2Dark devs renege on DRM promises

2Dark backers are not best pleased with developer Gloomywood and publisher Bigben, after promises about a DRM-free version of the game look to have been reversed. Currently available on Steam for the PC, 2Dark uses Denuvo DRM.

That wasn’t the original intention. The crowdfunding campaign on Ulule raised a little over $37,000 USD (more than the $32,000 USD goal). In the FAQ for the project, on the subject of DRM, Gloomywood wrote the following: “2Dark will be distributed through Steam, but also on other platforms (GOG, Desura, etc.) which don’t use DRM. Which means the version you get won’t have DRM”.

There is currently no sign of a GOG release, and on the subject of a promised Linux version, publisher Bigben say there is now “no Linux version planned yet”. The involvement of a publisher seems to have resulted in this sudden change of plans; the initial crowdfunding page touts Gloomywood’s fully independent status.

Indeed, the statement about Denuvo made on the Steam hub for the game comes from the publisher. “Gloomywood’s crowd-funding campaign did not mention a DRM, but the campaign has evolved much more than originally anticipated,” Bigben state, before going on to make the very unusual comparison of Denuvo to other desirable features like voice acting. “This was all made possible because Bigben, and the 2Dark fans, believed in Gloomywood’s creative vision,” they claim.

So, DRM-free versions are missing in action, a Linux release seems unlikely, and Denuvo was added as a feature. “With this DRM system, piracy can be prevented and studios can focus on being innovative and creative,” say Bigben. Which is all very well (and a bit dubiously presented as concrete fact), but some players explicitly backed a DRM-free copy.