The OP seems to have had a good hunch or have a good information-gathering ability. I agree that Steam Early Access is a kind of mixed beast. There are still plenty of posts coming which complain of the price of the Wasteland 2 EA although there is a pinned thread explaining it. Also, there is a relatively new function of reviewing games even if it is listed as EA (Are these reviews going to be deleted once the final version is available?). In any case, I think there are still things desired for Steam EA to efficiently help people to find their favorite games without coming across unwanted aspects of the Internet. That said, if the devs decided to give it a go despite of possible risks, I have nothing against it.