"Steam Pilots was crowdfunded via Japanese crowdfunding site Makuake through two separate campaigns, both of which were created in 2019. The two campaigns managed to raise a combined 11,022,700 yen. This amounts to roughly $70,000 USD today, but was closer to $90,000 in 2019. In January 2022, Pixel Co. director Hidekuni Sasaki revealed in a that it was ceasing development on Steam Pilots , after allegedly not having received any form of payment in the two years they'd worked on the project."
"From there, a legal battle ensued. Pixel Co. launched a suit against Furukawa in March 2022, seeking to recoup its lost development costs. Furukawa launched a countersuit of his own in 2023, in which he sought compensation for damages and alleged emotional distress caused by Pixel Co.'s CEO. As detailed in a report by Automaton , this all came to a head on January 30 when a Japanese court ruled that neither party would receive compensation for their alleged damages."
Motoaki Furukawa and Pixel Co. contested ownership and payments related to the abandoned crowdfunded shoot 'em up Steam Pilots. Two 2019 Makuake crowdfunding campaigns raised a combined 11,022,700 yen, approximately $70,000 today. Pixel Co. ceased development in January 2022, alleging two years without payment, while Makuake said campaign funds had been passed to Furukawa. Pixel Co. sued Furukawa in March 2022 to recover development costs, and Furukawa countersued in 2023 for damages and emotional distress. A Japanese court ruled that neither party would receive compensation, but ordered Pixel Co.'s president to pay Furukawa 40,000 yen for emotional distress. Pixel Co. called the ruling deeply regrettable and warned of potential industry disadvantages.
Read at Kotaku
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