Is Grounded 2 launching in Early Access on Steam? It's a little confusing, but there is an answer

Update:

The Steam page for Grounded 2 now has the Early Access tag, as well as a roadmap for what players can expect in future updates. The original story is below.

Original Story:

Today, Grounded 2, the co-op survival crafting sequel from Obsidian Entertainment, has launched on Steam Early Access and Xbox Game Preview. But that might not be so obvious, as some players have pointed out on the Steam Discussion page. For some reason, at least at the time of writing, Grounded 2’s Steam page does not have the Early Access tag. So, is this game launching in Early Access? It’s a little confusing, but there is an answer.

Is Grounded 2 launching in Early Access on Steam or not?

The development team at Obsidian has shared multiple times that Grounded 2 will be launching in Early Access on Steam. This is made clear in the title of their new story trailer and backed up by the Game Preview tag on Xbox, which is essentially the console’s version of Early Access. So why doesn’t it say so on the Steam page?

Early Access is a feature decided on by the developer, so it likely isn’t an issue on Steam’s end. Typically, the developer fills out a questionnaire that informs customers about the decision to be in Early Access and what they can expect. So, it’s possible that there was some mix-up between Obsidian and Steam at some point during launch. It’s not unusual for a game to have some problems that need to be fixed on the first day.

What we know, even if the Steam page doesn’t say so, is that Grounded 2 is meant to launch in Early Access. The Steam page might be updated soon to clarify that. It does take some minor digging, but if you look at updates from the Grounded 2 Steam page, the post titled “Grounded 2 Available Today – Here’s What You Need To Know” contains a few direct quotes referencing the game’s Early Access period. “Grounded 2 will launch into Game Preview and Early Access with a wide array of features…” So, even if it doesn’t say so on the game’s Steam page, this was at least the intention.

So, while this is a mistake, you should at least be aware that this is an Early Access game. If you’re unfamiliar with the practice, this means that Obsidian plans to consistently update the game throughout the Early Access period with new content until they eventually reach a full launch. So, while this isn’t the complete version of the game, it does grant you access during that period of continued development so that you can start playing and share feedback with the developer.

Grounded 2

July 29, 2025

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• Overview
• Guide

• Obsidian Entertainment
• Eidos Montreal
• Xbox Game Studios / Microsoft Gaming
• survival sandbox
• Early Access