It looks like things are not looking good for Apex Legends Mobile. It hasn't been one year since the game was released and now there won't be any anniversary celebration. That's because Respawn Entertainment just announced that it is shutting down the game for good on May 1, 2023.
While that's still a few months away, Respawn has already initiated actions back on January 31. These actions involved disabling all real money in the game's app purchases. In addition, the game has been effectively removed from the webstore. However, for those who still have the game, there's time left to spend any existing Syndicate Gold they have.
As a quick recap, Apex Legends Mobile was released back in May 22 on Android and iOS. What exactly happened since then? Respawn revealed that it has always aimed at giving players games that are consistently outstanding. However, that was not the case for Apex Legends Mobile.
While the game did have a strong start, the content pipeline started to fall short in terms of quality, quantity, and cadence. The decision though appeared to be something that wasn't made overnight as it took months and it was only then that both Respawn and its development partner made the mutual decision to end the mobile game. Respawn admitted that while it is disappointing, it’s not only proud of the game but also grateful for all the support that was given by the community. Ultimately, Respawn believed that this was the right decision.
Here are some details on what to expect with the shut down:
- All purchases remain in the player's account to enjoy until the shut down.
- Existing in-game virtual currency balances remain in the player's account and can be spent on in-game content until May 1.
- Players can continue to enjoy all previously purchased and unlocked in-game content throughout the 90-day sunset period.
- There won't be any refunds for real money purchases.
- This is part of the terms of the EA User Agreement.
- For any other refund requests, players have to contact the third-party platform they purchased game content from.
- The Apex Legends Mobile Web Store will no longer be accessible.
- All game content sales on third-party web stores will no longer be available.
- This decision for this game is platform-specific, and is independent of the game on PC and consoles.
What do you think? Was this a right move by Respawn?
