Today the stone age farming and life simulation game Roots of Pacha has been removed from Steam.
The developers at Soda Den have issued a statement on social media explaining that unfortunately, this isn't a mistake (as it happened recently with Ready or Not). Unfortunately, the game appears to have been intentionally taken down following a dispute with publisher Crytivo.
Soda Den alleges that the publisher refused to work with them to resolve the dispute internally and instead just went to Valve to get the game removed. You can read the full statement below.
As you may have noticed, the Roots of Pacha Steam page is temporarily offline.
We are sad to report that we have been engaged in a dispute with Crytivo over the rights to Roots of Pacha. We worked hard to amicably resolve our issue with Crytivo internally. Instead of working with us to address the issue, Crytivo went to Valve and authorized them to remove Roots of Pacha from Steam without our knowledge or consent.
While we work out our issues with Crytivo, we'll continue developing Roots of Pacha with the same energy we've always put into it. We couldn't be any more thankful for the overall reception of the game. We're currently working on a roadmap and are excited to say it'll be ready for you next month!
We're cautiously optimistic that Roots of Pacha will return to Steam very soon.
- Soda Den Team
At the moment, Crytivo has not issued a statement in response. We reached out to ask if they have anything to comment on the issue, and will follow up if we receive anything of note.
Update: Crytivo has responded to Soda Den's claim with a statement of its own, alleging that Soda Den decided to unilaterally rescind the contract with the publisher, leading to the dispute and the removal of the game from Steam until it is resolved. You can find the statement below.
Dear Fans,
We want to address the recent developments concerning the Roots of Pacha game and its removal from Steam. We understand this news may be frustrating for our fans, and we assure you, our team is working diligently to resolve the situation as quickly as possible.
The Crytivo team has worked hard on making Roots of Pacha a success. We've closely collaborated with the Soda Den team for 3 years, providing support and guidance throughout the journey leading up to the game's launch on April 25th.
On April 27th, just two days after the successful release, we received an unexpected message from the Soda Den team, informing us they were claiming to unilaterally rescind the contract we had worked under for three years, treating it as void. This disregarded all of our work and the agreed-upon revenue-sharing contract terms. Shortly after, they removed our access to the Steam page for our team.
Per Valve Policy, if there is a dispute between parties, they remove the page until the dispute is resolved.
We sincerely appreciate your support and understanding during this challenging time. Rest assured, we are committed to resolving this situation and ensuring that Roots of Pacha returns to Steam. We will continue working closely with all parties involved, including Valve, to reach a satisfactory resolution.Of course, we have so much more to share about this incredible journey, and we stand proudly behind the services we have provided.
We're not seeking anything but the benefit of the contract we worked hard under for three years.This is an extremely challenging time for our team.
Thank you for being a part of our family and for your unwavering support.
Crytivo Crew
We will follow the situation and keep you update should anything of note happen.
Roots of Pacha is a cute 2D pixel art life & farming simulator set in the Stone Age. It was financed via Kickstarter with $355,388 - ten times the original $35,000 goal - by 7,015 backers. The game is scheduled to be released on consoles later this year. At the moment, we do not know whether this issue will affect the console release or not.
