Aliens: Fireteam Elite is one of the better games in the Alien universe and promises a wild co-op spectacle. However, on one platform, the servers have now gone offline forever.
Which game and platform are we talking about? Aliens: Fireteam Elite is a third-person shooter with a co-op focus and was released on August 24, 2021, for PlayStation, Xbox, and PC. A cloud version for the Nintendo Switch followed on April 26, 2023.
That very cloud variant has just recently gone offline. Forever. Although this had been communicated in advance, some buyers surely hoped for some kind of compensation. After all, the Ultimate Edition of Aliens: Fireteam Elite cost nearly 60 euros at launch.
What kind of compensation could have been possible? In another case, buyers at least received some form of refund. When the cloud-based Kingdom Hearts Collection vanished into oblivion, buyers were given a discount for purchasing the version for Nintendo Switch 2.
Something similar could have been possible with Aliens: Fireteam Elite. After all, the sequel Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is set to be released on August 25, 2026. The developers at Cold Iron Studios have missed an opportunity to positively engage the community.
Another possible highlight for the Alien universe: Alien Isolation 2. Here you can see the trailer:
“Ridiculously Stupid Marketing Move”
How does the community react? In various Reddit posts, the burial of the cloud version of Aliens: Fireteam Elite is currently being discussed. Reactions range from “Never buy cloud versions of anything” to “It seems impossible to receive any kind of refund from the Nintendo eShop”.
The developers are also receiving criticism. midnightTimber writes on Reddit: “What a ridiculously stupid marketing move for a game whose sequel is about to be released. You should discount the game as promotional material instead of conveying to your potential customers that you are unreliable.”
This incident also fuels discussions about the future of physical media. Aliens: Fireteam Elite could provide a glimpse into what might happen more frequently in the future: games we purchased suddenly being unavailable because the associated servers are offline.
Major platform operators like Sony plan to operate without physical media in the medium to long term. By 2028, there are to be no physical games for the PlayStation. How do you view this future? Feel free to let us know in the comments! You can find out more about this here: Sony stops all physical games for PlayStation: What you need to know
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