Evil Dead: The Game is now, ironically, a literal dead game as its developer removes it from sale

It’s becoming increasingly clear that relying on licensing other works for games, or even just aspects of games, may not be the best idea. This is evident in the disappearance of certain Fortnite skins from the shop, the shutdown of the Friday the 13th game, and now the removal of Evil Dead: The Game from digital storefronts. The multiplayer game has vanished from the PlayStation Store, Epic Games Store, and now Steam, leaving fans puzzled about its fate. Developer Saber Interactive has confirmed the removal process in a Steam post, assuring existing players that servers will remain online. Despite the game being only three years old, it seems that it hasn’t performed well enough to sustain itself, possibly due to issues with licensing the Evil Dead universe. New content for the game was halted in 2023, just 16 months after launch, indicating its decline. While it’s surprising that servers are still operational, the game’s fate seems sealed. The irony of a game with “dead” in its title meeting this end is not lost on anyone.

“We can confirm we’ve begun the process of removing the game from digital storefronts,” wrote Saber in a Steam post. “Anyone who has purchased the game will still be able to play it as we plan to keep our servers online for everyone. We want to extend a sincere thank you to our community, to those who have been part of the game from the very beginning, and those who have recently joined us. We appreciate all of your support.”

My guess is that despite only being a three year old game, it hasn’t done well enough to keep it going, and something related to licensing out the Evil Dead universe has fallen through. I honestly can’t tell you, and I doubt Saber will confirm anything, so your guess is as good as mine. None of this is surprising though, as new content for the game was stopped back in 2023, only 16 months after the game launched.

The fact that servers are still being kept online is a welcome surprise, but ultimately the game’s death warrant has been signed. Obviously the irony of a game with the word dead in its title dying like this isn’t lost on me. You don’t need to post your witty “Evil Dead game” comments, I’m one step ahead of you.