The Day Before torn apart as players claim it’s an “obvious scam” & “asset flip”

Despite becoming the most wishlisted game on Steam for a time, The Day Before has left many skeptical after details surrounding its release and a few sudden delays put a stop to the initial hype generated for the title. Now, people who have gotten their hands on it for release claim that it’s a “scam”.

The Day Before’s release date was a day many never thought would come, yet here we are. The game has finally launched on Steam, and reviews are… in a word, scathing.

At the time of writing, just 21% of its 16,000 reviews are positive, with many of them refunding the title almost immediately and that they felt the final game fell far short of what the devs originally pitched. As one reviewer put it, “The day I got scammed.”

However, thanks to Reddit sleuth EpicStory1989, a number of new details have come to the surface. This diligent user compiled dozens of assets they claim have been directly ripped from Unreal Engine’s marketplace and put into the game.

The Day Before called out by players for being a “scam”

When The Day Before initially launched, players certainly had their suspicions that something wasn’t quite right. Early discussions around the game post-release had players claiming that certain sections seemed to be assets directly ripped from the marketplace.

This is something veteran Twitch streamer Lirik discussed after playing the game’s initial hours as player speculation mounted that The Day Before was re-using assets.

However, further investigation has revealed that there’s a possibility that dozens of maps, inventory screens, UI elements, character models, and even the third-person camera perspective may have been assets that were directly bought from the store and flipped to create The Day Before.

Though these are, at present, allegations and have not been properly addressed by developer FNTASTIC, Redditor EpicStory1989 compiled a list of assets they claim have been directly flipped. This post has been continually updated as more allegations mount. Even the game’s own subreddit has pinned this comment as the first thing users see upon visiting the sub.

To be clear, most players didn’t take issue with the idea of developers using pre-made assets as a whole. Using assets as a base to work off of or for small environmental details is a great tool for smaller developers who may not have the time to create entirely original assets for every part of their game.

However, those who were hoping this would be an original game that brought something unique to the table were left feeling let down. Not to mention that The Day Before was originally marketed as an MMO, a title players feel the game has fallen far short of.

Even those who run the game’s subreddit have painted the character whose likeness is featured across the game’s marketing material with clown makeup.

What’s more, players on this sub have rallied to get the game removed from Steam entirely and are mass reporting the title.

And, on top of that, the game is incredibly buggy with several players posting clips of NPCs somehow turning into literal giants in front of them.

The developers have yet to respond to these player criticisms at the time of writing, though their game is still available for purchase.