XDefiant’s Final Countdown: Sad to See Ubisoft’s FPS Depart

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Man, XDefiant never really stood a chance, did it? Despite some big-shot developers and heavy hitters like Far Cry and Assassin’s Creed lurking in the background. Poor Ubisoft – kind of been on this losing streak with games lately, and the live service biz? Oh boy, it’s a shark tank. Everyone wants fresh stuff NOW. And, oh joy, it had to compete with a freakishly good Call of Duty year with Black Ops 6 storming in. So, yeah, seeing it shut down just a year after its launch? Inevitable, I guess. Almost expected. But hey, let’s not dump on it – XDefiant wasn’t a dumpster fire by any means. Gave me some happy vibes reminiscing about Call of Duty’s glory days.

Okay, don’t get me wrong. Black Ops 6 is pretty solid right now, but CoD had been kind of… meh for a while. Just how I see it. I mean, Modern Warfare 2 and then an okay-ish Modern Warfare 3? Yawn. I was longing for those heydays. XDefiant tried to be that old-school friend – cool three-lane maps, great gunplay, and those edgy loadouts. There were abilities too. Spicy stuff.

So, after some hiccups (like really weird ones) getting XDefiant out and about, it finally saw daylight last May. Just when Modern Warfare 3 was sputtering out. And yeah, it had its hiccups – I mean, that hit registration could be a clown show sometimes. But I was hooked. Others had already given it the death sentence, but I was having a blast.

First season? Oh man, it was killer fun despite the techno-gremlins lurking around. Wasn’t under any illusion it’d last forever though – with another CoD looming and the likes of Destiny 2, Apex Legends, and The Finals doing jazz hands for my attention. But it totally had potential to stick in my gaming rotation.

But then… sigh, end of 2024 comes around, and it’s like a plot twist nobody wanted. Black Ops 6 revving up and XDefiant still dangling issues – folks, me included, started wandering off. And pressure? Oh, it was cranking up on the devs big time. By October, rumors swirled that XDefiant needed to show some spark in two seasons, or it’s curtains. Turned out, even two was generous.

December hit, and bam – Ubisoft decides to sunset it. Stripped it off stores the very same day. If you happened to have it downloaded, you got a bonus half-year to relish season three – which was like a surprise piñata of content waiting for future seasons.

June 2. Yep, that’s today. It’s the last full hurrah for XDefiant before it goes poof tomorrow. I hopped on for some nostalgia. You’d think I’d be all misty-eyed – and yeah, I was, actually. Even though I hadn’t touched it in months, playing felt smooth, comforting even. Like slipping back into a pair of well-worn shoes. Bright, vibrant, and, ironically, full of life, despite the looming ax.

No clue if there was a player surge, but finding matches was quick, and goodbye posts are everywhere. Guess folks see it as another ‘Ubisoft flop.’ Which, yeah, okay, fine, but it had its shining moments. Didn’t come close to dethroning CoD or anything, but it had charm and taught some cool lessons – like not taking it all too seriously and giving a respectful nod to the past.

So here we are. Farewell, XDefiant. You’ll be missed, my fren – short-lived but memorable. Whether you loved it or not, no shortage of other multiplayer treasures to dive into.

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