EVE Vanguard finally has a date to aim at. Fenris Creations' extraction shooter set in the EVE Online universe now shows a planned release window of Q3 2027 on its Steam page, and Shacknews reports that the launch will come through Steam Early Access.
Before that, there's a paid route in. Shacknews reports that Fenris Creations laid out the plan in a press release: Founder's Packs are on sale now, and they give access to alpha tests expected in November. According to Shacknews, that alpha access is due to arrive with a new update alongside EVE Online's Fractured Skies content update.
What the Steam page confirms
The Steam listing names Fenris Creations as both developer and publisher and gives Q3 2027 as the planned release date. It also says plainly that the game is not yet available on Steam. There's a playtest button too: players can request access and get notified when the developer is ready for more participants.
Steam describes EVE Vanguard as an "extraction-adventure FPS" set on the planets of New Eden. The pitch is fairly straightforward. You raid crash sites and forward bases for loot, then get out before the Nemesis Drones arrive. The page describes Nemesis encounters as multi-stage boss fights against flying war machines. Your character is an immortal Warclone, so dying isn't the end of the run.
Between deployments you head back to Avalon, a wandering flotilla. According to the store page, it's where you build weapons and equipment, trade through a Black Market and launch Expeditions. Guns are modular with multiple fire modes, and you can swap between burst and full-auto, or energy and kinetic, through chipsets.
The bit EVE players will care about most is the link to the main game. The Steam page says campaigns in EVE Online influence the battlefields on the ground, and that planetary operations contribute back to the wider war.
Some practical details from the listing: Steam flags kernel-level anti-cheat (Easy Anti-Cheat, which has to be removed manually after uninstalling), lists English only for interface, audio and subtitles, and asks for 50 GB of storage. The developer's AI disclosure says the game uses AI-generated text-to-speech for some voice-over, including character barks and narration.
The Founder's Packs
Shacknews lists four tiers, priced in US dollars:
- Resonant Pack ($15): permanent access through the EVE Launcher into full release, the Deployment-Ready Bundle of weapons, grenades and gear, plus two blueprints. Shacknews says every pack includes that access and the same bundle.
- Contraband Packs ($30 each): one for each of four mercenary corporations (Circle of Huskarl, Crux Special Tasks Group, Amarr Templars and Zumari Force Projection), each with a Resonant Key, that corporation's skins for all four weapons, a weapon charm and a blueprint.
- Fulcrum Pack ($100): a Resonant Key, all 16 weapon skins, all four faction emblems, all faction blueprints and the Banshee M247, which Shacknews says can only be bought during Founder Access.
- Legacy Pack ($514): everything in the Fulcrum Pack plus extras including VIP Discord access, a video call with the development team, the player's name in the lore and a ticket to EVE Fanfest 2027.
That last price isn't random. Shacknews says the $514 figure is a tribute to DUST 514, the earlier EVE shooter whose mercenaries first took New Eden's wars to the ground.
What's not confirmed yet
Neither source gives a firm day for the November alpha, and Q3 2027 is a window, not a date. Shacknews doesn't give a price for the Early Access release itself. The Steam page doesn't use the words "Early Access" either: it lists Q3 2027 as the planned release date. So for the Early Access label we're relying on Shacknews' account of the press release.
Jax's take: The $15 Resonant Pack is the one worth looking at. It gets you into the alpha and, according to Shacknews, keeps you in through full release. The $514 tier is a lovely nod to DUST 514 fans, but at this stage you're paying to test an unfinished game, so start small and see whether the extraction loop actually grabs you.
Reporting notes