Permafrost PC: System Requirements and Early Access

Short answer: PC is the only platform where Permafrost has actually released. It entered Windows Early Access on October 9, 2026 and needs a 64-bit system with 16 GB of RAM and 30 GB of free space; the official minimum GPU is a GTX 1060 6GB or RX 590 8GB, and the recommended card is an RTX 3070 Ti or RX 6750 XT.

The basics of the PC version

Permafrost is a story-driven open-world survival sandbox from developer SpaceRocket Games and publisher Toplitz Productions. It runs on Windows, released in Early Access on October 9, 2026, and supports solo play or online co-op for up to four players total. You play as an engineer drawn into a frozen, near-future world by a radio signal from a lost friend.

It is a downloadable PC game, not a browser game, and it is distributed through PC storefronts. The publisher's launch announcement named Steam, GOG.com and the Epic Games Store as the Early Access platforms, which gives you three legitimate places to buy it.

Official minimum requirements

The Steam listing publishes a minimum and a recommended tier. The minimum tier calls for a 64-bit processor and operating system, Windows 10 (x64), an Intel Core i5-8600K or AMD Ryzen 5 3500, 16 GB of RAM, an Nvidia GTX 1060 6GB or AMD Radeon RX 590 8GB, DirectX 11, and 30 GB of available storage.

Two things stand out. First, 16 GB of RAM is required at the minimum, not recommended — there is no 8 GB tier. Second, the storage figure is the same 30 GB in both tiers, so a smaller install is not possible by lowering settings.

Official recommended requirements

The recommended tier keeps Windows 10 (x64), 16 GB of RAM and 30 GB of storage, but raises the processor to an Intel Core i5-12400 or AMD Ryzen 5 5600X and the GPU to an Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti 8GB or AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT 12GB. It also moves the DirectX target from 11 to 12.

Note that the recommended DirectX version jumps to 12, while the minimum lists 11. Since the game shipped with a launch option to force DirectX 11 as a troubleshooting step for crashes, DirectX 12 is the default path on a machine that meets the recommended tier.

Early Access terms and how long it lasts

The developer states it does not yet know how long Early Access will run, but intends to stay in it for at least 12 months and to use that time to add biomes, quests, mechanics, quality-of-life features and performance work. It also says the basic premise will not change, while the world is expected to grow with more biomes, quests, NPCs, enemies, equipment and vehicles.

On price, the developer says it is very likely the price will increase over the course of Early Access leading to the full 1.0 release. So the current price is explicitly framed as a lower, temporary entry price rather than a permanent one.

Languages and store features

The Steam listing supports nine languages for interface and subtitles: English, French, German, Spanish (Spain), Japanese, Korean, Polish, Russian and Simplified Chinese. English is the only language listed with full audio; the others are text and subtitles only.

Store features include single-player, online co-op, Steam Achievements, Steam Trading Cards, Steam Cloud, stats and Family Sharing. There is also a points shop with profile rewards, and the game has a sales listing for downloadable extras such as a companion app and a cookbook.

Performance notes from the store page

The Steam page carries a content advisory noting violence against humans and animals, and the use of tobacco, alcohol and unspecified medicine to cope with the cold. That is a developer-written descriptor rather than an age rating for the PC listing.

The developer also warns that Early Access content is incomplete and may change, and recommends waiting if you would rather not play a game mid-development. That warning is shown directly on the store page, so it is worth reading before buying rather than assuming a finished product.

What PC players reported at launch

Player feedback in the days after launch centred on technical issues rather than the survival design. Common reports included crashes, stutter and inconsistent visuals, plus a climbing system some players described as insensitive and a pickup system that requires aiming a crosshair at an item instead of simply walking near it. Several complaints concerned the Simplified Chinese font and untranslated text.

The developer responded with rapid patches. A hotfix on October 9 disabled FSR on RTX 40 and 50 series cards to reduce crashes there, and an October 10 update fixed several crash causes, improved the friends' server list, and changed quest items so they are no longer removed from the world after pickup. Those are documented in the official Steam news feed, not in fan posts; we break the update down on our patch notes page and collect the official workarounds on our known issues page.

Practical advice before you buy

Check your hardware against the minimum tier rather than the recommended one, and pay attention to the 16 GB RAM floor. If you are sensitive to launch-period instability, the developer's own Early Access note and the volume of crash reports both point toward waiting a few weeks for patches.

If you do buy, use a legitimate storefront — Steam, GOG or the Epic Games Store — pick the edition that matches what you want, and keep an eye on the news feed for patch notes. 待确认 for anything about future performance once more fixes land.

Permafrost Wiki is an independent fan site. Permafrost and all related names, artwork and assets belong to SpaceRocket Games and Toplitz Productions. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by them.