When Infold announced the cancellation of Valko, a werewolf love interest for the romance game Love and Deepspace, fans didn't accept defeat quietly. Instead, they've launched a coordinated campaign spanning petitions, charity donations, billboard takeovers, and a physical tribute that materialized at Anime Expo 2025.
The grassroots memorial began when Kurina, an organizer at the convention, learned that Chinese fans were traveling to Infold's headquarters to leave flowers and chocolate for the canceled character. Inspired by that devotion and remembering a previous fan shrine at Anime Expo, she decided to build something similar. "I dropped everything I had planned. I went to the store, bought supplies, and started building the tribute," Kurina told IGN. "I told my friends I was 100% serious about doing this."
What started as one person's project exploded into a gathering spot that drew hundreds. Players left handwritten notes, drawings, gifts, and tributes to a character they never got to meet. Kurina watched as visitors shared their stories about where they were when news of the cancellation broke, finding community with strangers who understood their disappointment. "Every time I walked by, someone was there reading the notes, leaving chocolate or drawings, or simply standing there quietly," she said. "It slowly became a place where people gathered to talk about Love and Deepspace."
The tribute has become one of many ways fans are pushing back against the decision. A reinstatement petition has collected over 29,000 signatures. Players have named a star after Valko. On Instagram, user Lunarmizuki organized a wolf charity fundraiser in Valko's name, raising $1,243. Billboard campaigns featuring Valko footage have launched in Malaysia and New York, with more planned globally. Fans are boycotting in-game purchases, flooding streaming platforms with plays of Valko's official track "Tameless Territory" to boost its chart position, and creating fan art at a pace that left Artist's Alley vendors selling out of Valko merchandise.
For Kurina, Valko represented more than a fictional character. The game had sparked a turning point in her life, giving her confidence to pursue content creation as a career. "It gave me the confidence to stop hiding the things I love and start building something around them," she explained. "It wasn't just entertainment. It became the catalyst for a completely new chapter in my life."
She was struck by how the fandom expressed itself through creation. "I've noticed about this fandom is how much it inspires people to create. Whether it's fan art, oshikatsu, scrapbooking, journaling, cosplay, or for me, 3D modeling and printing, everyone expresses their love for the game in their own creative way." With contributions still coming in, Kurina is working to preserve the notes and messages in a scrapbook or other keepsake, ensuring the tribute extends beyond the convention.
Infold has remained silent on whether the campaign will sway the company's decision. Fans are watching July 9, Valko's original release date, hoping for an announcement that could bring the werewolf back from cancellation.
Author Emily Chen: "This is what genuine fandom looks like: not passive consumption but creative defiance, and Infold should be paying attention."
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