Valve is introducing a feature that will give users insight into which game available in Steam Early Access is rarely updated by developers.

Valve has rolled out a new Steam feature that warns you when a game in Early Access hasn't had an update in a while, but there are caveats.

Steam now shows when Early Access games were last updated. The update appears if a game goes 12 months without an update. This feature helps you avoid wasting money on dead games. Early access games are a great way to test titles in development,

It’s still not exactly clear what updates are substantial enough to reset the counter and how long it takes between updates for it to appear. Open-world survival zombie sim Project Zomboid has been in Early Access on Steam for over a decade and doesn’t show the new warning because it still receives regular updates. Its last one was in January.

Valve has quietly implmented a useful new Steam feature warning users - and potential purchasers - how long it's been

S team’s early access program helps small to medium-sized developers get an idea off the ground, but not every game actually does. Now, Valve has a notice designed to warn Steam

It's got its ups and downs, but I rather like Steam early access. Being able to get in on the ground floor of something, watch it develop, and support developers whose ambitions might exceed their initial budgets is a neat thing.

Valve now warns players about inactive games in Early Access to prevent purchasing abandoned projects. Games with over a year of inactivity receive a warning, with 20+ months labeled as high risk. Developers must update store pages regularly to avoid warnings and mislead players.

Steam has rolled out a subtle change to the store pages of early access games, seemingly in an attempt to warn players about purchasing an in-development title that might have been abandoned by its developers.