Stars Reach
Developer: Playable Worlds | Platform: PC | Release Period for the West: 2026 (Early Access) | Payment Model: Free2Play (but with paid early access & head start) | Status: advanced pre-alpha | Chance of success in the West: 75%—funding is secured, and the team boasts extensive MMO experience
Imagine No Man’s Sky, but as a large sandbox MMORPG, and you have an idea of what Stars Reach is supposed to be. In other words: The developers are planning a procedurally generated universe of hundreds of worlds that feel alive, where you can meet other players at any time and that can be transformed by you.
Stars Reach features an action-packed yet tactically demanding combat system. There will also be peaceful ways to enjoy the game. For example, you can create planetary maps and turn them into profit. Or you could become a miner, elected governor, or pursue another profession within the player-driven economy.
The team behind Stars Reach has plenty of experience to turn ambitions into a finished, fun game. Playable Worlds is led by industry veteran Raph Koster, who is known, among other things, as the lead designer of Ultima Online (released in 1997) and the creative director of Star Wars Galaxies (2003).
However, the team includes many other veterans who have worked on well-known games such as EverQuest, EverQuest 2, Eve Online, Diablo 2, Diablo 3, StarCraft, StarCraft 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Rift, Age of Conan, and many more.
It’s also clear: thanks to a successful Kickstarter campaign this year and new investor funds, the finances are in place to bring the development across the finish line. Originally, the plan was to start early access in the summer of 2025 and aim for the final launch before 2026 (Source: starsreach.com/faq/).
As the early access start is still pending and the Kickstarter campaign mentions a delivery of the content in January 2026, we assume that early access will start next year. How this will affect the final launch is unclear, especially since various stretch goals were funded through crowdfunding. You can find more about this here: New MMORPG from a legendary developer is already in alpha, raising another 1.5 million dollars
