[STEAM] Ubisoft starts its own version of Steam Early Access with 4 games available to test, including 2 early prototypes

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It seems

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is creating its own version of Steam Early Access. At Gamescom 2026, the publisher revealed a platform for players to check out in-development versions of certain games and provide feedback over an ongoing *******.

The forum is known as The Player Council, and it's essentially a preview portal that allows for more direct contact between devs and their potential audience. "Participating players will be able to discover and weigh in on games at various stages of development, including new game concepts and prototypes as well as evolving experiences for existing games on PC," reads a press release.

"The Player Council gives you valuable insight into the development process and unprecedented access to shape a game in its earliest stages," Ubisoft adds.

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It all sounds like what early access is meant for on Valve's marketplace. You put the game up in an unpolished state, and let people play it to see where refinement is most needed, while getting much needed funding through their purchase in the process.

The latter isn't necessary, since Ubisoft is already funding the projects, but the former seems like it could be extremely insightful. Getting involved is free and straightforward, it just requires signing a general NDA, then you can request to be part of the testing for various upcoming releases. If chosen for those games, you'll then become part of a smaller community where you can mingle and share your thoughts.

Devs will respond in kind, and the more you contribute, the more you'll unlock the capacity to do the same for other games. The last part seems like a gimmick, but some impetus to actually be a contributing part of the council, as it were, always helps these sorts of things.

There are four projects to dig into from the get -go, three multiplayer games and one single-player release. They are PvP tactics game Codename Split Point; strategy game Codename Rook; online open-world extreme sports playground Riders Republic; and an "evolutionary twist" on the 2017 FPS Altomega.

Of those, Riders Republic has me the most keen, but that's probably the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater fan in me. "There is no cost to test prototypes, while testing live game content is available to participants who already own the game," Ubisoft clarified to finish.

The Players Council is open now on PC.

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