 |
| ▲ This photo, provided by Ironmace, shows the official page of 'Dark and Darker' on Steam. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
 |
| ▲ This photo is a captured image of the post uploaded by the creator of 'Dark and Darker.' (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
SEOUL, Mar. 25 (Yonhap) -- The official page of the South Korean budding game producer Ironmace’s “Dark and Darker,” which has been alleged to have been developed based on the leading game powerhouse Nexon’s leaked assets, has been temporarily closed on the global game platform Steam.
“We have recently been served a cease and desist letter and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown by Nexon regarding ‘Dark and Darker’ based on distorted claims,” an official from Ironmace shared on the official social space on Saturday.
The post then continued, “We are currently working with our legal team to remedy this issue in the best manner possible.”
Meanwhile, the promotion and sales pages of this controversial game were deleted from the game platform Steam as of 10 a.m. Saturday.
The DMCA is a 1998 United States copyright law designed to protect copyright holders from the unlawful reproduction or distribution of their works. The holders may request the removal of infringing content from websites and online platforms. In this case, Nexon asked Valve, the operator of Steam, to give Ironmace a DMCA takedown for its infringing “Dark and Darker.” With its page being removed, it is interpreted that Valve had accepted Nexon’s request.
Meanwhile, Nexon declined to make an official statement, saying, “We cannot give an answer to questions regarding Steam’s decision as legal action is underway.”
Nexon formerly sued its former employee, identified simply as Leader A, for leaking the game powerhouse’s data and assets after leaving the company. The firm filed a complaint with the police on charges of violating the Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act and the Act of the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.
Nexon has been claiming that Leader A leaked data from the so-called “P3 Project,” which was under development when he was working under Nexon but then was fired after getting caught for unlawfully taking out the company’s assets. The leading game firm alleged that Ironmace’s “Dark and Daker” was produced based on assets that the then-employee had illicitly leaked.
Ironmace, on the other hand, has completely denied the allegations, saying that it never used the leaked asset in developing its brand-new game.
The Gyeonggi Southern Police Agency, which has been in charge of investigating this case, then raided the Ironmace office in Gyeonggi Province and seized company material related to the game on Mar. 7.
(This article is translated from Korean to English by Ha eun Lee)
(END)
(C) Yonhap News Agency. All Rights Reserved
