PS4 Exclusive Servers Taken Offline Permanently

A PS4 exclusive game from Sony is, as of today, officially taken offline. The PS4 game in question hails from 2017, would be celebrating its seven-year anniversary this October if it wasn't getting shut down today, January 31. As you may remember, 2017 was a great for the industry, at least in terms of new releases. Not only did the Nintendo Switch release, but individual games like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, What Remains of Edith Finch, Persona 5, NieR Automata, Super Mario Odyssey, Cuphead, Horizon Zero Dawn, PUBG, Divinity: Original Sin II, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Injustice 2, Hollow Knight, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, Destiny 2, and Resident Evil 7 all came out. There are more notable games than this, but you get the point. Unfortunately for Sony, Gran Tursimo Sport didn't quite manage to crack this level of relevancy, which may explain why it is shutting down seven years later. 

While today marks the day the servers go down, the shutdown began back in December when DLC for the game was delisted. This means, as of today, you can no longer buy DLC for the game or play any online element. The game itself remains listed and is in a somewhat playable state thanks to its few offline modes. 

As for why the game is being taken offline, we don't know. It is most likely because the servers cost too much maintain for what Sony is getting in return. They also may pose some type of security risk. Whatever the case, it is not because of expiring licenses otherwise the game would be delisted completely. 

"On January 31, 2024, at 06:00 UTC, the online services of the PlayStation4-exclusive software 'Gran Turismo Sport' will come to an end. Prior to this on December 01, 2023, we will also end the distribution of purchasable Add-On items from the PlayStation Store that can be used in-game," reads an official statement from Sony on the matter. "After the end of service date, it will no longer be possible to utilize online services such as the Community, Open Lobby, and Sport Mode, nor online features/items such as custom liveries. The offline portions of the game can still be played, including purchased Add-Ons. We would like to thank the many users of the Gran Turismo Sport online service since its first launch in 2017."

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