Key Takeaways
Created with AI - we're still experimenting, so apologies if it misses the mark
- Anthem, an online action game developed by BioWare, has been officially shut down after nearly seven years. The servers were permanently disabled on January 12, 2026.
- Initial reception of Anthem was mixed, with praise for its flight and combat mechanics but criticism for a lack of content and repetitive missions. It became BioWares lowest-rated title.
- In the lead-up to the shutdown, players returned for a final mission or flight across the games landscape and shared farewell messages on social media. Some even managed to unlock remaining achievements and earn platinum trophies.
- The server shutdown serves as a reminder of the inherent risks in the live-service model when initial player engagement cannot be maintained long-term. The failure of Anthem highlights the challenges BioWare faced with live-service implementation, complicated by EAs reluctance to compare it to established looter-shooters.
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Farewell Flight: Players Bid Adieu to Anthem’s Digital Landscape
As of today, January 12, 2026, BioWare’s online action game Anthem is officially unplayable, its servers having been shut down after nearly seven years. Anthem, which attempted to blend RPG elements with a looter-shooter style reminiscent of Destiny, required a constant internet connection. Anthem was removed from digital storefronts in mid-2025, precluding further purchases of physical or digital copies. An official announcement had previously stated that Anthem’s servers would begin to be shut down on July 3, 2025, with the process concluding on January 12, 2026, when EA permanently disabled the online servers. Released in 2019, Anthem promised a vibrant world and intense combat within Javelin exosuits. Initial reception, however, was mixed. While the flight and combat mechanics were praised, the game drew criticism for a lack of content and repetitive missions. Anthem ultimately became BioWare’s lowest-rated title, with Metacritic scores of 54 for PlayStation 4, 59 for PC, and 65 for Xbox One. In the time leading up to the shutdown, many players returned for a final mission or flight across its landscape. Across social media, the community shared farewell messages, images, and videos, a mixture of nostalgia and regret for the game’s unrealized potential.
Aspiring Freelancers Bid Farewell to Anthem’s Ambitious Journey
Former BioWare executive producer Mark Darrah stated that the studio struggled with live-service implementation, complicated by EA’s reluctance to invite comparisons with established looter-shooters such as Destiny, Borderlands, and Mass Effect. As the shutdown approached, dedicated players made a final effort to unlock remaining achievements. On Reddit, gamers AbsolutelyNotAClone and Rymus discussed their experiences earning Anthem’s platinum trophy and full Gamerscore. One fan who began playing late in the game’s life shared a positive review just as the servers went offline. As Reddit user byuZephyr2209 wrote, “It has been an honor, freelancers.” Anthem is now primarily remembered as an ambitious project that failed to achieve its goals. The server shutdown highlights the inherent risks in the live-service model when initial player engagement cannot be maintained long-term.
In Case You Missed It
While we’re on the topic of eagerly anticipated releases, you won’t want to miss Bruno Pferd’s latest post over at Players for Life. Published just this January 12th, “These Are the 2026 Movies Everyone Wants to See” is a must-read for film enthusiasts eager to dive into an in-depth look at the cinematic landscape awaiting us in just four years’ time. But before you get lost in future blockbusters, we’ve had some surprising news from the gaming world. In a recent post by Jonathan Dubinski, ‘Elder Scrolls Online Leader Departs Due to Microsoft’, we learn that Matt Firor, the long-standing lead developer of The Elder Scrolls Online, has recently parted ways with ZeniMax Online Studios due to disagreements stemming from Microsoft’s decisions last summer. And speaking of Microsoft, their Xbox console has faced a significant setback in the UK market, as Marcus Thompson reported on Players for Life just this January 4th. In his post, “Xbox Endures Historic Collapse in UK with Worst Annual Sales Ever”, Marcus delves into the eye-opening statistics revealing Xbox’s sales plummeted by a staggering 39% in 2025, marking their worst annual performance ever in the region. So if you’re curious about the future of movies or want to stay up-to-date with the latest gaming news, be sure to check out these posts here These Are the 2026 Movies Everyone Wants to See and here Elder Scrolls Online Leader Departs Due to Microsoft respectively, and here for the Xbox story Xbox Endures Historic Collapse in UK with Worst Annual Sales Ever.
| Specification | |
|---|---|
| Official Name | Groove Coaster: Initial Initial Echo Ego |
| Brief Summary | Touhou Project music DLC for Groove CoasterTitle: Initial Initial Echo EgoArtist: RD-Sounds*Arrange from Touhou ShinreibyouDifficulty: Simple 2 / Normal 5 / Hard 8BPM: 156 |
| Genre | Music |
| Play Modes | Single player |
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