The World Was Yours… for a Moment
For a few thrilling hours this week, it looked like a dream had come true for fans of cult classic video games. Scarface: The World is Yours, the beloved 2006 open-world game that lets you rewrite Tony Montana’s explosive ending, suddenly appeared for sale on the Epic Games Store and Steam. After nearly two decades of being unavailable digitally, the king of Miami was seemingly back in business. But just as quickly as the excitement started, it turned to confusion, suspicion, and the unmistakable smell of a scam.
The mysterious re-release has since been pulled, but not before a wild story unfolded involving fan modders, a defunct publisher, and serious questions about who was trying to sell the game in the first place.
The Modders Sound the Alarm
The first red flags were raised by the very people who have kept the original PC version of Scarface playable for years. Players who purchased the accidentally-released Epic Games Store version quickly discovered that it came pre-packaged with popular fan-made patches, namely SilentPatch and FusionFix. These mods fix bugs and add modern features like widescreen support to the old game.
This led the creator of SilentPatch, a modder known simply as Silent, to investigate. He posted a blunt message online: “I KNOW that the holder of the Scarface license wasn’t willing to re-release the game, so this is suspect.” He stated that neither he nor the other modders were properly contacted about their work being included. While their mod licenses don’t strictly require permission, it’s considered extremely poor form for a commercial product to use fan work without acknowledgment or compensation. Silent’s digging also revealed that the actual movie IP rights holder, NBCUniversal, appeared to be completely unaware of this new release.
A ‘Publisher’ with a Ghostly Past
The supposed publisher behind the re-release, a company called EC Digital, only made the situation more bizarre. After the game went live on the Epic Games Store-which they claimed was an accident-they rushed to put up a Steam page. This page promised an “optional HD graphics upgrade” using “AI-assisted techniques,” a feature that was vaguely worded and marked as “subject to change.”
As the controversy exploded, EC Digital posted an update saying they had entered “urgent discussions with multiple parties” and were taking the store pages down to “pause and reevaluate” due to “licensing and technical matters.” However, further investigation by the community painted a much darker picture. It turns out EC Digital Entertainment was a real Hong Kong-based publisher that officially dissolved in 2019. This wasn’t a comeback; it was someone seemingly using the name of a dead company. Even more damning, reports surfaced that this same ‘zombie publisher’ had previously stolen a free indie game, Bewilder House, and tried to sell it on the Epic Games Store.
A Mess of Licensing and Lies
At this point, the truth seems clear. This wasn’t an official, licensed re-release of Scarface. It was almost certainly an unauthorized effort to sell a pirated copy of the original PC game bundled with fan-made mods, conducted by an entity hiding behind the identity of a defunct company. The inclusion of the original game’s massive licensed soundtrack alone would have been a legal nightmare to clear, lending further credit to the idea that this was never legitimate.
The publisher has since apologized for the “confusion and concern,” accepting full responsibility. But for fans, the whole episode is a major disappointment. It’s a stark reminder of the licensing hell that often keeps beloved classic games from being preserved and made available to new audiences.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is Scarface: The World is Yours?
It’s a 2006 open-world action-adventure game that serves as a non-canon sequel to the 1983 film. In the game, Tony Montana survives the mansion shootout and sets out to rebuild his drug empire.
Was the PC re-release official?
No, all evidence suggests it was an unauthorized and illegitimate release. The company claiming to be the publisher appears to be defunct, and the actual IP holder for the Scarface film, NBCUniversal, was reportedly unaware of it.
Why was the re-release considered a scam?
The release used fan-made patches without proper permission, was published under the name of a dissolved company, and was seemingly done without securing the expensive and complex licenses for the Scarface brand or the game’s extensive music soundtrack.
What happened to the game’s store pages?
After the controversy grew, the publisher, EC Digital, announced they were pulling the store pages from Steam and the Epic Games Store to “re-evaluate” the project.
Can I still buy the game legally on PC?
No. Unfortunately, Scarface: The World is Yours has never had a legitimate digital PC release. This brief, suspicious appearance was the closest it has come in nearly two decades, and it has since been removed.
Conclusion
The bizarre, 24-hour saga of Scarface’s return is a cautionary tale for the digital age. It shows how easily scammers can exploit the passion of fan communities and the confusing landscape of abandoned software. While the dream of an official Scarface remaster is dead for now, the incident has reignited conversations about game preservation. For a moment, we thought the world could be ours again, but it turns out we were just being sold a line. Always be cautious, and if a surprise re-release of a long-lost classic seems too good to be true, it probably is.