Apple Suspends Bitcoin Game SaruTobi from iOS Store

SaruTobi creator Christian Moss has confirmed that the iOS game has been temporarily removed from Apple's App store.

AccessTimeIconMar 18, 2015 at 5:13 p.m. UTC
Updated Sep 11, 2021 at 11:36 a.m. UTC
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SaruTobi creator Christian Moss has confirmed that the iOS game has been temporarily removed from Apple's App store.

Speaking to CoinDesk, Moss said that the tech giant had removed SaruTobi over concerns that users could mistake its in-game bitcoin with real bitcoin.

The game, which lets users swing a monkey from a vine in a bid to collect bitcoin tokens, tips users in real bitcoin and allows them to purchase animated coins with no real-world value for use in the app.

Moss said that the issue had now been fixed and that the app is currently awaiting Apple's review.

Apple and bitcoin

Moss explained that Apple had personally called him to notify him of the removal, a rarity that led him to believe it is paying increasing attention to bitcoin.

The news comes just two months after Apple first approved the retro-syle game, clarified its bitcoin policy and reinstated apps that had previously been banned.

Despite having seemingly shifting its policy, Apple removed messaging service Wiper from the China version of its iOS App store following the integration of bitcoin payments two days ago.

Wiper CEO Manlion Carelli confirmed at the time that the removal was a direct result of the bitcoin integration, which had taken place earlier this month.

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