Banned Game Devotion Available Again, But Probably Not For You
In a truly stunning reveal, Red Candle Games’ 2019 horror title Devotion will be available again for purchase. Of course, it will only be available as a physical game, and will only be sold in Red Candle’s home of Taiwan. And it will only be available for purchase from now until June 15th. But the return of this critically acclaimed title to the market is a big surprise.
Devotion is a psychological horror game that creates it’s terror in an unusual manner. The game centers on a father, mother, and daughter, who live together in an apartment. Rather than be subject to overtly paranormal forces, the family begins to suffer from real world horrors. The daughter falls sick to a mysterious illness, and the father begins to grow paranoid. Worshipping a strange deity known as Cigu Guanuin, the father goes mad trying to prove his faith to the god, believing it will cure his daughter.
It’s hard to overstate how good the reception to Devotion was. The atypical horror storytelling as well as it’s gameplay, set the game apart from the majority of other horror titles. It was said to be one of the best horror games of the year, with players comparing it to Hideo Kojima’s P.T., a comparison not thrown around lightly. Devotion was even placed into the library of Harvard University. However, the initially positive reception was short lived.
After just six days on Steam, Devotion came under fire when a piece of in-game art appeared to feature Chinese president Xi Jinping in a negative light. Due to the deep political controversy between China and Taiwan, Devotion was subjected to a massive amount of review bombing. Eventually, citing performance issues and the public controversy, Red Candle removed the game from Steam.
The game cannot be purchased outside of Taiwan, which makes obtaining a copy all but impossible. However, the fact that it is returning in any capacity raises the possibility of Devotion becoming available on a mass market someday. If you like in Taiwan and would like to pre-order, you can check out this link.
