XDefiant to end service on June 3, 2025

As a gamer with decades of experience under my belt, I’ve seen games come and go, but the story of XDefiant is one that truly resonates. It’s not every day you witness a game that dared to challenge the status quo, remove Skill-Based Matchmaking, and bring back an “old-school” arcade shooter experience in the world of free-to-play.

Starting from today, Ubisoft, both as the publisher, and Ubisoft San Francisco, as the developer, have decided to remove the free-to-play multiplayer first-person shooter game, XDefiant, from their platforms. They’ve announced that they will shut down the game’s servers on June 3, 2025. However, players who currently own and are playing the game can continue doing so and even access new content until the servers are officially closed.

According to Game File’s Stephen Totilo, it has been reported that both Ubisoft San Francisco and Ubisoft Osaka are closing down, affecting approximately 177 employees. It is also mentioned that half of the team working on the project named XDefiant will be reassigned to other projects.

XDefiant first launched for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC on May 21.

Here is the full message from XDefiant executive producer Mark Rubin on the game’s end of service:

Hello XDefiant fans,

I am unfortunately here today to announce that XDefiant will be shutting down.

Effective from December 3, 2024, we won’t offer new downloads or player registrations anymore. However, we plan to roll out Season 3 content soon (the exact release date is yet to be announced). The game servers will stay active until June 3, 2025.

If you’ve bought the Ultimate Founder’s Pack, we’re giving you a complete refund. Plus, anyone who made a purchase in the past month will also receive a full refund. These refunds should be processed automatically within 8 weeks from today, and for more specific information, check out our official website at XDefiant.com.

Back in the day, I found myself as part of an exhilarating journey with Ubisoft’s San Francisco team, daringly setting sail to create a fresh arcade shooter titled XDefiant. From the get-go, it was clear we were tackling a monumental task. We aimed to disrupt the genre by abandoning Skill-Based Matchmaking, while simultaneously rekindling the nostalgic charm of “old-school” arcade shooters. To make matters even more thrilling, we plunged headfirst into the adrenaline-pumping world of free-to-play games. Kudos to the development team and Ubisoft’s fearless leaders for taking that daring leap!

Free-to-play games are often a prolonged adventure, as it can take a considerable amount of time for them to gain traction and become financially successful. Ubisoft and their development team were ready for this lengthy process until quite recently, but regrettably, they found that the journey had become unsustainable.

Undeniably, it’s with profound sadness that I find myself composing this message. Indeed, this game has been a deeply cherished part of my life for quite some time now, and I understand that not every hurdle results in triumph. However, I feel it’s essential to acknowledge the developers who are being impacted by this shutdown. They are real individuals with lives outside our gaming world, and they have poured their hearts into creating this game. I sincerely hope they can take pride in their accomplishments. I will forever be proud and thankful for having had the opportunity to collaborate with such an exceptional team! A team that truly surpassed expectations.

The incredible success of XDefiant upon its launch was simply astounding – it smashed internal records by quickly attracting more than five million users, and in the end, a staggering 15 million players engaged with our game! This is something we should all be incredibly proud of, given how challenging this genre can be. Therefore, I’d like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to every developer who poured their heart and soul into creating this remarkable game!

One crucial lesson from our shared journey should be the significance of transparent, truthful interaction between game creators and enthusiasts. The “player-centric” approach, coupled with cordial, non-abusive dialogues between developers and gamers, has been a defining characteristic that set XDefiant apart. Since my initial post about XDefiant, this was the ideal I aimed to promote, and I hope it serves as an inspiration for a more respectful and considerate game industry towards its players and communities.

To our valued gamers, a heartfelt thank you! It’s from the depths of mine that I express my deepest appreciation for the exceptional community you’ve built around XDefiant. Your passion, ingenuity, and commitment have been an endless source of inspiration throughout our journey.

With the utmost of love and respect,
Mark Rubin, Executive Producer

2024-12-04 03:31

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