Remember Devotion, the horror game title that got taken off the proverbial video game shelf a couple of years back, all because of a reference to China’s current leader, Xi Jinping? Well, the game is finally back on the market and is officially available digitally and in a DRM-free format.
The return of Devotion to both stores was made public by its Taiwan-based studio and creator, Red Candle Games, via its official Twitter account. In addition, it says that all future titles will be purchasable via its own online store, as it moves forward to provide a “direct and simple” purchasing channel for players. Additionally, the game is also available via CD Projekt’s GOG platform.
As a quick primer, back in 2019, Red Candle Games came under Steam users who purchased the game discovered an in-game poster that said “Xi Jinping Winnie-the-Pooh moron”. For context, Xi Jinping became the subject of a massive meme then, when the internet made comparisons between the man’s shape and size and the beloved character of English author, A. A. Milne.
Hello, Red Candle e-shop is now online. https://t.co/smmZxHj7zQ#返校Detention, #還願Devotion and our future projects will all be on e-shop in DRM-free format.
We hope to provide a direct and simple purchasing channel for players who’re interested in our games. pic.twitter.com/1SxzBZSiyW
— redcandlegames (@redcandlegames) March 15, 2021
Naturally, the Chinese government didn’t find this comparison between its leader and a teddy bear funny, and soon issued a ban on all content that mentioned or contained mentions of Winnie the Pooh. Unsurprisingly as well, the country moved to ban Disney’s Christopher Robin, which also premiered in 2019.
Devotion is currently selling for US$16.99 (~RM70) for the base game, while a bundle including the game’s soundtrack is also available for US$20.68 (~RM85).
(Source: Red Candle Games [1] [2], IGN // Image: Red Candle Games)
