XDefiant is Shutting Down, Ubisoft Confirms

As a veteran gamer who’s been around since the days of Doom and Quake, it’s always disheartening to see a game with potential meet its untimely demise. XDefiant was a shining beacon of hope in the FPS genre, offering a unique blend of team-based action and strategic gameplay that had me hooked from the get-go. But alas, it seems Ubisoft’s free-to-play experiment hasn’t quite panned out as they hoped.

Despite initially drawing a good number of players in its initial stages, XDefiant has been struggling over time as Ubisoft’s free-to-play first-person shooter. As the months passed, the player base shrank continuously, and the game showed no indication of improvement. Contrary to rumors spread by the game’s developer, Ubisoft has now decided to end the entire project, as the game seems to be on a downward spiral without any signs of recovery.

Ubisoft has declared that the game XDefiant will cease operation starting today. From now on, it won’t be possible to download the game freshly, but the servers will continue to function only for players who already have it until June 3. As planned, Season 3 content is set to roll out soon. Good news for those who bought the Founder’s Pack or made any in-game purchases within the last month – they’ll receive a full refund.

Mark Rubin, executive producer, notes that “Free-to-play games are often a lengthy process” as they typically require a significant amount of time to establish profitability. He explains that Ubisoft and the development team had been ready for this long journey, but regrettably, it became an endeavor that was no longer feasible to continue due to unforeseen circumstances.

According to a report published by Tom Henderson for Insider Gaming, it’s suggested that along with the shutdown of the game, Ubisoft is also planning to close down its development teams at both Ubisoft San Francisco and Osaka studio. This move could potentially lead to layoffs affecting around 170-180 employees.

In his message announcing the game’s shuttering, executive producer Mark Rubin wrote, “I am, of course, heartbroken to have to be writing this post. Yes, this game has been a personal passion for me for years and yes, I know that not all challenges lead to victory, but I also want to recognize all of the developers who are being affected by this closure. Each and every one of them is a real person with a real life separate from our own and they have all put so much of their own passion into making this game. And I hope that they can be proud of what they did achieve. I know that I will always be proud and grateful to have worked with such a great team! A team that really punched above its weight class.”

At present, “XDefiant” can be played on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and personal computers. According to Rubin’s report, the total number of players who have played the game since its release has surpassed 15 million.

2024-12-04 03:41

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