The shooter CrossFire has been one of the most successful PC games in the world for years. However, it is shutting down in its home country. It is said that successors are being worked on.
What is CrossFire? CrossFire is a tactical shooter by Smilegate, which also develops the MMORPG Lost Ark. In the West, it is considered a Counter-Strike clone and has never really made a breakthrough here.
In the game, the Black List terrorists fight against the Global Risk soldiers. There are various game modes, including Team Deathmatch, Search and Destroy, and Elimination.
CrossFire is free-to-play and generates significant revenue through its shop. In 2019, it ranked 7th among the most successful free-to-play games (according to SuperData), and in October 2019, there was debate about whether more people play LoL or CrossFire daily.
What happens now? Although the shooter made it back into the top 3 of all PC titles in December (SuperData), CrossFire is now set to be closed in Korea. This was announced by Smilegate in a press release (MMOCulture).
On March 3, 2020, the shooter will officially be shut down.
Other game versions, such as our western one or CrossFire in China, are not affected by the shutdown.
CrossFire celebrates great successes in China
Why is CrossFire being shut down? Although the shooter is extremely successful, it is primarily in China. There, the shooter was released nearly a year after the Korean launch and is distributed by the giant Tencent.
In its home country, however, interest in CrossFire appears to be low. Therefore, a decision has been made to discontinue support. Instead, the focus will be on developing new games.
What’s next? The developer Smilegate is already working on two spin-offs of CrossFire:
- CrossFireX
- CrossFire ZERO
CrossFireX will be a standalone version of the shooter that is also intended for release in the West. It was announced at E3 2019 for Xbox.
CrossFire ZERO, on the other hand, will be a Battle Royale that is initially intended only for the Asian market.
