Featured Image Credit: Electronic Arts
Topics: Anthem, Bioware, EA, Xbox, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, Microsoft
Topics: Anthem, Bioware, EA, Xbox, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, Microsoft
Xbox players are about to lose a massive open-world RPG with no hope of it ever returning.
BioWare is one of the most famous video game developers in the industry, treating us to epic bangers such as Baldur’s Gate, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Jade Empire, the Mass Effect and Dragon Age series, and much more.
However, it’s fair to say that in recent years, BioWare has become a shadow of its former self. Some have speculated that its downfall is contributed to by veteran developers leaving the studio and new recruits not fully grasping what made the studio so beloved to begin with.
Some of BioWare’s most recent games are considered to be somewhat of a disaster, both commercially and critically across the board. BioWare’s most recent games are Mass Effect: Andromeda, Anthem, and Dragon Age: The Veilguard. As a BioWare fan, I fear the worst for the studio if its next Mass Effect game doesn't hit it out of the park.
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One of those games mentioned above, Anthem, was released in 2019 with tons of hype, and to be fair, as a sci-RPG that allowed you to fly about with friends in what were essentially Iron Man suits, it was a fantastic concept. Or at least, it should have been.
Don’t get me wrong, Anthem looked gorgeous, and the combat was still satisfying, in my opinion. However, with a lack of a fun gameplay loop, inspired missions, enemies and content to keep players engaged for the long term, it felt like it was doomed to fail from the get-go.
Player numbers quickly dwindled, and from the outside, it looked like BioWare and its publisher, Electronic Arts, were soon preparing for the demise of Anthem. Now, in January 2026, Anthem will be gone, and it may never return.
In July 2025, it was announced that Anthem would be shutting down for good on Xbox as well as across PlayStation and PC, and we’re now just days away from it being wiped from all existence.
The Anthem servers will shut down on 12 January 2026, and because this is an online-only game, it will no longer be playable on this date, even if you own the disc.
“It's a shame how Anthem turned out. The start of a long decline for BioWare,” claimed Reddit user TheResultOfUs. “Nonetheless, people should not lose access to a product they paid for.”
“Offline mode would've been nice,” said Successful-Plan114, and I’m inclined to agree. “Even Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League gave us an offline mode,” added negative_four.
“This game was so much fun, it should be illegal for it to just shut down as people have paid for it,” exclaimed Caffine_rush.
At the moment, Anthem is still playable on PC, PlayStation and Xbox but its days are most certainly numbered. At the time of writing, the next Mass Effect game does not have a release date.