In 2021, surprisingly many MMOs and MMORPGs were discontinued. We at MeinMMO present you 10 online games that you will no longer be able to play by 2022 at the latest.
Which games died in 2021? In 2021, several well-known names fell victim, including MMORPGs that had only been released a few months or years earlier. We take a closer look at these games and reveal the reasons for their failure.
If you prefer to play old and already discontinued MMORPGs, you will find here a list of dead MMORPGs that only exist on private servers.
Who is speaking here? Alexander Leitsch is the MMORPG expert at MeinMMO and has even played most of the now discontinued MMOs himself. Therefore, he summarizes special moments from his perspective.
Life is Feudal (January 11, 2018 – January 18, 2021)
Genre: Survival-MMO | Developer: Bitbox | Platforms: PC | Payment Model: Buy2Play
What kind of game was it? The MMO Life is Feudal was considered a tough and realistic medieval simulation. Like in a survival game, you started the game naked and without special skills. Over time, however, you learned to use resources and were able to craft useful tools, weapons, and your own home. Even entire cities could be built.
However, the grind and difficulty level were problems:
- It took an incredibly long time to build anything in the game.
- You were constantly exposed to danger from other players and NPC races.
- Upon death, you lost everything.
On Steam, the game had only 43% positive reviews. Life is Feudal was criticized mainly for appealing only to those who have a lot of time, possess immense patience, and want to play in large guilds.
You could achieve nothing alone in Life is Feudal. At least ten players were needed for a guild, and only in a large guild did you have a chance to slowly build something. Moreover, you had to be very resistant to frustration because everything you built up over months could be lost in a battle or raid.
What led to its failure? Due to the high grind and difficulty level, Life is Feudal could never attract a mass of players. However, the final blow was probably a legal dispute with a publisher:
- A contract was signed with the publisher in 2016.
- This company is said to have performed poorly, which led the developers from Bitbox to market themselves. However, it seems there was still a contract with the publisher.
- After the developers rejected another deal with the publisher, it is said that the publisher refused to share their revenues from Life is Feudal.
The financial pressure is said to have led to the shutdown of the game. However, the solo version “Life is Feudal – Your Own” can still be played. Additionally, the MMO continues to operate in China. The publisher reportedly has no influence over this version.
What are the best memories? Life is Feudal was never known for beautiful graphics or varied gameplay. Highlights were the building, the battles for castles, and horse combat. Sometimes larger battles with over 100 players took place, which, however, put a strain on the MMO’s performance.
To give you an insight into such a battle, here is a video from YouTuber Senoby san:
Are there alternatives or successors? There are several games that are similar in style to Life is Feudal. The newest is probably Wild Terra 2, which started Early Access in January 2021. Here, survival, sandbox, building, fighting, and fortresses are also in focus.
If you want to focus solely on the PvP aspect, you can find battles for fortresses in ESO, Guild Wars 2, and Black Desert.
