Bit Kid

I mean, wouldn't you want more testers that could pay a lower dollar amount, so you get a larger volume of feedback at this early stage in development?
Call me a poor bastard, but I don't have $30 to spend on an Alpha. I've been following Chasm since the first demo was released and I adore it. I love the simple but effective art style and the challenge of the dungeon. So, I really want to play this, but I just can't on my budget. I don't expect a change in price, but I would like some kind of explanation about how high the price is.
Thanks.

You're not paying $30 for alpha access, you're paying $30 to pre-order the game. It just so happens that pre-ordering the game gives you access to the alpha.

It was a bonus for those who pre-ordered in the Kickstarter and wanted to help us both financially and with testing the game and suggesting feedback. It's more advantageous for us to have a smaller but passionate group, rather than open it up to everyone and probably not get much feedback because they just wanted to play the game. It's kind of a deterrent in a way for most people, because we don't want the average player playing it yet - otherwise it would basically be released. We may actually stop taking pre-orders with Alpha Access coming up because we feel like we've got a good enough community together for feedback now.

That's exactly what I wanted to know. Thank you. I'll try to save up some cash for a chance at the Alpha or just buy the game when it comes out. You guys keep being awesome, okay?

I don't represent Discord, but in my opinion, the Kickstarter tiers and Alpha Access prices also help fund the ongoing development of the game, whereas when you buy a finished product, the work is already done.