Overseas publisher Shiravune has announced that the Dungeon RPG (DRPG) games “Maze Traveler 2: The Royal Library and the Seal of Monsters” and “Maze Traveler 2-2” developed by Aquaplus will not be released on Steam. The decision comes after the development team found it challenging to meet Steam’s regulations while maintaining the core appeal and high standards of the games.
Shiravune expressed their regret, stating in a tweet, “Steam’s review made it impossible to pass while keeping the core appeal and high standards we hold for these titles.” They apologized to the players who were eagerly awaiting a Steam version of DT2-2.
The official reason for the cancellation of the Steam release is the difficulty in maintaining the game’s quality and preserving its charm while meeting Steam’s regulations. The exact nature of this “charm” was not specified by the official statement. However, both games are known for being DRPGs with a certain level of difficulty and also for featuring various female characters. It can be speculated that the games may have stepped into sensitive territory concerning “young girl” content, and the development team chose not to make specific changes to cater to Steam’s regulations.
The games will still be released in the Chinese market as planned, exclusively through the Johren platform. However, Steam users will miss out on experiencing these titles unless the developers decide to revisit the Steam release in the future.
Steam, a leading digital distribution platform for video games, imposes certain regulations on content for release on their platform. These guidelines ensure that games meet a level of quality and adhere to community standards. While these regulations are in place to create a safe and enjoyable gaming experience, they sometimes present challenges for developers, leading to the exclusion of certain games from the platform.
The cancellation of the Steam release may disappoint fans who were looking forward to playing the games on the platform. However, they will still have the opportunity to enjoy them on other platforms or wait for potential future developments regarding a Steam release.