For many games, Steam Early Access is a place to build a fan-base while simultaneously funding game development, but when a developer fails to live up to its promises, it is the players who suffer. This happened with the ill-fated Towns, which was abandoned by its developers after an intermittent series of minor updates.

Now, another game – Under the Ocean – may join the list of Early Access games that dissolved into the ether, but Paul Hart, the game’s sole remaining developer, refuses to let the project go out quietly.

Last week, Hart announced that Michael Reitzenstein, Under the Ocean’s programmer, had left the project over creative differences.

“So where does this leave the project without a programmer?” Hart wrote. “Well, it leaves just me left, out of money and maybe against better judgement and out of sheer stubbornness, I am not quitting, I will not declare this project dead. I don’t care how long this takes, I don’t care how hard, I WILL finish this project, by myself if that’s what it takes. I made a promise to finish this project and that is exactly what I plan to do, against all odds.”

“I don’t want to deceive people”

Despite his pledge to finish the game, Hart decided to pull the game from Steam Early Access, saying, “I think this makes the most sense as I don’t want to deceive people into thinking the game is one thing when it is not.”

Steam users who already purchased the game will still be able to download it and play it in its currently unfinished state, but no new purchases can be made.

Hart also promised to offer refunds “when the project starts making money again,” explaining that at the moment, refunds were coming out of his own pocket and he could no longer afford to offer them.

Hart’s decision to be upfront with fans and remove the game from Steam is in stark contrast to the outcome of Towns. When Towns was abandoned after earning $2 million from Early Access, its developer pushed out an unfinished alpha version as the completed game, and it is still available for purchase today despite extremely negative reviews.

Image credit: Indie DB