Popular Xbox 360 and PS3 RPG Shutting Down Today
Two different Xbox 360 and PS3-era games -- both from EA -- are shutting down today, which means you will no longer be able to access any online services for either game. One of these games is 2012's Warp from developer Trapdoor. The more notable game is also a 2012 game, Kingdoms Of Amalur: Reckoning. Both games have not been available to purchase on Xbox 360 and PS3 for a while, and now neither have any online functionality left.
We've known this was coming for a while thanks to the Online Services Shutdown page on the EA website, however, now the date is finally here. Thankfully for fans of this cult-classic RPG, a remaster was released back in 2020, bringing the game to modern platforms. In other words, it no longer being available to purchase on PS3 and Xbox 360, and it no longer having any online functionality on these platforms, is only a problem for the very small minority of gamers still on these platforms. Unfortunately, Warp has not been brought to modern platforms, which means the only place you can now buy it and access it in full is on PC/Steam.
As for the remaster of Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, it is aptly called Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning. Developed by KAIKO, Big Huge Games, and 38 Studios, the remaster came out on September 8, 2020 and was generally warmly received. It's not the biggest and best upgrade of the 2012 RPG, but it's certainly an improvement.
"The hit RPG returns! From the minds of the bestselling author R.A. Salvatore, Spawn creator Todd McFarlane, and Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion lead designer Ken Rolston, comes Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning," reads a pitch of the game's remaster. "Remastered with stunning visuals and refined gameplay Re-Reckoning delivers intense, customizable RPG combat inside a sprawling game world. Uncover the secrets of Amalur, from the vibrant city of Rathir to the vast region of Dalentarth to the grim dungeons of the Brigand Hall Caverns," reads an official pitch of the game. "Rescue a world torn apart by a vicious war and control the keys to immortality as the first warrior ever to be resurrected from the grips of death."
It's unclear why this pair of games have been removed from the PS3 and Xboc 360 digital storefronts. It is presumably due to licensing issues, but this isn't specified. The shut down of the online services is more straightforward though. Not oly does maintaining these services cost money but they can be security risk, and if neither game is available to purchase on these platforms, and next to no one is playing these games on these platforms more than a decade later, pulling the plug is an easy decision.