Japanese game developer Sega released the free demo version of "Yakuza 6: Song of Life" for PlayStation 4 on Feb. 28. However, players in North America discovered that they were able to access the full game for free as they finished the demo version. As a result, Sega has temporarily removed the demo from the PlayStation Store.
Sega originally intended to release the full game on March 20, but then announced that they were delaying the release to April 17. A representative of the company told Polygon that the new release date applies to North America and Europe.
The full game was already released in Japan in December 2016.
However, some players were able to access the full game way before its intended release. The Feb. 28 release was intended as a trial, although the 30 GB download for the game included the full version as well. This setup was meant to allow players to keep their initial game progress even after they have gained access to the game's full version.
"Yakuza 6: Song of Life" is the seventh main installment in the "Yakuza 6" action-adventure game series. "Song of Life" follows the character Kazuma Kiryu, a reformed member of the yakuza, as he tries to unravel mysterious events that happened to his foster family during his stint in prison.
The demo version was supposed to let players access only the first chapter of the game, after which the rest of the content will appear locked until April 17. However, players in North America were able to play the game in its entirety.
It seems that the same did not happen for players in Europe and Australia, which means that only the North American release of the demo may be problematic.
There are no announcements yet on when the game demo will be made available again in North America.
Hours after the first reports of the issue came in, Sega removed "Yakuza 6: Song of Life" from the PlayStation Store. The company also published an apology on their Twitter page, explaining that they discovered that the full game became available for some players.
"We are as upset as you are, and had hoped to have this demo available for everyone today," Sega said in the Twitter post, adding, "We're looking into the nature of the issue."
