The relationship between Ys Net and Shenmue 3 Kickstarter backers has been strained recently, thanks to the team’s and the publisher’s last-minute decision to make the game a timed exclusive for the Epic Games Store. Ys Net assured backers that they will be working on restoring the community relationship and rethink the no-refund policy.
Ys Net has now issued an official statement stating that all backers will receive free Steam keys once the game becomes available on Valve’s digital platform on top of the immediate key they will receive when the game launches on Epic Store on November 19th.
In the word of the developers;
“In response to backers who have requested Steam keys for their rewards, we discussed offering the keys on the day of release. However, coordination with the sales policies of the involved companies was untenable, and as a result we are not able to make a day one distribution option for Steam keys available.
That we are not able to offer Steam keys for Kickstarter rewards at the time of the game’s release is a great disappointed and inconvenience for those backers who were expecting to receive them. We deeply apologize for the unrest caused by the announcement.”
Moreover, Ys Net has gone back on their previous decision and has decided to honor refund requests to displeased parties. More information about the refund process will be released in a future update.