The Day Before - Controversy Surrounds Development as Fntastic Responds to Issues Raised
Delayed Release Date, Unpaid Volunteer Controversy, and Trademark Issues Raise Doubts on the Game’s Development and Authenticity.
The Day Before is a game that has been plagued by an overwhelming number of issues and legal disputes. To underline the game’s problem, it has also been removed from Steam.
The Day Before, an open-world MMO survival game set in a post-pandemic America overrun by flesh-hungry infected zombies and human survivors killing each other for food and scarce resources, has been plagued by a number of problems, from trademark issues to the use of volunteers and an inconsistent release date.
Fntastic Announces Delay On The Day Before Release Date
The developer, Fntastic, had planned to release the game on March 1st but announced a delay to November 10, 2023.
— Fntastic (@FntasticHQ) January 25, 2023
Fntastic initially stated that the delay was due to a “minor technical difficulty”, but later released a statement on Twitter on January 25 saying that the Steam page was blocked at the request of a private individual, who had filed a trademark for the name “The Day Before” in the United States.
The Day Before Removed from Steam to the Chagrin of Community - Developer Responds
In light of this, the game’s Steam page has been removed, as have pre-existing links that redirect visitors to the Steam home page, and the game has been receiving lots of backlash from its community.
In a recent interview, Fntastic told a news outlet that it is “unpleasant to hear such charges”, referring to the speculation that The Day Before isn’t genuinely being worked on. The game’s developer reaffirmed its faith in the game by declaring – “We only believe in the end product. Regardless of what anyone says, you can make your own judgment on November 10 of this year.”
Fntastic also talked about the trademark issue with The Day Before, saying that the change in the release date had already been planned before the trademark dispute.
Unpaid Volunteers For the Development of The Day Before also Raises Eyebrows
The trademark problems are not the only issues that have followed the development of The Day Before. Back in 2022, there was the problem of labor with a lot of people raising concern about the developer’s use of unpaid volunteers for game development.
This led the company to delay the release of the game and abandon the game trailer they had earlier promised to release.
The Day Before Compared to "Abandoned"
Our response to the Cancellation rumours: pic.twitter.com/EuiY8Squ52
— BLUE BOX Game Studios (@BBGameStudios) March 31, 2022
Even so, there is still a lot of doubt about how real the game is and how it is being made. Many people compare the current state of The Day Before to that of another rumored game title – “Abandoned” by BLUE BOX Game Studios.
With the new release date for The Day Before scheduled for November 10, 2023, we can only hope that Fntastic get their act together and sort out all issues of development delays, unpaid volunteer work, and trademark problems.
Whatever happens, we will definitely be on ground to provide up-to-date information while hoping that Fntastic make good on their latest rescheduling of the launch of The Day Before.
