Japanese indie developer Daikichi_EMP has finally cleared one of the strangest Steam review hurdles we’ve seen in a while: proving that he owns references to his own work.
His upcoming anime-style 3D climbing action game, WIRED TOKYO 2007, recently ran into trouble during Valve’s review process. The issue came from visuals and store page materials that included nods to two board games, Second Best and DinoStone. Steam reviewers flagged them as possible third-party IP infringement.
The funny part? Those board games were also made by Daikichi_EMP.
According to the developer, simply explaining that he owned the referenced works was not enough at first. Valve asked for stronger documentation, such as licensing agreements or a legal opinion explaining why no license was needed. That is a pretty normal request from a platform trying to avoid copyright drama, but for a solo indie developer, hiring a lawyer just to release a demo can be a serious budget killer.
So Daikichi_EMP took the most indie-dev route possible: he created a license declaration from himself, to himself.
On May 9, he announced that the demo had passed Steam review. He jokingly described the process as tough “licensing negotiations” with himself, before finally granting himself permission after a heartfelt handshake between him and, well, him.
The document he shared online was signed under his real name. In it, he stated that he is both the person behind the developer name Daikichi_EMP and the board game publishing circle Board Game Teikoku. He then granted Daikichi_EMP perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive rights to use Board Game Teikoku’s IPs. The declaration also included a statement that he accepted full legal responsibility for using those motifs in WIRED TOKYO 2007, and that the information was true to the best of his knowledge.
Apparently, that was enough for Valve to move the demo forward.
For players, this is a quirky little story. For indie developers in Malaysia and SEA, it is actually a useful reminder. If you are building games, comics, board games, merch, music, or any other creative IP under different names, don’t assume platforms will automatically connect the dots. Your itch.io name, Steam developer name, studio label, artist handle, and publishing circle might all be “you” to your fans — but to a platform review team, they can look like separate entities.
That matters especially in our region, where a lot of creators operate as solo devs or small teams, often using different brands for different projects. One person might release a comic under one name, a game jam build under another, and a commercial Steam project under a studio banner later. If those works cross-reference each other, a clean paper trail can save you from delays.
To Valve’s credit, Daikichi_EMP thanked Steam for being flexible once he provided the declaration. This doesn’t mean every case will be solved with a DIY document, but it does show that clear ownership statements can help — especially when proper legal paperwork is not realistic for a small creator.
As for WIRED TOKYO 2007, the game itself sounds pretty interesting. It is a 3D action game about climbing a mysterious structure floating above Tokyo, with progression that sometimes requires the player to intentionally fall. Very anime, very weird, and exactly the kind of concept that gets indie fans curious.
The full game is planned for release in 2027, while the free Steam demo is expected to arrive soon.
Source: Automaton Media