Valve has responded to the controversy surrounding The War Z’s sudden and misleading launch on the digital download service by “temporarily” removing the game from sale and offering dissatisfied customers a full refund. The War Z is still listed on Steam, and can be played through the service, but it is no longer possible to purchase the title.
In a statement about the situation, which has escalated in the days following The War Z’s Steam release and culminated in a shameful non-apology from its developers, Valve said:
“From time to time a mistake can be made and one was made by prematurely issuing a copy of War Z for sale via Steam. We apologize for this and have temporary removed the sale offering of the title until we have time to work with the developer and have confidence in a new build. Those who purchased the game and wish to continue playing it via Steam may do so. Those who purchased the title via Steam and are unhappy with what they received may seek a refund by creating a ticket at our support site here.”
This seems to be the correct course of action, given the misleading information about the game which accompanied its launch and the lack of any indication that the title was clearly still in (at best) a beta stage of release.
