Pandemic: The Board Game: Pandemic video game pulled from app stores

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Pandemic: The Board Game Play Store page: The app can no longer be purchased

Photo: Google's Play Store

»Will you save humanity?« That is the key question for the digital conversion of the board game classic »Pandemic«.

In the video game by Asmodee Digital you have to prevent the spread of diseases and find cures in the skin of two to five characters.

Unlike in the board game template, however, you do this alone, not together with other players.

For many people, this virtual fight against the catastrophe was an interesting pastime, especially in times of a real pandemic.

In addition to titles such as "Plague Inc.", "Pandemic: The Board Game" was also one of the handful of games that were suddenly seen with different eyes due to the corona crisis.

Recently, however, the game has now disappeared from Apple's and Google's online stores without further explanation.

It can no longer be bought on Steam either.

A note on the PC gaming platform simply states that "Pandemic: The Board Game" is no longer for sale "at the request of the publisher".

guesswork as to the reasons

Why are you removing a pandemic video game that is several years old in times of a pandemic? Many a fan of the app puzzled over this question. Was there trouble with the store operators? Do you want to make money with a successor? Or would Asmodee prefer to lure future prospects to its Portal Board Game Arena, which it bought in 2021, where you can play »Pandemic« online with others?

A support rep quoted on Reddit provided more confusion than clarity.

The decision to remove the game from stores was made "with a heavy heart," it said, "for a variety of reasons that we cannot disclose."

It was also clarified that the remaining versions of the game that Microsoft and Nintendo offer on their online marketplaces will also be phased out at the end of January and the end of July, respectively.

On Wednesday evening, Asmodee Digital, which will soon belong to the Swedish Embracer Group, finally decided to officially take a stand.

The provider's explanation should surprise long-time fans of the game in particular: Asmodee Digital supposedly found its game, which was last updated in 2021, no longer good enough.

The Pandemic game did not survive the pandemic

"The Pandemic app was released nine years ago and we feel that the current quality and reliability of the game no longer lives up to what Pandemic deserves on digital platforms," ​​reads a Facebook post.

It is time to "make room for Pandemic's digital future".

However, a successor or similar has not been announced.

The game is simply gone for the time being - and it can now go down in games history as the pandemic video game that collapsed during a real pandemic.

After all: All players who have already bought "Pandemic: The Board Game" in one of the stores should be able to continue playing and downloading it, writes Asmodee Digital.

(SPIEGEL was at least able to verify this using the Android app.) Those who set out to conquer the fictitious pandemic earlier will be able to continue to do so.

All other potential world saviors have to switch to Board Game Arena - or to the board game template.

mbo