Minecraft-style indie returns to Steam after Microsoft DMCA scare, creator criticizes "guilty until proven innocent" system

A Minecraft-esque sandbox game that was removed from Steam following a DMCA takedown has swiftly returned to Valve's platform. The DMCA, which was issued on behalf of Microsoft, alleged that screenshots on Allumeria's Steam page were infringing Minecraft's copyright. However, after a lot of community pressure, and the situation being acknowledged by Mojang's chief creative officer, the takedown has been reversed, with Allumeria's creator 'Unomelon' telling PCGamesN that they can "finally rest" after a stressful 24 hours. They also criticize the "broken" DMCA system, saying: "If I was a smaller developer, or if I hadn't put in the work to grow my community early on, I am not sure what I would have done."

The Minecraft inspiration is clear to see in Allumeria, but it "strives to harness the full potential of what a voxel sandbox game can be" with some more unconventional items and impressive-looking boss fights. While Unomelon says Terraria is probably a bigger influence on their game, they tell me over Discord that "I think it's safe to say that, much like many other block games such as Vintage Story and Hytale, Allumeria probably wouldn't exist if Minecraft hadn't originally improved upon the foundations that Infiniminer laid out 15 years ago." However, they add: "I have been a long-term fan of Minecraft, and played it growing up. I watched it change hands, and as I grew older I became more frustrated with the game and the direction it had taken."

Allumeria's first Steam playtest went live last year, and a demo was recently published too, with Unomelon hoping to feature it in the upcoming Steam Next Fest at the end of February. However, those plans seemed to face a major setback when they received an email from Valve saying Allumeria was being removed from Steam due to a DMCA takedown request.

Per a screenshot of an email circulated online, this DMCA came from someone called "Judith Woodward, on behalf of Microsoft Corporation", which of course owns Mojang and the Minecraft IP. The email alleged that "your use of the Minecraft content, including but not limited to gameplay and assets, without their authorization infringes their rights", and simply shared two images - one of a screenshot featured on Allumeria's Steam page, the other from the official Minecraft website. While both images show a forest scene, realized in a blocky art style, that's where the similarities of the two images really end.

This seemed like a suspiciously weak case, and it caused anger among Unomelon's supporters, those creating similar, Minecraft-inspired projects, and Minecraft fans more generally. There were also claims that a copyright enforcement service called Tracer AI was used to send the DMCA notice. This service is, by its own description, a "human-in-the-Loop AI brand protection solution," which uses AI technology to scan the web for potential copyright infringements. It says that after "harvested data" has been analyzed, "customers review and approve enforcement recommendations." In a November blog post on the Tracer AI website, Mojang is mentioned as a client, with a positive testimonial quote from the developer also included.

PCGamesN has reached out to Microsoft and Mojang to confirm whether the DMCA request against Allumeria was indeed sent using Tracer AI's services.

A lawyer who saw the situation on social media came to Unomelon's aid, offering to file a counter notice against Microsoft. It also caught the attention of Jens Bergensten, the chief creative officer at Mojang, who told a user on Bluesky that he was "investigating."

Now, the DMCA has been pulled, and Allumeria has been reinstated on Steam. Both the game's main store page and its demo are back up on the platform. "Microsoft has withdrawn the copyright claim with no action needed on my part. This is the best case scenario", Unomelon says in a message on the game's Discord server, thanking those who provided visibility to their situation.

"I feel so much better," the developer tells me. "I was awake for 20 hours after I had found out about the claim, so I was very tired and very stressed. Things had seemed to slow down so I took a nap, and four hours later, I woke up to find the page was back up. I rushed to find out what happened and, sure enough, Microsoft had withdrawn the copyright notice. I didn't even need to file a counter claim."

"It was pretty shocking to see the claim," Unomelon adds when I ask about their initial reaction. "I was aware of an example in the past of Microsoft sending DMCA notices to another game which also did not contain any Minecraft IP. Many more developers reached out to me and mentioned that this has also happened to them. So it seems like a common occurrence. I think in the age of large corporations frequently misusing the DMCA system to take down competition or simply redirect ad revenue from YouTube videos, it's not surprising that something like this is possible. I do want to say thank you to whoever withdrew the claim, though. I haven't received any official communication about why the claim happened, if it was a mistake, if it was automated, or if it was an AI claim, but withdrawing it is the right thing to do, and I truly appreciate it."

Unomelon also describes the DMCA process as "broken" and a "guilty until proven innocent system."

"If I wasn't as lucky to have a wonderful community, and support from people like 'Tyron,' the creator of Vintage Story, this issue might have never made it to the public's attention, and I would have had to fight the claim on my own. If I was a smaller developer, or if I hadn't put in the work to grow my community early on, I am not sure what I would have done."

So, despite that scary bump in the road, Allumeria is back and is on track to hopefully feature in Steam Next Fest, which kicks off on Monday, February 23. While the initial DMCA scare is something that could've been avoided, it is at least positive to see a senior figure from Mojang taking note and, seemingly, have an impact on getting it rapidly reversed.