Wii U physical version of Axiom Verge finally gets release, dev begins lawsuit against publisher
Axiom Verge originally released for the Wii U on the Nintendo eShop all the way back in 2016, with the announcement of a physical edition made the following year, courtesy of Limited Run Games and BadLand Games. More than two years later, and that retail version still hasn't been released, due to a controversy involving Tom Happ, the developer, and the two aforementioned publishers. Initially, BadLand was supposed to be in charge of getting the game released on physical media, while Limited Run Games would help by funding the bulk of it, to be repaid at a later date.
Dan Adelman, producer of Axiom Verge, claimed that he and Tom Happ had chosen BadLand Games as their publisher because the company's CEO promised to donate a portion of their revenue to a fund for Happ's son, who has a medical condition. "In addition to matching what other publishers were offering in terms of rev share, they said they’d contribute 75% of their cut to a trust fund set up for Alastair Happ’s ongoing medical expenses," said Adelman regarding the matter on Twitter.
Once Limited Run Games provided BadLand with the needed $78,000 for manufacturing, the latter never responded back, nor did they provide the physical copies. This was hinted at back in October, where we saw Limited Run announce that despite hardships involved with publishing, they would be loyally bringing a physical title to the Wii U, even though they would be losing money in the process. After this, in December 2018, LRG entered a legal battle, where the courts demanded that BadLand repay the owed money. However, to this day, they have not been paid back in full.
If that wasn't bad enough, BadLand published the game in Europe as well, and ended up not paying Happ his sales money, either. In the continuing Twitter chain, Adelman stated, "It's frustrating to see BadLand Publishing tweet about new games they're releasing, no doubt funded with the money they owe LRG and Tom Happ. BadLand has literally stolen money from a disabled toddler."
Both Adelman and Happ have filed a lawsuit against BadLand, claiming that they owe the two around $200,000 for unpaid sales and other costs. It's not known how legal proceedings will occur, as BadLand still hasn't repaid their total towards Limited Run Games, as well as the fact that they are based in Spain. BadLand Games also went out of business in Oct. 2018, though their subsidiary, BadLand Publishing still operates, and has money to publish titles. Although they are under a different name, they are still responsible for paying back Limited Run Games.
Outside of the drama involved, Axiom Verge for the Nintendo Wii U will be released on March 29th and will be sold on the Limited Run Games site.
Limited Run Games Site
Source