Say what you want about Nintendo, but I find them to have a very strange sense of humor. I mean, the “Metroid” fans have been asking for a new “real” “Metroid” game for years and years now (most of the fanbase were not happy with “Metroid Other M” when the game launched for the Wii console back in 2010). And even so, no such game saw the day of light. And as the years went by, fans decided to create their own “Metroid” game instead. And in this case that game would be “AM2R” (“Another Metroid 2 Remake“, which would be one of THE best “Metroid” titles in the series so far). Well, the developers of “AM2R” release the game on the 6th of August (which would be the very same day that “Metroid” celebrated it´s 30th Anniversary).

So far, so good. Well, so I thought at least. However, that was not the case. As Nintendo decided to do a DMCA takedown on Metroid 2 Remake´s homepage just two days after AM2R´s launch day (talk about puting an end to Metroid´s and Samus Aran´s 30th anniversary after party…). And things went from bad to worse from there (I had a feeling that it would end up like this when I did my interview with Metroid Database). As the “AM2R” team had to remove the game from their homepage (“AM2R” was also removed from most of the world’s download services…). And the madness didn´t stop there, as DoctorM64 (Milton “DoctorM64” Guasti – Programming, level design, sound design, music production for “AM2R”) posted the following tweet yesterday:

“I’ve received a DMCA takedown request on my email account. So, AM2R won’t receive any more updates nor releases. Thank you for the support.” – DoctorM64, via Twitter

Furthermore, the following text is to be found on the official “AM2R” homepage:

“Nintendo of America, Inc. has filed a takedown request under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). I received the request on my personal email, so I’m complying with their requests. There will be no more AM2R updates, and no more releases under any platform. Thank you for the support during all these years.” – The AM2R team 

So there you have it folks, “AM2R” is now officially dead and buried in a cement sarcophagus six feet under. And funny enough, all of this took place very closely to the release of “Metroid Prime: Federation Force” (a game which most of the “Metroid” fans never asked for). So on a personal level. I have to say that these actions from Nintendo really felt like a big fu** you to not only the “Metroid” fans, but also fans of Nintendo in general…

Especially since Nintendo took down the Nintendo Power Online archive not so long ago (“Pokémon Uranium” faced a pretty similar faith…). And just recently Nintendo pulled the plug on +500 projects on Gamejolt via DMCA takedowns. So I think it´s safe to say that Nintendo is on the warpath at the moment, as they target everything and everyone who has anything to do with the IP´s which they currently own. And yes, I´m more than aware of the fact that it´s Nintendo´s IP´s so they have the legal right to do whatever they please. Even so, I still believe that Nintendo could have sorted out the “AM2R”, “Pokemon Uranium” and the Nintendo Power Online archive “situation” in a much classier way then they did.

Well, let´s just say that I would have dealt with these “matters” very differently from how Nintendo handled them. As I would have signed up both the “AM2R” and “Pokémon Uranium” team at a very early stage, and then sold their games via the Nintendo E-shop (the developers would then have gotten a % cut for each game sold). As for the Nintendo Power Online archive, I would have made it so that the archive would have been available via Nintendo´s official homepage for free (it would have been a nice free treat for Nintendo´s loyal fans, and nice way of saying “Thank you for supporting us over the years“).

However, that´s just wishful thinking on my behalf. As I´m not in a chief position at Nintendo, but that´s at least what I would have done if I was the one in command of matters like that.

And with that said, what´s your take on this matter? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section down below!

Source:
DoctorM64
Project AM2R
Gamesindustry
attackofthefanboy
Pokemon Uranium

***Disclaimer***
This is a personal opinion of the writer, and it doesn’t necessarily represent the other writers (nor The Gaming Ground´s) opinions.

Robin “V-Act” Ek
The Gaming Ground
Twitter: @TheGamingGround

More by Robin Ek:

• The realistic survival game “The Last Plague: Blight” is coming to Steam EA on October 3rd, 2024
• “Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster Anniversary Edition” is coming physically to consoles on October 8th, 2024
• The single-button boss rush game “ONE BTN BOSSES” is now available for PC via Steam
• The unique viking base builder/roguelite/strategy game “Landnama” is now available for consoles
• The full version of “MARS 2120” is now available for PC and consoles

Tags: AM2R, Another Metroid 2 Remake, Metroid, Metroid 2, Nintendo