For better or worse, Steam’s Early Access program has made a big splash in the gaming world. Early Access has allowed gamers to buy into an anticipated title before release, giving them access to its in-development version and the ability to give feedback to the developers. Steam’s Early Access is very much a “buyer beware” situation, as there is no guarantee that a game you’ve purchased will turn out to your liking or even receive a final release at all.
Now Microsoft is entering the realm of early access with a program called Microsoft Game Preview, allowing independent developers to offer their games as early access titles on the Xbox One. The program will work differently from Steam’s in that every game in the program comes with a free trial. You can give a game a quick whirl before you decide to buy into its early access program.
Elite: Dangerous and The Long Dark will be the first two titles to launch via the Microsoft Game Preview service. Early access pioneer DayZ will also be coming to the service in the near future. In addition, the creators of DayZ are making a space exploration sim titled Ion that will be debuting via Microsoft Game Preview.