Once you look away, the January of the year is gone. A brief glance away and it was announced that 15 games would be discontinued or they have already been closed. 2023 starts with a lot of game adjustments – and even a game platform has already said goodbye.
How has your year 2023 been so far? My January was pretty good, so the current February can be a bit more stressful. Between the local carnival and our campaign “Find Your Next Game: Love Edition”, there’s currently little room for any other fun.
However, I have not been affected as hard as the following 15 games. All have either already been discontinued or will not receive any further support throughout the year. Some can still be played afterwards, while others will disappear completely from the market.
For each game, we write a small paragraph about what it is about. The list is also sorted a bit by relevance – some games may be more familiar to you than others.
Here is the complete list:
- Marvel’s Avengers
- Apex Legends Mobile
- Battlefield Mobile
- Rumbleverse
- Spellbreak
- Babylon’s Fall
- Knockout City
- CrossfireX
- Bravely Default: Brilliant Lights
- Crimesight
- Deathverse: Let It Die
- Dragon Quest The Adventure of Dai: A Hero’s Bonds
- Echo VR
- Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier
- Hellfire Tactics
- “Bonus”: Google Stadia
The Gaming Graveyard 2023 starts with many discontinuations
- 1. Marvel’s Avengers
For the brawler MMO with the famous Marvel superheroes, the stars were not very favorable at release. For such a service game, this phase is crucial to build a solid player base. Official support will last until September 2023. After that, Marvel’s Avengers can still be played, but there will be no updates or customer service.
- 2. Apex Legends Mobile
The mobile spin-off of the popular Battle Royale will close its doors in May 2023 – just over a year after its release. EA states that it was unable to achieve the desired quality. The lack of connection to the main game is also said to have played a role. Apex Legends Mobile will no longer be playable.
- 3. Battlefield Mobile
The mobile version of the shooter franchise didn’t even have a chance for a release. EA attributed the discontinuation to changed market conditions. Here, they also want to strengthen the Battlefield titles together, and Battlefield Mobile was designed too independently. They want to improve BF2042 and are already working on new Battlefield experiences (via ea.com).
- 4. Rumbleverse
The battle royale with physical contact lasted almost 7 months but will be discontinued at the end of February. It was fun for some players, but apparently was not successful enough for publisher Epic Games. The developers want to bring it back in another form at some point (via irongalaxystudios.com). For now, however, it’s over and Rumbleverse will no longer be playable.
- 5. Spellbreak
A battle royale with magic and colorful graphics. But the enchanting approach unfortunately did not generate the attraction necessary for a sequel – Spellbreak has been shut down and is no longer playable. Some streamers logged in for a farewell round and even talked about possible private servers.
- 6. Babylon’s Fall
The action RPG was supposed to be a hit for publisher Square Enix with strong effects and an exciting co-op mode. However, it often received the title “worst PS5 game ever” and disappears from the market in less than a year. After the end of February, the servers will shut down – Babylon’s Fall will then no longer be playable in either co-op or single-player mode.
- 7. Knockout City
The dodgeball action was once a new sports game apart from the well-known soccer or NBA games. But players did not thank the title. Despite fairly good ratings, the game will close in June 2023 and will no longer be available afterwards.
- 8. CrossfireX
A free-to-play shooter exclusive to Xbox based on a successful Asian brand? An attempt that did not succeed. In May, the servers for the multiplayer content will shut down. The solo missions in the game will remain available.
- 9. Bravely Default: Brilliant Lights
The spin-off of the popular RPG series Bravely Default was not intended for the German market, but is still another game from publisher Square Enix that will soon close its doors. Service will run until the end of February, after which it will switch to an offline version.
- 10. Crimesight
Many tried to copy the success of the surprise hit Among Us, but most failed. This includes Crimesight. The Steam game will remain playable until the beginning of May, after which it will be gone.
- 11. Deathverse: Let It Die
A crazy battle royale with a hack & slash approach that has its fans. The developers explain that it’s not the end of the game, but for now, it will be stopped in mid-July. There are major issues in managing the lags and matchmaking. Once this has been resolved, they want to return to the market (via deathverse.com).
- 12. Dragon Quest The Adventure of Dai: A Hero’s Bonds
Oh yes, Square Enix seems to be going on a diet. The mobile spin-off of Dragon Quest will close in April and will then no longer be playable.
- 13. Echo VR
Robot teams fight in zero gravity in a kind of soccer with frisbees. All this in VR as well. The concept could not convince, and so the game will end in early August 2023. Echo VR will no longer be playable then.
- 14. Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier
What would a list like this be without a Final Fantasy from Square Enix? Right, so the servers of this mobile battle royale in the Final Fantasy VII universe also went offline. Since January 11, Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier can no longer be played.
- 15. Hellfire Tactics
A free-to-play card game with obvious similarities to the Blizzard hit Hearthstone. Here, it’s all over at the end of February 2023, as they failed to attract enough players to cover the costs. Hellfire Tactics will no longer be playable.
- Bonus: Google Stadia
The cloud platform was Google’s largest foray into the gaming market and a total flop. After about 3 years, the project was discontinued, and players were partially compensated.
Whether it was ahead of its time, wanted too much in too short a time, or the market developed in a different direction, can only be speculated at this point. This experiment failed on January 18, 2023. Much to the regret of our author Jürgen Horn.
Do you miss a game on the list? Are you mourning one? Leave a comment on the topic.
