We are pleased to announce the opening of Elin's store page on Steam. After 3 years of development (almost 7 years if you include prior projects), we are finally one step closer to a public release. I would like to thank all of you who have been following Elin's progress thus far! First, let's talk about the Early Access phase. The first release during this period will be version Alpha, which will be about as complete as the initial stages of Elona's development back in 2006. For those who weren't around back then, this means that version Alpha will be of generally barebones quality compared to the level of polish intended for Elin's full release. Rest assured, I will be hard at work throughout the Early Access phase in order to bring the game's content up to the same point as Elona's in about a year. (The following texts have not yet been proofread. I will be editing soon. Sorry, I was in a rush to post this announcement) This is important that I do not recommend purchasing the game in Early Access (especially in the early stages) if you want to fully enjoy the game without being spoiled. Please understand that participation in Early Access at this stage is like a paid Alpha in the sense that you can send feedback and participate in development and support. The first Alpha will be released when the first few hours of the game are fully playable. This will likely be at the end of the year at the earliest, and I will probably make it available for free on Discord and elsewhere before releasing it on Steam. Also, one thing I would like you to know is that this is a large scale and long term project for a single developer. My old game, Elona, took almost five years to complete after its initial release. Although currently my time is solely dedicated to Elin, this game is far more complex than the previous one, and it will take some time before it can be fully playable. Unlike when I was developing Elona, indie games are now at their peak, with many interesting games and faster release cycles. I have asked myself many times if it is worth to make a game like Elin, which requires a lot of work and has a limited audiences. But in the end, I wanted to pursue the world and story of Ylva, which was born in Elona, and I am working hard on it. For various reasons, I had to put the game into Early Access, but I hope you understand that it will still take a long time before it is completed. Of course, I plan to continue updating the game after its completion, and I am aiming for a world that is much larger than Elona in the end. And if the opportunity arises, I hope to create a final volume (Part III) of Elin and Elona someday. Finally, once again, thank you for your support of this project and my challenge! noa