Craftopia is finally leaving Early Access, with Version 1.0 planned for 2027, six years after its initial launch. Find out what Pocketpair has planned for the full release and what led to its lengthy development.
Craftopia by Palworld Devs Exits Early Access in 2027
Pocketpair CEO says Craftopia’s Development Helped Shape Studio
Craftopia will leave Early Access and officially launch Version 1.0 in 2027, as announced by Pocketpair, the developer behind Palworld, on September 4 during the game's sixth anniversary. The studio has yet to provide a specific release date, though it outlined its priorities for the final stage of development alongside an update on the game's Xbox versions.
Pocketpair said its focus for Version 1.0 will be on polishing Craftopia and addressing longstanding issues within the game. The developer noted that the update will not be centered solely on adding large amounts of new content, though additional content will still arrive as part of the full release.
The announcement arrives six years after Craftopia entered Early Access on September 4, 2020. Pocketpair has continued updating the game throughout that period, with 2023's Seamless World being its largest overhaul to date. The years since have brought further seasonal and anniversary updates, alongside patches addressing bugs and other technical issues.
Craftopia's Steam reception has changed over the course of its Early Access run, though. Its overall rating remains Mostly Positive. Recent reviews, though, have fallen into the Mostly Negative range, with players criticizing the game’s unfinished state and questioning its progress after six years in development. Discussions around those frustrations frequently bring up Palworld, which entered development several months after Craftopia and went on to become Pocketpair’s breakout hit.
Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe offered some context for Craftopia's lengthy development in a separate statement following the announcement. Mizobe, who was personally involved in the game's development as an engineer, described its early years as an experimental process carried out by a small team. The team set out to combine the best elements of the games they enjoyed, gradually building a large collection of systems that became difficult to manage over the course of six years.
Mizobe said some of those problems could no longer be addressed simply by adding new features. He acknowledged the criticism Craftopia has received and reflected on the difficulties the team encountered during development. "Especially after the Seamless Update, we struggled with the gap between our ideals and reality," Mizobe said, machine-translated from Japanese.
Their experience, though, would go on to shape the studio outside of Craftopia itself. Mizobe emphasized that the studio's identity and its breakout hit, Palworld, were both built directly on the foundation of Craftopia.
"Even if it's rough around the edges, let's first build something we ourselves think is fun," he recounted. "I believe Pocketpair's culture was shaped while making Overdungeon and Craftopia."
He acknowledged that scaling up the studio alone isn't a simple fix for development challenges, noting that having more money, a larger team, or extra time doesn't automatically guarantee a good game. Despite those difficulties and the pressure of trial-and-error development, Mizobe expressed relief and gratitude that the team has finally reached the point where they can finish Craftopia as Version 1.0.
The studio has confirmed that Version 1.0 will arrive on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox on PC alongside the Steam release. Craftopia will no longer be developed for Xbox One, as Pocketpair said it could not achieve an acceptable level of performance and stability on the older hardware.
Meanwhile, Pocketpair has released Craftopia’s sixth-anniversary mini update on Steam. It adds six colored Mono Lanterns, six colored Mono Banners, and a Mono Street Light. The update also hints at a special anniversary feature involving Anubis, though Pocketpair has not revealed what it entails.
The studio has yet to announce a specific release date for Version 1.0, with the game currently slated to leave Early Access sometime in 2027. More details on the release as development continues.
Source:
Craftopia 1.0 - The Future of Craftopia
6th Anniversary Mini Update Patch v20260825.1206
Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe Regarding Craftopia 1.0 on X
Craftopia 1.0 Announcement on X
