STEINS;GATE RE:BOOT creator Mages has revealed on the game’s official platform that due to the “character of the product,” it will not be allowing anyone to stream or post live commentary for the forthcoming title. While console sharing tools that enable in-game footage recording are permitted for private and personal use, broadcasting the game to an unspecified/large number of people is not allowed.
Such restrictions are not unusual among Japanese companies, particularly when it comes to the visual novel category, where viewing gameplay videos can virtually replace playing the game. Previous Steins;Gate releases have also featured similar policies, and the creators have been diligent in enforcing them.
In 2023, a 53-year-old Japanese web producer who uploaded an hour-long clip of Steins;Gate: My Darling’s Embrace (including its endings, which were under a streaming ban) along with other copyrighted material, faced legal consequences. He was detained and convicted of copyright violation, ultimately receiving a two-year prison sentence, suspended for five years, and a fine of 1 million JPY (approximately $6,400 USD), as reported by Yomiuri Shimbun. The individual acknowledged uploading the videos while fully aware of the legal repercussions.
To stop similar instances of copyright violation from occurring and to guarantee a spoiler-free experience for players, Mages has implemented a complete streaming ban for the upcoming Steins;Gate Re:Boot. Although the plot is largely identical to the 2009 original visual novel, the inclusion of a new ending is one of the reasons why players would want to explore it, along with updates such as re-recorded voice lines and enhanced graphics.
Steins;Gate Re:Boot is scheduled to launch on August 20 for Nintendo Switch and Switch 2, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC (Steam).
Mido