Legendary roguelike RPG's 9 years in Steam Early Access was possible as devs wanted a "positive lifestyle and great game, rather than maximum profit"

gamesradar.com:

Nine years since its early access launch, the wait for Caves of Qud's 1.0 release is almost over, as its publisher reaffirms that it's still coming this year and explains how the indie devs at Freehold Games have handled its lengthy development.

While science fantasy roguelike Caves of Qud has been in development for over 16 years by Freehold Games (since 2007), there's a decent chance you might have already played it. Its first beta launched in 2010, although its early access launch didn't come until five years later – July 15, 2015, to be exact. 

In celebration of the ninth anniversary that Caves of Qud celebrated yesterday, publisher Kitfox Games reaffirmed the plan to launch the 1.0 version of the roguelike this year – something which was first announced almost a year ago. "Nine years ago today, Caves of Qud went into Early Access on Steam," Kitfox Games begins. "And after over 15 years of development, it's finally coming to 1.0 later this year!"

9 years ago today, Caves of Qud went into Early Access on Steam. And after over 15 years of development, it's finally coming to 1.0 later this year! pic.twitter.com/lxEV6K5aT2July 15, 2024

In a separate blog post, Kitfox Games lead and co-founder Tanya X. Short and community and marketing manager Alexandra Orlando have been discussing what games need to do to do early access "right" (spoiler alert, every game is different), in which they use Freehold Games' approach with Caves of Qud as an example. They point out that the roguelike itself is constantly being updated as the devs make sure to "address community concerns," but note that the devs have some "special qualities" which have helped make this all possible over the years.

Specifically, Freehold's devs are "very experienced," and "primarily want a positive lifestyle and great game, rather than maximum profit." On top of that, they're "not particularly bothered by haters or negative feedback," meaning they take less "psychic damage" from critical reviews. All in