In a rugpull that felt as inevitable and predictable as nebulous NFTs or one of those blockchain-based MMOs, the developer behindThe Day Before, Fntastic, has shut down. It’s been pretty clear for a long time that there was never much of a game here, as the developer always relied onrather empty trailers,reassurances that the game isn’t a scam, andstrange announcements that it’s volunteer-made(i.e. no paid staff) to keep the momentum going up to launch. It seems thatLast of Us-style branding and generic ‘open-world co-op zombie game’ imagery is plenty enough these days to become the most wishlisted game on Steam, and that’s a sad state of affairs for humanity.
Now, following an Early Access launch on Steam with “Overwhelmingly Negative” reviews, developerFntastic has announced its closure, shutting down all communication channels and ceasing development on the game. In a statement on X (Twitter), the studio said it had:
“failed financially, and we lack the funds to continue. All income received is being used to pay off debts to our partners”.
Scam or Sham?
10 Best Survival Games
Survival games can be scary, challenging, or relaxing, and they offer an experience like no other. Check out our list of the best in the genre.
So either Fntastic was woefully irresponsible, overpromising to fans as well as investors while failing everyone on all fronts, or it was an intentional smash-and-grab. Over 20,000 Steam reviews andover 30,000 peak players according to SteamDBsuggests a substantial haul, and with the studio being based in the hinterlands of Russia (and headquartered in the tax haven of Singapore), that money certainly isn’t going to find its way back to players’ hands once it’s in Fntastic’s.
If this was indeed intended to be a scam, then it’s highly unlikely to be a successful one.
The good news is that Valve (or Steam) has seemingly suspended its ‘2-hour refund’ limit in this case, and judging bythe reviews pagepeople are getting refunds for The Day Before even though they’ve played beyond the usual two-hour limit. Also, Valve usually holds developer revenue for up to 30 days before releasing it, so there’s a good chance that Fntastic won’t be getting anything at all from this once refunds and Valve’s 30% cut get taken into account. If this was indeed intended to be a scam, then it’s highly unlikely to be a successful one.
And yet, it’s another cautionary tale about the power of marketing and the ability of ideas and concepts to sell a game rather than the game itself. It’s been a while since the early days of Steam Early Access, when games like The War Z (Infestation: Survivor Stories), and The Dead Linger made a fair bit of money before disappearing into the ether, but this is weirdly reminiscent of those times, speaking to the enduring power of a very well-trodden videogame trope to enrapture gamers with a certain kind of fantasy. You’d have thought gamers will have learned since those dark days, but it seems they haven’t.
There was a frustrating inevitability to all of this. Back in June 2022, I wrotean extensive piece highlighting all the red flags with The Day Before. To this day, it remains one of the most-read Features on DualShockers, but the majority of comments and feedback on social media were accusing me of having an ‘agenda’ and being a hater for pointing out the patently obvious. I suspect that the backlash at me came from fans who were heavily invested in the idea of the game, opting to double down on their stances rather than take a step back and see the forest for the trees (people don’t like being told they’re wrong). Or maybe it was some kind of troll-farmy social media team working for Fntastic and trying to undermine those who would speak out against the game? Stranger things have certainly happened.
10 Best Survival Co-Op Games
From Don’t Starve Together to Minecraft and Rust, these survival titles offer an excellent co-op experience.
Not that I was deterred, and in February this year I warned peoplenot to preorder the game should the opportunity arise. As it happens, Fntastic never did open the game up to pre-orders, probably fully aware that it had enough hype and following for a lot of people to pick it up as soon as it entered Early Access, which they duly did.
Lessons Learned?
The problem, I think, is that the vast majority of people who buy into something like The Day Before don’t really read games media sites like this. They play to play, not read about, games, and their reference points for games like this will be the trailers, the Steam page, maybe the game’s social media pages; all environments controlled by the creator. It’s unfortunate that so many people took such an uncritical stance to The Day Before—something that warranted criticism all throughout its tenuous existence—and feels indicative of the pliability of people in the face of certain cues and marketing.
Fortunately, in this case it looks like the vast majority of people shouldn’t be left out of pocket, but it does show that empty promises and a generic zombie premisedostill work as a means of reeling people in, even in the absence of any real substance behind them. In a message as old as gaming itself: don’t make your game-buying decisions on empty hype alone.
Bethesda’s Ego And Excuses Are Keeping Me Away From Starfield
In a year of amazing RPGs, Bethesda needs to do better.
