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Lights Out For Interwave's Dark Matter On Steam
Over the weekend, we reported that Interwave's Dark Matter had left some buyers upset. The title ends abruptly with a text screen that is similar to a "to be continued…" message (though without that promise). After complaints, the title has been temporarily removed from Steam.
"Currently there is a known issue at the end of the game," reads the Steam store page. "The developer is aware of the issue and they are working on a patch as a solution." GoG is offering a refund to anyone that purchased the title prior to October 21.
[Source: Steam]
Our Take
Interwave is in a tough spot. They failed to raise money from a Kickstarter campaign, incurred debt in creating the title, and have no more money to execute their design plan. Releasing a version of the game is a reasonable choice, but doing so as they've done wasn't wise.
Clearly the game isn't finished. The ending is abrupt and hints at an episodic format, but given the reaction from players and the lack of money (pinned on the failed Kickstarter), the chance of real resolution to the story is slim.
I don't know what kind of "patch" could fix that. Here's hoping that Valve keeps a careful eye on this and fully vets the update before allowing it back on the store. It's not easy to get onto Steam, and Interwave has squandered the opportunity.
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