Google can delete apps and games directly from users' devices. Even buying them does not guarantee that you are the owner of the purchased product.
This was told by Android users who previously paid for Wayward Souls, a classic RPG released in 2014. It has disappeared not only from Google Play, but also from their smartphones. And when they try to access it in the digital store, they encounter a 404 error. However, it is still available on other platforms.
In the Play Store, the game had 4 stars, 10 thousand reviews and over 100 thousand downloads. That is, it could disappear from about 100 thousand smartphones. At the same time, the company did not even warn about this.
Google usually removes malicious or problematic apps. At the same time, the company previously stated that even after that, users can continue to use them on their devices. However, this does not seem to be the case anymore.
They also write on Reddit Did Wayward Souls get delisted? / Reddit about the disappearance of other games. It's impossible to verify, but now it sounds plausible, notes Google may delete (purchased) apps from your Android devices / gHacks gHacks portal.
According to estimates List of Games removed from Playstore / Reddit Android Police, as of June 2022, more than 300 games have been removed from the Play Store and user devices.
