The gaming industry is a relentless cycle of highs and lows. For every Game of the Year contender that basks in critical acclaim and commercial success, there’s a title that unfortunately falls short, sometimes spectacularly. And just as new games launch with much fanfare, others must bid farewell, their servers shutting down and their digital footprints fading away.

This past June 2025 has seen several games, some once beloved, some with big ambitions, close their doors. Let’s take a moment to reflect on these titles and the stories behind their departures.

XDefiant (May 21, 2024 – June 3, 2025)

Ubisoft’s track record with live service games has been, to put it mildly, inconsistent.

Their struggle to monetize through microtransactions is a saga in itself. After pulling the plug on Hyper Scape in April 2022, a battle royale that barely lasted two years, Ubisoft pivoted to XDefiant. This new arena shooter offered fast-paced, team-based gameplay reminiscent of Call of Duty‘s deathmatch modes, eschewing the battle royale trend.

Initial buzz for XDefiant during its alpha/beta tests was surprisingly positive. Content creators praised it, and YouTube comment sections, usually a hotbed of cynicism for Ubisoft titles, expressed genuine anticipation.

However, reality, as it often does, delivered a harsh slap.

XDefiant’s lifespan was a mere one year and two weeks. Even more disheartening, Ubisoft seemingly threw in the towel just six months post-launch. By December 2024, updates had ceased, and a major restructuring occurred within the development team. The following six months were essentially a winding-down period before the servers officially went dark on June 3, 2025.

A quick demise for a game that many had high hopes for.

The First Descendant – Last-Gen Versions (July 2, 2024 – June 16, 2025)

It seems even eye-catching character designs couldn’t save Nexon’s grinding shooter, The First Descendant, from a lack of player interest—at least not entirely.

The good news is that The First Descendant isn’t completely gone. What has been discontinued are the last-generation versions for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

This move isn’t particularly shocking. Nexon’s decision to launch The First Descendant on 2013-era consoles was arguably their first misstep. The game’s performance on PS4 and Xbox One was notoriously poor, plagued by unstable frame rates, frequent crashes, and significant rendering issues.

Ultimately, it appears Nexon accepted the inevitable: older hardware simply can’t keep up with games built on modern engines without significant compromises. Forcing developers to “fine-tune” an ambitious new title for aging machines often results in a sub-par experience for both the creators and the players.

It was a lose-lose situation that was finally resolved on June 16, 2025, with the last-gen versions bidding adieu.

Resident Evil Re:Verse (October 28, 2022 – June 29, 2025)

Resident Evil Re:Verse had a lifespan of nearly three years, serving as a multiplayer experience tied to Resident Evil Village. Originally intended as part of Village‘s roadmap, its development faced delays, eventually leading to a standalone release on October 28, 2022.

Despite its connection to the popular Resident Evil franchise, Re:Verse struggled to fully resonate with players.

Feedback often highlighted repetitive deathmatch gameplay with a bioweapon twist, along with character movement that felt somewhat sluggish and gunplay that lacked impact. Compounded by a perceived lack of consistent new content and an emphasis on microtransactions, player engagement gradually declined.

This led to the announcement of its end of service on February 5, 2025, followed by its removal from digital storefronts and game bundles. Finally, on June 29, 2025, Re:Verse officially ceased operations.

It’s a common tale in the multiplayer landscape, where maintaining player interest and a steady content flow are crucial.

Other Games That Also Concluded Service in June 2025

• Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Tempestfall was removed from Steam on June 1, 2025, and is expected to be fully delisted soon.
• Three Kingdoms: The Story of Seeking Generals, which launched in late May 2023, also concluded its service on June 1, 2025.
• Black Desert joined The First Descendant in ending its last-generation support for PS4 and Xbox One on June 19, 2025, though its PC and current-gen versions remain active.
• The online service for Madden 21 officially shut down on June 30, 2025.

The sunsetting of game servers is a natural, albeit often somber, part of the gaming lifecycle. It’s a moment to appreciate the experiences these games offered while they were active. Which of these games will you remember most fondly?