An Indie Horror Game Has Been Stuck In The Steam Approval Process For Three Years…Seemingly For Using Valve’s Own Engine
The indie horror game Amygdala: Prelude has been stuck in Steam's approval process for three years, allegedly due to issues surrounding the use of Valve's Source engine. The developer claims they have followed Valve's instructions but face repeated delays and lack of communication when seeking a commercial agreement. Despite being nearly complete and having a Steam page, the game remains unreleased, with the team unable to recoup development costs.
- ▪Amygdala: Prelude has been in development for three years and is about 80 percent complete, ready for early access.
- ▪The developer uses Valve's Source engine and was told they need a commercial agreement to sell the game on Steam.
- ▪Communication with Steam support has been extremely slow, with the developer reporting six- to twelve-month gaps between responses.
- ▪The developer has resubmitted the same information multiple times after being told they fell behind in the process.
- ▪A free demo of Amygdala: Prelude is available on Steam, as non-commercial use of Source does not require a formal agreement.
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An Indie Horror Game Has Been Stuck In The Steam Approval Process For Three Years…Seemingly For Using Valve’s Own Engine Limbo, or hell? HorrorIndieValve By Rebekah Valentine Published May 1, 2026 | Comments (0) | 𝕏 Copied! © Moonlit Journeys Indie horror game Amygdala: Prelude is, according to its developer, about 80 percent of the way done and ready for early access. Its developers have set up a Steam store page and are ready and eager to push it live. There’s just one problem: their game has yet to be approved by Valve, and it’s allegedly been waiting for that approval for three whole years. This comes from a post on r/gamedev (via Automaton) from the developer of Amygdala: Prelude.
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