Red Candle Games recently came under fire for their horror game Devotion. After the discovery of a Winnie the Pooh meme that likened Chinese president Xi Jinping to the bear in-game, the title was review-bombed on Steam. However, it appears that Devotion has now been removed from the platform altogether.
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In an update on Steam from Red Candle Games, they noted that the mistake is entirely on them. “It is not Red Candle’s vision to secretly project extensive ideology, nor is it to attack any person in the real world,” they said. “Even if the sensitive art element was wrongfully placed before, we kindly ask you not to over interpret other game material.”
Of course, it will be difficult to do so now that Devotion has disappeared from Steam entirely. Furthermore, trailers for the game have been removed or made private on YouTube, which may have possibly happened by the hand of Red Candle Games.
However, it is unknown at this time who exactly removed the horror game from Steam. In the update from Red Candle Games, they did not mention that they would be taking it down to work on making sure something else like the Winnie the Pooh meme was not in the game.
In an earlier statement from the studio, they ensured fans that the incident was a mistake. “This is purely an accident, and we have no intention for causing harm nor hatred,” Red Candle Games said. “The said art material has been taken down and replaced at the evening of February 21.
“This incident indicates the fact that Red Candle Games’ project management has failed to function. As a game company, Red Candle Games has immense room for improvement. We are deeply sorry for the trouble it caused to everyone, and that we sincerely ask for the forgiveness of our players.”
We have reached out to Red Candle Games and will keep you updated should they comment.
What do you think about all of this? Do you believe it was the developer who pulled Devotion from Steam? Sound off in the comment section below, or hit me up over on Twitter @anarkE7!
Thanks, Polygon!
