When Gearbox Software released Battleborn in 2016, there was a lot of concern over whether it could survive against competition like Overwatch. Five years later, it’s already been removed from digital storefront and will have its servers shut down today. But this doesn’t just meant that multiplayer will be inaccessible. Even the single-player component of Battleborn is going away for good.
It’s a shame considering the game’s initial potential. Battleborn is a hybrid MOBA/FPS which featured numerous hero characters with unique abilities and gear. The trademark Borderlands-style humor, loot-grinding and diverse builds helped it to stand out against the likes of Overwatch (which is still going strong and has a sequel coming up).
Unfortunately, this never translated into a successful game. Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick said the shooter had performed “below our expectations” and updates would stop one and a half years after launch. Gearbox hasn’t suffered in the interim though – it released Borderlands 3 which was quite successful and has DLC coming up. It’s unlikely that Battleborn will ever see a resurgence in the future but we’ll still wait and see.
