Minecraft is the best-selling recreation ever, so it’s naturally impressed dozens of Minecraft clones and similar-looking, voxel-based crafting sims over the previous 15 or so years. Many have survived with none grievance from Microsoft. However earlier this week, an upcoming Steam recreation referred to as Allumeria was briefly taken down over a single screenshot.
On Tuesday, the developer behind the Minecraft-looking, dungeon-raiding sandbox announced that their recreation had been taken down from Valve’s storefront as a result of a DMCA copyright discover issued by Microsoft. The discover, shared by developer Unomelon within the recreation’s Discord server, accused Allumeria of utilizing “Minecraft content material, together with however not restricted to gameplay and property.”
The takedown was apparently issued over one particular screenshot from the sport’s Steam web page. It exhibits a vaguely Minecraft-esque world with birch bushes, tall grass, a blue sky, and pumpkins: all issues which can be in Minecraft but additionally in actual life and plenty of different video games. The sport does look fairly much like Minecraft, however it doesn’t look like reusing any of its precise property or crossing some arbitrary line between homage and copycat that dozens of different Minecraft-inspired video games haven’t crossed earlier than.
A take a look at the sport’s Steam web page exhibits a fairly charming crafting sim that makes clear makes an attempt to distinguish itself from Minecraft: its trailer, screenshots, and outline all emphasize a give attention to boss fights, loot, an in-depth cave system, and extra customizable decorations. It’s additionally stunning that Allumeria was hit when the just lately launched Hytale, which accurately grew out of a Minecraft server and appears like an excellent polished texture pack, has been allowed to thrive seemingly with out subject.
Letting AI automate takedown claims
Developer Unomelon informed me through Discord that the declare was issued through Tracer.AI, an AI platform used to robotically detect and take away copyright infringements. Microsoft and Mojang have beforehand used the platform to take down different voxel video games, like a Roblox tech demo whose developer later spoke out about the takedown, in addition to YouTube videos about Minecraft itself.
Whereas it’s unclear if the declare was issued robotically or deliberately, Mojang Chief Artistic Officer Jens Bergensten (identified to most Minecraft gamers as Jeb) responded to a comment about the takedown on Bluesky, stating that he was not conscious and is now “investigating.” Roughly 12 hours later, Allumeria‘s Steam web page has been reinstated.
“Microsoft has withdrawn their DMCA declare!” Unomelon posted earlier today. “The sport is again up on Steam! Allumeria is again! Thanks EVERYONE in your help. It’s laborious to grasp {that a} single put up in my discord would result in so many individuals expressing help.”
Regardless of the repair, a demo for the sport is working into some licensing points as gamers attempt to obtain it, although that’s a greater consequence than attempting to counter-claim the DMCA through the February 2026 Steam Subsequent Fest which Unomelon was making ready the sport for.
“[The takedown] could assist enhance the sport’s reputation however it additionally comes with important threat,” they informed Kotaku. “Submitting a counter declare opens me as much as a lawsuit which may very well be probably devastating. So even when every part works out, I’d nonetheless slightly the DMCA takedown by no means have occurred within the first place.”
Microsoft didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
