Skip to main content

Kickstarter suspends controversial Areal game campaign

kickstarter suspends controversial areal campaign
Kickstarter has suspended funding for Areal, a Ukrainian-developed successor to the cult hit STALKER. The suspension follows a huge spike in the game’s funding over the last few days without a corresponding increase in backers. This means that the game either found a few very high-rolling fans, or, more likely, studio West Games bought out the campaign to ensure they received the funds already donated. This is only the latest controversy the game has generated in the past month.

Adding to the oddity, the developers posted a bizarre letter of support supposedly from Russian president Vladimir Putin: “My daughter told me about your game called Areal, which is the spiritual successor to STALKER, and told me that she paid money to support your project on Kickstarter,” reads the letter in translation. “I also love video games as well as shooters, and I like this idea. It’s important that our people do not shoot at each other, but instead, play games like this.”

STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl was an innovative, 2007 first-person survival horror game developed by Ukrainian studio GSC Game World. Set in an alternate history Chernobyl where the meltdown led to the genesis of powerful artifacts and mutants, the game was particularly popular with Russian gamers. While Areal is certainly reminiscent of the original, its haphazard Kickstarter campaign and combative developers (and their supposed imitators muddying the water) have raised serious skepticism that it may be a scam. Studio head Eugene Kim has called out journalists at VG247 and Forbes for providing biased coverage rooted in, “personal speculation and slander.”

In the same period of the funding spike and Putin letter, the campaign was also completely overwhelmed by nonsensical, trolling comments. Given the flurry of bizarre activity and the unexpected completion of its fundraising goal right before the deadline, it comes as no surprise that Kickstarter suspended the campaign to investigate its legitimacy. At this point the story has become so warped by the Internet echo chamber that it is nearly impossible to parse out truth from speculation and slander. We will keep you updated if any new evidence comes to light.

Editors' Recommendations

Will Fulton
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Will Fulton is a New York-based writer and theater-maker. In 2011 he co-founded mythic theater company AntiMatter Collective…
How to revive dead companions in Baldur’s Gate 3
Withers offering services to the player in Baldur's Gate 3.

You're given a good bit of leeway during battles in Baldur's Gate 3 before you or a companion actually bites the dust for good. While in battle, if a teammate does take enough damage to drop, they aren't dead then and there. Instead, they will be downed with a chance to roll every turn to get back up. If they roll successfully three times, the battle ends, or you use another character to pick them up, they're good. If they fail that roll three times, however, they will be completely dead. That can be harsh when you've become attached to certain characters and want to further their stories, so you'll be looking for any way you can to bring them back. Thankfully you do have a few options for reviving companions in Baldur's Gate 3, but just like respeccing, they aren't so obvious.
Pay Withers to bring them back

Withers is a friendly undead you can find in a secret room in the Dank Crypt found inside the Overgrown Ruins. After finding and speaking to him in his sarcophagus, he will offer you various services, one of which is bringing back any dead companions. He won't do this out of the kindness of his heart (probably because it isn't beating) and will charge you a heavy fine of 200 gold to do so. Still, that's a small price to pay to bring back a beloved character. Once paid, that character will appear in your camp where they would normally be, so there's no need to go back to their corpse and find them.
Use a scroll of Revivfy or learn it

Read more
Every video game delay that has happened in 2023 so far
The player skates toward the moon in Skate Story.

Few things feel as inevitable in the video game industry as delays. Ever since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, game delays have only become more and more common as developers find previously set timelines unrealistic and adjust their release plans accordingly. More than halfway through 2023, we've already seen some notable AAA games like Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, Skull & Bones, and Pragmata delayed pretty heavily. Because video game release date delays are so common, it can be tough to keep track of every game that has had its launch date shifted in some way.
That's why, just as we did in 2021 and 2022, Digital Trends is rounding up every game delay that's announced throughout 2023. Here are the high-profile ones that have happened so far, listed chronologically by their new intended release dates.
The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR (March 16)

As Until Dawn: Rush of Blood is one of the best games for PlayStation VR, The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR, Supermassive Games' PlayStation VR2 successor, is a highly anticipated launch title for the upcoming VR headset. Unfortunately, it will no longer make PlayStation VR2's February 22 launch and will instead be released on March 16. On Twitter, a message from Supermassive Games says this delay will ensure that players "receive the most polished, terrifying experience possible" at release. The game was released on that date to mixed reviews.
Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key (March 24)

Read more
Is Remnant 2 cross-platform?
Three characters shoot at a boss in Remnant 2.

Aside from the focus on firearms and integrating some randomly generated environments, the Remnant series sets itself apart from other souls-like games mainly with its focus on co-op. Both titles encourage you to team up with two friends to fight your way through the mutated monsters that await. After so many years of progress in terms of multiplatform games incorporating full cross-platform support, you might assume Remnant 2 will follow suit and let you make a group with anyone regardless of what platform they're on. However, the truth may be a bit more disappointing. Before you make plans with your squad, here's what you need to know about Remnant 2's cross-platform support.
Is Remnant 2 cross-platform?

Unfortunately, Remnant 2 does not have cross-platform play between PS5, Xbox Series X or PC -- and there's no word about it being added in the future.

Read more