Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile will officially shut down on 17 April, with all online service and support ending. The news arrives just under a year after the game was delisted from mobile storefronts, after it failed to meet the expectations of its studio, Activision.
‘This decision was made after careful consideration of various factors and while we’re proud of the accomplishment in bringing Call of Duty: Warzone to mobile in an authentic way, it unfortunately has not met our expectations with mobile-first players like it has with PC and console audiences,’ the studio said on X at the time of its delisting.
Now, it appears the final axe will swing.
Call of Duty Warzone Mobile closure – quick links
The axe falls on Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile
Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile enjoyed just a single year in the spotlight before Activision announced it would be delisted. Another year later, it will officially close down, with all remaining players set to be booted from the server.
Per PocketGamer.biz, the game did have pre-registration of around 50 million users prior to launch, but it appears this interest was not maintained over the long term.
The game faced significant competition in a crowded mobile market, and it was even seemingly competing with other Activision titles. Call of Duty: Mobile – which is an entirely separate game – was launched in 2019 and maintains a steady fanbase, buoyed by regular new seasonal content and collectables.
It feels likely that many players who would otherwise have jumped into Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile‘s unique battle royale experience might already have been satisfied with similar experiences offered in Call of Duty: Mobile, at least enough to stick with this game and avoid its brother title.
What’s next for Call of Duty on mobile?
As mentioned, Activision maintains faith in the Call of Duty mobile experience, but it will stick to supporting the original Call of Duty: Mobile.
This game is celebrating a new Lunar New Year-themed season currently, with players able to pop in for rounds of DMZ: Recon, Battle Royale and more. Those players transitioning from Warzone to Mobile can expect a relatively smooth onboarding, given the similarities between the two titles.
Of course, players wishing for a more involved Warzone experience can also still jump into the game mode on PC and consoles, so the shuttering of Warzone Mobile isn’t entirely without solution.
Regardless, it’s a sad end for an experimental Activision title that did once have the potential to garner a more passionate audience.
Also on ScreenHub: Classic RPG franchise .hack to return with new sequel
Video game developer CyberConnect2 has announced .hack//Z.E.R.O., a brand new entry in the long-running .hack cross-media RPG franchise, with a new trailer confirming a host of returning characters. It’s the first all-new .hack game we’ve seen since 2012’s odd fighter .hack//Versus, and follows in the footsteps of the 2017 .hack//G.U. trilogy remaster.
Notably, it’s also a core development project for CyberConnect2 (the studio behind Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot and .hack//G.U. Last Recode), which will handle all aspects of planning and development. Previously, .hack games were published under the Bandai Namco Entertainment banner. As its ‘Z.E.R.O.‘ moniker attests, .hack//Z.E.R.O. is the start of a new chapter for the long-running franchise.
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