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Subscribe to the world's #1 PC gaming mag Try a single issue or save on a subscription Issues delivered straight to your door or device From£35.99View Amazon Prime Day Deals Essential Hardware PC Gaming Show Recommended reading Evil Dead: The Game is being removed from sale just three years after it launched Playdead's classic minimalist platformers Limbo and Inside are being pulled from GOG next week, so grab 'em while you can John Wick Hex and Tron Catalyst dev Mike Bithell thinks licensed games have evolved past 'lunchbox tie-ins' because 'the people who played licensed games are now bosses in the companies that are licensing IP' Dark and Darker will be purged from Epic Games Store libraries later this year, but it's still available on Steam for now Two Warhammer 40,000 games will be delisted from Steam on Monday, and one of them is currently on a 90% discount XDefiant is now ex-Defiant as the game closes and its executive producer leaves Ubisoft: 'We just didn't have the gas to go the distance' Third Person Shooter Spine is a gun-fu love letter that wants to make you feel as OP as John Wick John Wick Hex Less than 6 years after it launched, John Wick Hex is being removed from sale on all storefronts later this week Andy Chalk 14 July 2025 If you want Bithell Games' excellent Keanu Reeves-starring tactics puzzler, you've got until July 17 to make it happen. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Bithell Games) Less than six years after its debut, the excellent tactical puzzler John Wick Hex is being removed from sale. Publisher Big Fan Games says owners will continue to have access to it, but "new purchases of John Wick Hex will not be possible, regardless of platform or storefront." A reason for the forthcoming takedown, announced on Steam, wasn't provided but the assumption, probably safe, is that expiring license rights are the culprit. It's an unfortunately common problem for videogames that tie themselves to other media: Sometimes the effect is minimal—a few tunes from the soundtrack go missing, for example—and sometimes, as is the case here, games are just straight-up disappeared. John Wick Hex originally launched as an Epic Games Store exclusive in October 2019, before making its way to Steam on December 4, 2020. It didn't put up huge player numbers there, no doubt at least in part because of that prior time on Epic, but we liked it quite a bit despite its unexpected departures from the source material, including a cel-shared art style and the focus on tactics over action. Related Articles Evil Dead: The Game is being removed from sale just three years after it launched Playdead's classic minimalist platformers Limbo and Inside are being pulled from GOG next week, so grab 'em while you can John Wick Hex and Tron Catalyst dev Mike Bithell thinks licensed games have evolved past 'lunchbox tie-ins' because 'the people who played licensed games are now bosses in the companies that are licensing IP' "What could easily have been a generic real-time action game works wonderfully in this form—converting the pace of the movie action into a very elegant illusion of it," reviewer Robert Zak wrote. "It works admirably despite the somewhat sparse presentation, and feels like an idea that the developer could evolve into something really special in the future—with or without the John Wick license." The irony amidst all of this is that the takedown notification comes less than a week after Mike Bithell, founder of John Wick Hex developer Bithell Games, praised the way licensed videogames have improved over the past 20 years, saying intellectual property owners are more demanding of quality videogame tie-ins because "the people who played licensed games are now bosses in the companies that are licensing IP." "It definitely feels like we're not a lunchbox tie in anymore," Bithell said. "We're not just, 'I'll put something on a shelf so the gran can buy it for the kid who likes the movie.' I think IP owners see this as a way of expanding and exploring the worlds that they create." Licensed videogames may no longer be the nigh-inevitable box of crapola they seemed to be way back when, it's true, although I'd attribute that more to the fact that videogames are far more mainstream now than they were in those days, and embarrassing shovelware tie-ins are no longer 'good enough.' But IP protectionism seems stronger than ever, and "expanding and exploring" those worlds takes a pretty obvious back seat to maximal dollar-squeeze—not terribly surprising, no, but it still sucks. The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. John Wick Hex will be removed from sale on July 17, according to the announcement, which doesn't give you much time to add it to your library if you want it. If you do, it remains at full price on Steam and Epic, but as noted by the ever-resourceful Wario64, you can pick up a Steam key for just $4 on the Humble Store—that's 80% off the regular price. 2025 games: This year's upcoming releases Best PC games: Our all-time favorites Free PC games: Freebie fest Best FPS games: Finest gunplay Best RPGs: Grand adventures Best co-op games: Better together Social Links Navigation US News Lead Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill. You must confirm your public display name before commenting Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name. Evil Dead: The Game is being removed from sale just three years after it launched Playdead's classic minimalist platformers Limbo and Inside are being pulled from GOG next week, so grab 'em while you can John Wick Hex and Tron Catalyst dev Mike Bithell thinks licensed games have evolved past 'lunchbox tie-ins' because 'the people who played licensed games are now bosses in the companies that are licensing IP' Dark and Darker will be purged from Epic Games Store libraries later this year, but it's still available on Steam for now Two Warhammer 40,000 games will be delisted from Steam on Monday, and one of them is currently on a 90% discount XDefiant is now ex-Defiant as the game closes and its executive producer leaves Ubisoft: 'We just didn't have the gas to go the distance' Latest in Strategy Capcom celebrates the first anniversary of Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess by ripping out its Denuvo DRM Total War: Warhammer 3's Tides of Torment DLC is delayed: 'We asked ourselves if this next DLC met the standards that we’ve set in recent releases, and the short answer was no' You can now play both campaigns of the original Command & Conquer in 2-player co-op, thanks to one of its best mods It's time to sort your life out and marathon the finest WW2 real-time tactics games of the early '00s—and for a mere $10, too Mount & Blade 2's naval expansion will have complex sailing with wind, currents, and respect for a boat's draft Runaway city-building success Manor Lords is getting a major overhaul to its systems: 'It's not just a new feature or two. It's a full rework' Latest in News GTA 4's most famous lighting mod gets its first major update in 11 years, brightening up Liberty City from cloud to ground 'A future has been stolen from many of us and our community will never experience an amazing game': Microsoft MMO devs respond to cancelation of project Phil Spencer reportedly loved Epic publicly humiliates 2 more Fortnite cheaters by forcing them to say sorry and promise to never, ever do it again My most-played game of the last 5 years is 30% off on Steam right now, alongside a ton of other factory games that can absolutely devour your life Fresh from telling laid-off employees to console themselves with AI, Microsoft doubles down by advertising Xbox jobs with pathetic AI image: 'So tone deaf I hope it is satire' Good news for multitaskers: Microsoft is gradually rolling out taskbar scaling to squeeze in as many icons as possible in the latest Windows 11 Insider build HARDWARE BUYING GUIDES LATEST GAME REVIEWS Best PCIe 5.0 SSD for gaming in 2025: the only Gen 5 drives I will allow in my PC Best graphics cards in 2025: I've tested pretty much every AMD and Nvidia GPU of the past 20 years and these are today's top cards Best gaming laptop in 2025: I've put the best of this new generation head-to-head and we have a winner Best gaming chair in 2025: I've tested a ton of gaming chairs and these are the seats I'd suggest for any PC gamer Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads beyerdynamic DT 1770 PRO MKII headphones review Eriksholm: The Stolen Dream review—Beautiful Scandinavian stealth that's too strict for its own good Mecha Break review – Mech fans deserve better than this Mycopunk Review: Long live wacky co-op shooters. 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