It seems this year has seen a lot of fan-made projects shot down. Our recent report on DOOM Roguelike, and the fall of a previous fan-made Pokemon game “Pokemon Uranium”, to name a few, may have independent developers and fans alike a bit frustrated. It comes as no surprise though that Pokemon Prism is to join the list of fan creation casualties for 2016.

Pokemon Prism, a “ROM hack” by creator Adam Vierra, was featured in a trailer and a play through on Twitch in October of this year. This game, though not entirely original, has been in development for 8 years. It was designed in the Game Boy Color Pokemon style from an era long since passed. It was expected to feature a new story, region, over 200 Pokemon, and the ability to play as them. Alas, it is, at least for now, dust in the wind.

I'm also responsible for this situation. Trailer shouldn't have been made & I shouldn't have been such a perfectionist and finish it sooner.

— Adam V. (@Koolboyman) December 21, 2016

Adam was gracious in the loss, noting on twitter he was as much to blame and should have done things different to see the game come to fruition. The Facebook page holds similar messages, and even the webiste is gone, save for a single message thanking fans for support with a link to the takedown notice. We have included images of the letter sent to Adam below, but you can read it at the original site here.

Although Adam Vierra lives in the United States, the letter does detail Australian law. This may be due, according to Mr. Vierra, to the fact that the website host is in Australia. This may be in part why the rogue developer hasn’t given up hope, stating so in another Twitter post to fans who still want to see Pokemon Prism finished.

I'll be doing more research into this situation and keep you guys updated.

— Adam V. (@Koolboyman) December 21, 2016

If and until something comes up, it looks as though, from a legal stand point, Pokemon Prism is to join the many fan creations in the land of misfit games. Nintendo has a history of being tough on legal rights, leaving to question Adams motives in plugging the game before it was ready to launch. Maybe, in the hopeful eyes and ears of fans and interested parties alike, we will get to the bottom that with the loop hole to this games release.

What do you think about the surge of recent takedown notices from developers? Would it be better for companies to sponsor the fan games, or should the projects be shut down regardless of time put in? Sound off in the comments below!