It's a great game but paid DLC in early access is unacceptable. If it's part of the main game let me have it for the base price. If it's extra to add flavour then do me the courtesy of finishing the game and launching a full release before scalping me for more money.

I've owned this game for quite a while but haven't played it very much because I don't want to play an Early Access game. I want to support the developers making games I think have a lot of promise, but I want to play a finished game. I do make some exceptions, like Dyson Sphere Program, so I have intended to do a deep dive into this.

I'm not aware of whatever has gone on before now, I don't know what kind of discussion there has been about this train DLC. But having paid DLC that has actual game content, not just cosmetic stuff, available for purchase for an Early Access game is frankly shocking. I had no idea this was happening until I saw it in my Steam news feed that the DLC has come out.

There is no context I could be told that would change my reaction to this. If the main game cannot be finished without selling parts of the game to people for a second time, the developers have massively mishandled the situation. Using money gained from selling Early Access to a game to develop parts of the game that are then offered to Early Access owners as additional content to be paid for is not acceptable.

Even if I would have loved this game, I wouldn't have paid for it while it was in Early Access if I knew they were going to develop and sell gameplay DLC without finishing the main game.

Edit: Just read what I guess is the developer's pinned FAQ about the train DLC. Absolutely nonsensical, apparently people have been telling them for months this is a scumbag move and the response is basically "screw you shut up" and they've gone ahead anyway. I regret purchasing this game.

I want to start by saying that I genuinely love this game. I’ve put a lot of time into it and I wouldn’t be writing this if I didn’t care about the project or want to see it succeed. Captain of Industry is one of the most engaging factory/management games I’ve played in a long time, and it’s clear the developers have put a lot of thought and passion into building its systems.

However, I strongly disagree with the decision to release DLC while the game is still in Early Access.

This isn’t a criticism unique to this game or this studio — it’s something I feel strongly about across the entire industry. Whether it’s an indie developer, a AA studio, or a AAA publisher, I believe the same principle should apply: finish the base game first, then think about DLC.

Early Access exists so developers can complete and refine the core experience with the support of the community. When players buy into Early Access, they’re effectively investing in the development of the base game with the understanding that the priority is getting it to a complete 1.0 release.

Releasing paid DLC before that point sends the wrong message. It gives the impression that development resources are being split away from finishing the core game, even if that isn’t actually the case internally. From a player’s perspective, it can feel like content that could have been part of the base game is instead being carved out and sold separately while the main product is still unfinished.

I fully understand that additional funding can help support development, especially for smaller studios. I don’t doubt that the developers care about the game and want to continue improving it. But in my opinion, selling DLC during Early Access is not the right way to go about it.

There have been far too many examples in the industry where games enter Early Access, begin selling additional content, and then remain unfinished for years — or worse, never reach a proper full release. I’m not saying that will happen here, and I sincerely hope it doesn’t. Captain of Industry deserves to be completed and polished into the incredible full release it has the potential to become.

But the principle still matters.

When players purchase an Early Access game, they’re putting trust and belief in the project being finished. The focus should remain on delivering a complete, polished core game before introducing paid expansions.

Again, I want to be clear: this criticism comes from someone who genuinely enjoys the game and wants it to succeed. My issue isn’t with the quality of the game or the developers’ talent — it’s with the broader practice of releasing DLC during Early Access.

Finish the game. Bring it to a proper 1.0 release. Once the base experience is complete, I would be far more than happy to support additional DLC and expansions.

But until then, I strongly believe the priority should be finishing the game we all bought into first.