Not every game can live forever, and it seems more common in the modern gaming era that games can go from promising hits to unplayable in a matter of years. Some of the best examples of these shutdown games are in the open-world space, specifically MMOs and online-only experiences that were expected to remain functional for far longer than they actually were. In almost every case, the reason for the closure comes from a lack of money, or at the very least, an asymmetry in the amount of revenue expected vs what was actually received. This means that even if the game is objectively a solid product and garners a pretty sizable player base, it can still fall victim to the live-service trap that has taken away so many iconic titles that many considered to be exceptional.
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It is a shame that these games all seem to suffer the same fate, and while a few communities have banded together to bring otherwise sunset titles back from the grave, like with The Crew Unlimited, many will remain dead until the end of time. It can seem a little unfair, especially in situations where a paying customer is now no longer able to access their product, but that is the unfortunate nature of these live-service games. They demand constant server access, which can be pretty costly at higher player counts, and without sustained support, even the best of the best can be doomed to fail, even just a few short months after initially launching.
5 Anthem
Abandoned Before It Could Truly Fly
Details:
- Fluid movement and engaging world
- Support cancellation and eventual sever takedown
Anthem launched with immense promise, presenting a shared open world built around fluid flight, cooperative combat, and a striking science-fantasy setting. The core gameplay loop of soaring through fearsome storms in Javelin suits while battling colossal creatures offered a sense of freedom few open-world games could match at the time, and the world itself emphasized verticality and spectacle above all else. With exploration at its core, many players were looking forward to moving around the map and just enjoying the sights, rather than checking off objectives and cleaning up endless lists of side content.
Despite its strengths, the game struggled with content repetition, technical issues, and unclear long-term direction. BioWare announced a major overhaul, Anthem NEXT, but the project was officially canceled in early 2021, leaving the future of the game uncertain. Servers remained online for quite some time, yet as the ongoing support began to decline to a halt, it seemed inevitable that it would eventually cease to exist. Even after the rocky start, many players believed it could eventually reach a state of greatness if enough effort and work were put into the existing product. Unfortunately, that dream would never come to life, and the game now stands as another reminder of the nightmares that can come from live-service development.
4 WildStar
Style, Speed, But A Premature Goodbye
Details:
- Mechanical MMO with a lot of late-game depth
- No official offline or legacy versions
WildStar distinguished itself from other MMOs through exaggerated art direction, fast-paced combat, and a vibrant sci-fi open world that rewarded skill and precision. Its zones were expansive in all directions, filled with secrets and dynamic events that rewarded players for going above and beyond the traditional quest routes. The combat was also incredibly engaging, incorporating movement and calculated attacks to make moment-to-moment play feel responsive and rewarding even after countless hours.
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There was some early critical praise for its mechanics and personality, but it struggled to retain a large enough player base to have continued financial success. As the MMO trends shifted in new ways, the subscription model issues just weren't in line with the modern standards, and despite that initial wave, the audience gradually faded away. NCSoft officially shut down the game’s servers in November 2018, permanently closing access to its world, which made it feel especially cruel because of how distinct the game's identity was, offering a tone and mechanical style, blending humor with hardcore systems, rarely seen in MMOs even today.
3 Landmark/EverQuest Next
Promising A Future That Never Arrived
Details:
- Intended as a player content creation tool for EverQuest Next
- Unrealized potential and eventual shutdown
EverQuest Next was envisioned as a revolutionary evolution of the MMO genre, built around emergent AI, destructible terrain, and a truly dynamic open world. Alongside that, Landmark was intended as a companion project that allowed players to explore and build within its voxel-based environment, serving as both a creative sandbox and a testing ground for the main game's systems. When the project launched into early access, players were given unprecedented freedom to reshape the world, but as developmental challenges mounted, and with EverQuest Next itself being canceled in 2016, it was only a matter of time before Landmark was next on the chopping block.
The loss is particularly painful because EverQuest Next represented true unrealized potential rather than a flawed release. Players glimpsed systems that could have redefined the open-world landscape, only to see the project vanish before completion. Also, the removal of Landmark felt more like an erasure of creativity rather than simply a loss of a world, removing dozens of hours of building investment that many die-hard players had put into the game, only for it all to be gone in such a short period of time.
2 Marvel Heroes
Bringing Comic Books To Life
Details:
- Insane potential down the line
- License loss made preservation impossible
Marvel Heroes delivered a massive cooperative open world that brought decades of comic book history to life. Players could freely explore iconic locations while embodying heroes and villains from across the Marvel universe, many of which had never had an on-screen presence before. There were constant updates, seasonal events, an expanding roster, and loads of long-term potential that should have given the game several years of additional content without much development needed at all.
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However, despite its popularity and a dedicated fan base, Marvel Heroes was abruptly shut down in November 2017 following licensing issues and internal controversies surrounding its developer. The shutdown came with little warning, instantly cutting off access to the game and all of its content and removing one of the more promising MMOs of the mid 2010s from the gaming world. It is a real shame, as with such a rich and expansive history of stories and characters, the game could have easily had decades of expansions and updates that could have kept the community alive long after launch. But as these things sometimes go, the servers were turned off with no way of going back, locking all of that potential behind closed doors, never to be opened again.
1 Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Cinematic Presentation Without Longevity
Details:
- Core systems dictated by player population
- Struggled to compete with genre giants
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning was built around large-scale open-world PvP, emphasizing realm-versus-realm warfare across sprawling fantasy landscapes. Its zones were designed to funnel players into massive battles that felt organic and persistent, making the world itself a battleground shaped by player activity and the decisions they made in the midst of the fight. The Warhammer universe always had a strong fan base, so when a new online game was announced, fans of the franchise flocked to it, alongside many other players who saw the initial cinematic trailers and were instantly captivated by the action and intensity that the game looked to bring. On the mechanical side of things, it certainly did live up to the goal it presented, letting players fight across worlds and progress forward in whatever factional direction they chose.
Those strong ideas and the devoted fanbase proved to be not enough to keep the game alive in the end, and it was clear that in such a crowded MMO space, the game was struggling to compete with genre giants. As subscriptions declined, servers were merged together, and the support went within, before EA officially shut the game down in December 2013. As an online-only experience, the game vanished entirely once servers went offline, removing all of those conflicts and wars from the players' hands who so desperately wanted it to succeed. As unfortunate as the launch and closure were, it is clear that a lot of the core mechanics and systems were still influential enough to be used by later games in the space, proving that even in the saddest cases, there is still some redemption to be had.
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