One of mobile’s best gaming classics has just completely vanished from Google Play. That’s bad enough, but even worse is the fact that you can no longer play it at all – even if you bought it before it was delisted.
That’s… not great. The game in question is Wayward Souls, one of the best roguelikes you could play on mobile. It launched all of the way back in 2014, and challenged you to battle your way through a variety of dungeons.
You could choose from a number of different characters, each of which featured a different play style. They all had a backstory too, which unfolded as you progressed, rewarding those skilled enough to make it to the end.
Did Wayward Souls Draw Inspiration From Dark Souls?
It was brutally hard. Souls by name, Souls by nature. It played like Diablo, but with beautiful pixel art visuals that have stood the test of time. It also featured very clever touch controls and controller support.
In essence, it was the perfect mobile game. You bought it and immediately unlocked all content. You could play a run in a handful of minutes, picking up and playing at any time.
It also arrived during an era when touch controls weren’t just thousands of virtual buttons blocking the screen. You can perform actions with taps, swipes, and holds. It’s a simple control scheme, but effective and deep.
What Else Did RocketCat Work On?
I absolutely adored it when it first arrived, as I do all Rocketcat games. Punch Quest was one of the first mobile games I ever played, and I was hooked. Death Road to Canada is also firmly in my top ten mobile games of all time.
It seems Punch Quest was also delisted, though it’s not clear when. Five Card Quest, another RocketCat game, is also no longer on Android. That leaves only Death Road to Canada, signalling the end of an era.
Why Do Games Get Delisted?
According to the official Google Play Help page, apps are either deleted by the developer or Google themselves. If it’s the former, there could be any number of reasons, but the latter is due to a policy violation.
That same page does claim, however, that you can continue to use the app but you can’t update it. Well, that’s not the case for Wayward Souls players over on Reddit.
Those that already own the game are neither able to download it from their list of previously-purchased apps, nor are they able to play it if they happen to still have it installed.
We’ll have to just wait and see what happens.
