![]() Logos by Frogwares were removed or changed and overall, the game would behave differently.įrogwares also explained that they purchased the Deluxe Edition from their store and then released the altered version of that copy on Steam, which is a further breach of their contract. Features like achievements would be missing since the game would only be offline. Then they started re-distributing it on Steam and other platforms. Nacon then tried to still sell the game as their own property on multiple occasions by buying one copy of it, then hacking the game’s source code and editing it in a way that suggests that it’s owned and created by Nacon and not Frogwares. Frogwares’ only option was to take the game down via a DMCA notice on multiple occasions. Nacon also refused to take the games down and to pay up, so the matter wasn’t ending anytime soon. The contract between the parties was then supposed to be terminated as a result of the court case but Nacon is refusing to accept that. They listed Frogwares as a technical partner while removing any proof of their involvement in the game on all boxes, packaging and other material, resulting in them creating this illusion of them being the owners of the IP. While not holding their end of the deal, they profited from the game while pretending to be the publisher and owner of the IP and game. On top of not paying up or contributing financially, Nacon also has been still earning money from the release. At the same time, they would make up things about console manufacturers not having paid royalties for more than five months, despite the same manufacturer paying up without delay during that time for Frogwares’ other games. They didn’t document sales figures or any other data on how many units were sold. Eventually, the game was released and despite them approving of all the previous milestones, they refused to pay up or give Frogwares the shares they deserved. Nacon would also not deliver any consistent sales figures or business plans and otherwise refuse to collaborate. When Frogwares refused, BBI/Nacon stopped financial contributions for over four months. The problem here is that they don’t really have the right to demand anything like that since they do not own the IP. On top of that, there would be a revenue share in place starting from the first dollar earned.Īccording to Frogwares who addressed this in an open letter, “BBI/Nacon was hundreds and hundreds of days behind in payments in total”, followed by BBI/Nacon buying out a competing studio working on another Lovecraftian game and demanding that Frogwares would give their source code for The Sinking City to their competitor. The deal was signed and payments were to be received for each production milestone completed. In exchange for a financial contribution, Frogwares gave Nacon the right to sell and commercialize the game on four platforms, but the intellectual property would still belong to the only producer and owner of this game, Frogwares. Their contract with Frogwares on account of both intellectual property violation and lack of payment, which is why the game was delisted from Steam, the EGS, as well as the XBOX One and PlayStation 4 digital storefronts until the legal dispute between the two parties was done. Nacon (formerly known as BigBen Interactive) was licensed as a distributor until 2020 but pretended to be more than that, aka a “publisher”. ![]() The game was announced in 2016 with footage eventually shown in 2017, and the game getting released in 2019 as a timed exclusive on the Epic Games Store. ![]() Reed searches for clues to the cause of the terrifying visions plaguing him and the mystery of Oakmont’s unrelenting flooding. Lovecraft’s stories and set in the fictional city of Oakmont, Massachusetts, during the 1920s where the private investigator Charles W. The Sinking City is an action-adventure game developed by Frogwares, the creators of Call of Cthulhu. Alas, I figured I should talk about it since it now is being stirred up again.įirst things first. ![]() Then there’s been a bit of an issue between the developers and their “publisher”, which lead to it being delisted and eventually the matter being taken to court. On June 27th, 2019, The Sinking City was released on multiple platforms, including Steam. ![]()
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