Eight days. That's all it took for Papergames and Infold Games to go from announcing a brand-new love interest to canceling him entirely. Valko, who would have been the sixth romance option in the gacha title Love and Deepspace, has been permanently scrapped following a wave of community backlash that escalated well beyond online complaints.
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How Valko went from reveal to canceled in a week
Valko was announced on June 22 via the game's official YouTube channel. Described as the EonCore Tech chairman and mysterious head of the werewolf clan, he was set to launch in Version 6.0 on July 9. He would have been the first new love interest since Caleb arrived in Version 3.0 back in January 2025, making the gap between additions over 18 months.
The immediate reaction from the Chinese player base was not warm. The core complaint: existing love interests like Sylus and Caleb had gone long stretches without meaningful story updates, and introducing a sixth character felt like the development team was spreading resources thinner rather than deepening what already existed. The game's social media accounts shed a substantial number of followers almost immediately after the reveal, and the negativity in comment sections was hard to miss.
Things escalated further offline. One report described disgruntled fans placing cow dung inside company lockers, a level of protest that pushed the situation from online noise into something Papergames could not ignore.
The official statement and what gets replaced
On June 30, Papergames and Infold Games confirmed on X that development on Valko has permanently ended. The studio's statement read: "Because of our actions, the joy you should have found in Linkon City became a source of distress, and the feelings you hold most dear were hurt. We are deeply sorry for the hurt and disappointment we have caused."
The cancellation comes with a compensation package for players. Outfits, photo poses, and the Nighthush Box that were originally tied to a Valko-focused event will be sent to all players for free. For 30 days, players will also receive one Deepspace Wish per day, which feeds directly into the game's gacha pull system. Version 6.0 still launches July 9 with all other planned systems and features intact.
Looking further ahead, Papergames outlined the following content commitments:
- Rafayel's new Solar-Slot Memories and Companion will be revealed in July
- Farspace Colonel Caleb returns in his Main Story branch in September
- Onychinus Leader Sylus follows in November
The studio also pledged no additional love interests will be added going forward, committing instead to expanding content for the current cast.
The backlash to the backlash
Here's the thing: the community reaction to Valko's cancellation is itself deeply divided, and that split runs largely along regional lines. The backlash that drove the cancellation originated primarily from the Chinese player base. The global audience tells a very different story.
Petitions calling for Valko's reinstatement reportedly gathered over 100,000 signatures, and the #Valko hashtag trended on X worldwide for much of June 30. Players who were genuinely excited for the character feel the decision punishes a global audience for the preferences of one regional segment. Some long-term players have already uninstalled the game in protest.
There's also a structural argument worth taking seriously. Love and Deepspace was apparently designed from the start around six love interests, each tied to a distinct stellactrum color that plays a role in the game's combat system. Removing Valko does not just leave an emotional gap; it potentially leaves a gameplay-shaped hole in how combat progression was planned to work at higher levels.
The key here is that the developer caved to one vocal segment of its player base while the global community, which had been building genuine excitement for Valko over the week since his reveal, was left without a say. Whether that trade-off proves to be the right long-term call for a game with an international audience is a question Papergames will be answering for months.
What comes next for Version 6.0
For players staying with the game, Version 6.0 arrives July 9 with its non-Valko content intact. The free rewards, including outfits, photo poses, and 30 days of daily Deepspace Wishes, soften the blow somewhat. The developer's commitment to focusing on Rafayel, Caleb, and Sylus story content through the rest of the year gives existing fans something concrete to look forward to.
The situation is a rare example of a developer reversing a content decision this far into development, and the precedent it sets will shape how Papergames handles community pressure going forward. If you want to stay across all the latest in romance and adventure games, our gaming guides hub has you covered as Version 6.0 rolls out and the dust settles on one of the more turbulent weeks in Love and Deepspace's history.
