The Sinking City - Steam Page Up

The Sinking City is again listed on Steam according to PCInvasion. Apparently the reason the game was not available on Steam earlier, despite the Appeal ruling, was due to the Epic exclusivity deal period which has now expired. The game is not currently available to buy.

While the litigation is still ongoing, the Paris Court of Appeal ruled in October of 2020 that the contract termination was unlawful and ordered Frogwares to continue fulfilling it. Due to this ruling, The Sinking City is now once again available on all storefronts, including Steam.

[…]

The Sinking City is an adventure and investigation game set in an open world inspired by the universe of H.P. Lovecraft, the master of Horror. The half-submerged city of Oakmont is gripped by supernatural forces. You're a private investigator, and you have to uncover the truth of what has possessed the city… and the minds of its inhabitants.

• An oppressive atmosphere and story inspired by the universe of H.P. Lovecraft.
• A vast open world that can be explored on foot, by boat, in a diving suit…
• High replay value thanks to an open investigation system: each case can be solved in a number of ways, with different possible endings depending on your actions.
• An arsenal of weapons from the 1920s with which to take on nightmarish creatures.
• Manage your mental health to untangle the truth behind the madness.

More information.

It has neither price listed nor the option to put in on the cart.

Originally Posted by henriquejr
It has neither price listed nor the option to put in on the cart.

I hadn't noticed that. I have adjusted the newsbit.

I played through TSC when it was originally released. Not bad but nothing mind-blowing. It's worth it for Lovecraft fans, but don't pay full price.

Here's a short review I wrote.

https://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/show…post1061576157

Looking forward to getting it! Love what I have seen so far, but as a Lovecraft fan though as JDR13 stated.

Quick, buy this gem before they lose the court case and it's pulled again!!

If you do buy it, I strongly recommend getting it with the Necronomicon DLC pack. This added lots of mini-quests (small side investigations) and even a boss fight which the main game lacked. I was skeptical originally, but I felt it really enhanced the game, and can be played as you explore throughout the game.

As for the game itself, I felt the "open world" element was a real let down, as was much of the combat. The Sherlock Holmes games (with which it shares a lot of DNA) were a bit more focussed and were better for it. That being said, as a Lovecraft fan, I enjoyed it all the way through, but it felt "padded", and strangely empty outside of the core story beats.

And it’s gone from Steam again. Did not manage to see a price and be able to buy it. Oh well.

Originally Posted by danutz_plusplus
And it’s gone from Steam again. Did not manage to see a price and be able to buy it. Oh well.

Interesting. Perhaps the court ruling was overturned?

Well it's still available and on sale right now at Origin if anyone is interested.
https://www.origin.com/usa/en-us/sto…y/interstitial

Man what a clusterfuck this situation with The Sinking City has turned out. I received notification from Steam that it was back on sale, so I quickly jumped at it and bought it at 60% off. Anyway, just 10 mins I see a message update from steam, written by the devs apparently, saying that the copy that is currently being sold on Steam is not sold by Frogwares, and to not buy it.

How are Frogwares able to post message updates to not buy it, on the same game where the publisher, I imagine, has control to sell it? What a clusterfuck.

Originally Posted by danutz_plusplus
Man what a clusterfuck this situation with The Sinking City has turned out. I received notification from Steam that it was back on sale, so I quickly jumped at it and bought it at 60% off. Anyway, just 10 mins I see a message update from steam, written by the devs apparently, saying that the copy that is currently being sold on Steam is not sold by Frogwares, and to not buy it.

How are Frogwares able to post message updates to not buy it, on the same game where the publisher, I imagine, has control to sell it? What a clusterfuck.

Well, they are listed as the developer on the Steam Page, so they may have access to the Steam page, that the pulbisher can't bar them from. They may also control the forum, as this is more often in the hands of a developer than a publisher.

Originally Posted by danutz_plusplus
Man what a clusterfuck this situation with The Sinking City has turned out. I received notification from Steam that it was back on sale, so I quickly jumped at it and bought it at 60% off. Anyway, just 10 mins I see a message update from steam, written by the devs apparently, saying that the copy that is currently being sold on Steam is not sold by Frogwares, and to not buy it.

How are Frogwares able to post message updates to not buy it, on the same game where the publisher, I imagine, has control to sell it? What a clusterfuck.

Not only that, but apparently it's an inferior version.
From a user:
"This is an old version of the game. There's no DLC, no cloud saves, no achievements,… This is NOT the same version that got released by Frogwares early Janurary".
Jeepers, publishers can be scummy.

I'd probably refund it until the mess gets sorted out. That version has no DLC and apparently doesn't even support cloud saves.

*Edit* Damn you Shagnak. Why you posting the same time as me?

Originally Posted by forgottenlor
Well, they are listed as the developer on the Steam Page, so they may have access to the Steam page, that the pulbisher can't bar them from. They may also control the forum, as this is more often in the hands of a developer than a publisher.

Oh, right. I didn't think about that. That's fantastic. There's open battle on steam. What a mess.

Originally Posted by JDR13
I'd probably refund it until the mess gets sorted out. That version has no DLC and apparently doesn't even support cloud saves.

I'm afraid to do that, since I'm imagining it may never come back?
Should I refund it? I'm thinking about it.

Indeed. https://twitter.com/Frogwares/status…85278140133378
"Frogwares has not created the version of @thesinkingcity that is today on sale on @Steam. We do not recommend the purchase of this version. More news soon."

It's getting silly, with low blows from either Frogwares or their publisher, Nacon. I don't think alienating the customers will profit either of them, so short-sighted.

Originally Posted by danutz_plusplus
I'm afraid to do that, since I'm imagining it may never come back?
Should I refund it? I'm thinking about it.

Remember… it'll always be available in one form or another.

Yeah, I've I'd bought it in good faith on Steam, and got an inferior version, I'd have no hesitation in sorting that out.

Originally Posted by JDR13
Remember… it'll always be available in one form or another.

Originally Posted by Ripper
Yeah, I've I'd bought it in good faith on Steam, and got an inferior version, I'd have no hesitation in sorting that out.

Yeah, indeed. I'm refunding it.

Originally Posted by Redglyph
Indeed. https://twitter.com/Frogwares/status…85278140133378
"Frogwares has not created the version of @thesinkingcity that is today on sale on @Steam. We do not recommend the purchase of this version. More news soon."

It's getting silly, with low blows from either Frogwares or their publisher, Nacon. I don't think alienating the customers will profit either of them, so short-sighted.

News like this does not inspire good faith with publisher Nacon. It also raises some red flags about upcoming RPG games from developer Spiders who's now owned by them.

Werewolf The Apocalypse - Earthblood another RPG published by them is a mess as well.

Originally Posted by Couchpotato
News like this does not inspire good faith with publisher Nacon. It also raises some red flags about upcoming RPG games from developer Spiders who's now owned by them.

Werewolf The Apocalypse - Earthblood another RPG published by them is a mess as well.

No, indeed.

The behaviour of Frogwares is also a little doubtful, maybe not here but in what happened before. It's so hard to see clearly in this though, they may just be honest, but naive and childish in their reaction. Adults lawyer-up, settle and that's it, nothing to see (but sometimes that's expensive).

Originally Posted by danutz_plusplus
Yeah, indeed. I'm refunding it.

So it's decided, you'll try to get a "safer" version instead? I see it's still on sale, but their Twitter had a lot of comments from disappointed customers. The reactions seem mostly in their favour.

Many say the PS5 version is the one to get.