Key Highlights:
- Breathedge is currently 100% free on Steam and remains permanently owned once claimed.
- The giveaway ends on August 9 at 6pm BST, when the game returns to its normal £19.99 UK price.
- The promotion arrives just weeks before Breathedge 2 launches into Steam Early Access on August 30.
RedRuins Softworks’ space survival game Breathedge is currently free to keep on Steam, giving PC players until August 9 to permanently add the full game to their libraries.
Steam has reduced Breathedge by 100%, changing its normal £19.99 UK price to £0 for the duration of the promotion. Players only need to claim the game before the deadline rather than download or complete it during the offer. Once added to an account, Breathedge remains owned after the promotion ends.
The giveaway ends on August 9 at 6pm BST, equivalent to 5pm UTC. Steam currently labels the promotion as “Free to keep,” which makes this different from a temporary Free Weekend where access disappears when the event ends.
That distinction is worth making clear. I would treat this as a genuine ownership giveaway, not simply free access, because claiming the licence during the promotion permanently attaches Breathedge to the Steam account.
Breathedge is a first-person open-world survival game set after a space hearse crashes among floating wreckage, coffins and debris. Players gather resources, craft equipment, manage oxygen and eventually build and power their own space station while uncovering the events behind the disaster.
The game also has an immortal chicken.
RedRuins Softworks originally released Breathedge through Steam Early Access in September 2018 before launching version 1.0 on February 25, 2021. HypeTrain Digital and RedRuins Softworks currently publish the PC version.
Steam lists Breathedge as Very Positive across all languages, with 82% of more than 14,000 Steam purchaser reviews recommending the game. Its recent reviews remain Mostly Positive.
The giveaway has already produced a noticeable increase in activity. SteamDB recorded 1,399 concurrent players during the first day of the promotion, matching the game’s 24-hour peak at the time of checking. Its historical Steam record remains 6,857 concurrent players, set shortly after the full release in February 2021.
That player figure should not be confused with the number of free copies claimed. Steam does not publicly disclose redemption totals for the giveaway.
The timing is unlikely to be accidental. RedRuins Softworks is preparing Breathedge 2 for a Steam Early Access launch on August 30, meaning the free promotion gives players roughly three weeks to experience the original before the sequel arrives.
Breathedge 2 remains a single-player survival game but significantly expands the management side of the series. The sequel introduces a crew whose members have individual roles, needs and personal objectives. Neglecting those responsibilities can affect how effectively the ship and its crew operate.
The sequel will also retain the series’ crafting, exploration and base-building structure, with players managing a spacecraft while travelling through hostile regions of space. And yes, the chicken is returning.
For anyone interested in trying the original first, the important deadline is straightforward: Breathedge must be claimed on Steam before 6pm BST on Sunday, August 9. After that point, the 100% discount is scheduled to expire.
