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No Players Online Restored on Steam After Claimant Fails to Answer Counter-Notice

The indie studio warns the three-week delisting gutted launch momentum, jeopardizing its finances.

Overview

  • Valve delisted the game on November 13 following a DMCA claim and reinstated it in early December after the claimant did not respond within the required window.
  • Beeswax Games says the notice came from a "former friend" who asserted co-authorship, a claim the team disputes as unfounded.
  • The studio states it immediately filed a counter-notice and that the procedural deadline passed without a reply, leading to the game's return.
  • Developers report spending two and a half years and substantial funds on the expanded reimagining of the 2019 freeware concept, and they now question the studio’s financial viability.
  • Journalists highlight broader concerns that DMCA takedowns can be triggered without upfront proof, citing prior game removals as examples of how the process burdens creators.