Ashes of Earth Leaving Steam Early Access

Frost Giant Studios, the team behind the Warcraft-inspired RTS Stormgate, recently announced that the game’s first full single-player campaign, Ashes of Earth, will launch in August, marking its exit from Steam Early Access. However, confusion arose when the studio labeled this launch version “0.6,” leading some players to question whether the game was truly complete. In response, Frost Giant issued a clarification, apologized for the mixed messaging, and revealed they’re scrapping version numbers entirely for future updates.

In a Steam post, Frost Giant reaffirmed their vision for Stormgate, built on four core pillars: campaign, co-op, competitive, and custom games. They acknowledged that calling the launch “0.6” was meant to reflect ongoing development but caused confusion by suggesting the game was unfinished. To address this, they’re adopting a new naming system for updates, inspired by RTS units, which they’ve already been using internally. The former “0.6” update is now the Necrolyte release, with the upcoming autumn update dubbed Ornithopter. Smaller patches and hotfixes will also get names, like the “Griffin” build followed by “Griffinish-line.”

The Ashes of Earth campaign, launching August 5, includes 12 missions forming a complete story, with plans for additional free missions later. The release also features a polished 1v1 mode, while the co-op mode and terrain editor (still in alpha) remain in active development, shaped by community feedback. These unfinished features will live in an in-game “test kitchen” called Sigma Labs, where they’ll be accessible in a developmental state and evolve over time.

Despite the campaign and 1v1 mode being ready for a wider audience, Frost Giant admitted that co-op and the terrain editor—two of their four pillars—are not yet complete, suggesting the game is roughly 60% of the way to fulfilling its full vision. The studio also hinted at financial pressures, noting that exiting Early Access is crucial for sustaining development with their “limited resources” by attracting new players.

The shift to codenames may make it harder to track progress compared to clear version numbers (e.g., 0.6 vs. 0.5), potentially confusing players unfamiliar with RTS unit names like Necrolyte or Baneling. Still, in an era where “launch” labels carry less weight, the focus is on whether Stormgate delivers fun gameplay. With a proper campaign and a solid 1v1 mode, it’s poised to be a big step up from its Early Access state last year. We’ll see how it lands on August 5.