Conshohocken–associated Ikea has threatened legal action against The Store Is Closed, an independent British-produced video game. The Scandinavian retailer’s legal team finds the first-person horror-themed setting a bit too close for comfort. Alice Hearing hunted down this story’s details for Fortune.

The Store Is Closed, the product of U.K. game creator Jacob Shaw (aka Ziggy), has targeted a 2024 release date. Shaw’s current Kickstarter campaign to launch it has thus far raised $75,000 from more than 1,700 backers.

The game unfolds in a fictitious furniture store called STYR.

The corporate logo on the e-building’s exterior — which uses a yellow, block font in all capitals against a blue background — does evoke an Ikea-ish appearance. As does the displayed merchandise. And the uniforms of the “staff members” that players violently encounter.

In response, Ikea has issued a cease-and-desist letter to STYR’s creators, requesting the removal of apparent similarities.

An Ikea spokesperson said, “While we think it’s flattering that others are inspired by the Ikea brand, we must be diligent to ensure that the Ikea trademarks and trade dress are not misapplied.”

Despite disagreeing with the allegation, Shaw has directed his STYR designers to revise The Store Is Closed.

More on Ikea’s response to its stores becoming a setting for a monster-infested video game is at Fortune.

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Ikea? Or just an Ikea approximation? It’s a matter of interpretation.
Nonetheless, the British-produced game The Store Is Closed, prepping for its 2024 release, is being revised.