The developers of the free-to-play online shooter Loadout have announced the end of the game, stating that the new EU General Data Protection Regulation is to blame.
Already Ragnarok Online restricts access for players from Europe for the international version and stated that the new EU General Data Protection Regulation necessitated this step. Now the online shooter Loadout joins this list.
Data protection is the reason for the end of the shooter
What is Loadout? Loadout is a competitive free-to-play online shooter where players battle each other with a variety of crazy weapons. These weapons can even be modified. There are no classes, just fast-paced and brutal action.
What does the EU General Data Protection Regulation have to do with the end? The rules for processing personal data by private companies and public authorities will be standardized across the EU starting May 25, requiring companies to better protect this data. This involves higher costs.
The developers of Loadout state that they would need to implement new features into the game to comply with regulations, which is simply not possible for such a small team. The studio cannot afford these “modifications.”
Are there other reasons? The developers do not specify exact other reasons for the end of Loadout, but looking at the player numbers on Steamcharts, it becomes clear that on average only about 60 players are online at the same time. These are not particularly good numbers for an online game. This circumstance may have also played a role in the decision to close the online shooter.
Additionally, the cloud provider used by the developers for Loadout is shutting down as well. Transferring the service to another provider would involve high costs. The team does not have that money.
The developers also state that they have lost a lot of money in recent months. The team cannot afford restructuring and relocations, which is why they decided to end Loadout.
The end is coming soon
When is it over? The development team will shut down the servers for the online shooter on May 24. They thank the loyal players.
