I find Inceton's blaming of Patreon insufficient and cowardly
I find it interesting you reference Dumas, yet you don't seem to know what Dev you are talking about in this forum.
Also, you start your post with "Absence of proof is not proof of absence". There is a difference between abandoning a game and being absent as a developer, you are correct. Along the lines of 'absence', realize that Shitstor has not made a single update announcement
himself since:
Home website: August, 2020;
SubscribeStar: Never, technically, because the only 'update' was the creation post, since which the page has been locked;
Patreon: November, 2021
Discord: Who knows, because Ashbash has been talking for him, for months.
Lastly, your final statement about needing assurances he will finish the new game is confusing in the context of your argument. The main sentiment on this forum basically boils down to: He has abandoned the game. You ask what proof exists for this sentiment, and the forum has responded that his lack of communication, and history of NOT finishing 'complete' stories in his past several games (Project X, aka Milfy Kingdom, never even saw a release) is such proof. Yet you seek a formal announcement of abandonment from the developer, despite this history.
If you put your hand on a stove that is turned on, you get burned. Forgive the members of this forum for not wanting to put our hands back on the burner, even without someone telling us not to do so.