points out that media outlets and content creators will be heavily covering Cyberpunk 2077 through December. That leaves little room for an indie game to get much attention. Rockfish also claims that it knows that there's "quite a bit of audience overlap within our community (and our team)."
Everspace 2 supporters and fans shouldn't see it as entirely negative, however. Due to the delay, Rockfish is opening up its current closed beta to all of its Kickstarter backers starting November 2. The closed beta features around the first 10 hours of Everspace 2, and is parallel to the kind of content that should be expected in Early Access. It's not a full Early Access launch, but it should be enough to sate the worries of Kickstarter backers who have already paid for the game.
The delay shouldn't prove to be too significant. Early Access for Everspace 2 was originally planned to launch mid-December. Now the game can launch at any point in January that the team decides on. Outside of Hitman 3 and the Prince of Persia remake in late January, Everspace 2 should have more than enough time to make its impact.
Everspace 2 releases January 2021 in Early Access on PC.