Shelf-Life Beta
All shutdowns / Data
The ledger in numbers
What Shelf-Life’s shutdown ledger shows so far: how the games were sold, how long they lasted and what’s switching off next.
- Paid for up front 19
- Came with a paid game or subscription 3
- Free-to-play 52
- Still online 4
Growing sample: 74 verified shutdowns so far (70 switched off, 4 announced). Target: 150. Updated 20 October 2026.
Every game here has a confirmed date and a link to its source, usually the publisher’s own announcement. This is our ledger so far, not every shutdown in gaming. Recent closures went in first and older ones are still being added, so totals by year and comparisons between publishers will wait until the ledger reaches 150 games.
Paying for a game doesn't keep it online
How each game was sold when it launched. Based on 74 verified shutdowns tracked by Shelf-Life, October 2026.
30%22 of 74 games in the ledger cost money to play
Data table
| How it was sold | Games | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Paid for up front | 19 | 26% |
| Came with a paid game or subscription | 3 | 4% |
| Free-to-play | 52 | 70% |
Half of these games were switched off within 2 years of release
Years from release to switch-off, counted from the release year. Based on the 70 switched-off games tracked by Shelf-Life, October 2026.
2 yearsthe middle value: half closed this soon or sooner
- Shortest-lived paid game: Concord (Sony Interactive Entertainment), released 2024, servers off 6 September 2024.
- Longest-lived: Battlefield 1943 (Electronic Arts), released 2009, servers off 8 December 2023.
Data table
| Switched off | Games | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Same year | 3 | 4% |
| The next year | 22 | 31% |
| 2 to 3 years later | 24 | 34% |
| 4 to 6 years later | 11 | 16% |
| 7 or more years later | 10 | 14% |
Concord was switched off the same year it came out
The paid games in the ledger that closed soonest after release, counted from the release year. 17 paid games have been switched off so far (October 2026).
ConcordSony Interactive Entertainment · released 2024 · off 6 September 2024Same year
Sociable Soccer 25Tower Studios · released 2025 · off 28 September 20261 year
Babylon's FallSquare Enix · released 2022 · off 27 February 20231 year
LawBreakersNexon · released 2017 · off 14 September 20181 year
Knockout CityVelan Studios · released 2021 · off 6 June 20232 years
Firewall UltraSony Interactive Entertainment · released 2023 · off 17 September 20263 years
Atlas ReactorTrion Worlds · released 2016 · off 28 June 20193 years
Rocket ArenaElectronic Arts · released 2020 · off 21 March 20244 years
Data table
| Game | Publisher | Released | Servers off | Gap | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Concord | Sony Interactive Entertainment | 2024 | 6 September 2024 | Same year | Announcement |
| Sociable Soccer 25 | Tower Studios | 2025 | 28 September 2026 | 1 year | Announcement |
| Babylon's Fall | Square Enix | 2022 | 27 February 2023 | 1 year | Announcement |
| LawBreakers | Nexon | 2017 | 14 September 2018 | 1 year | Announcement |
| Knockout City | Velan Studios | 2021 | 6 June 2023 | 2 years | Announcement |
| Firewall Ultra | Sony Interactive Entertainment | 2023 | 17 September 2026 | 3 years | Announcement |
| Atlas Reactor | Trion Worlds | 2016 | 28 June 2019 | 3 years | Announcement |
| Rocket Arena | Electronic Arts | 2020 | 21 March 2024 | 4 years | Announcement |
The New Denpa Men is next to switch off, on 7 December 2026
Games in the ledger with a confirmed switch-off date still to come (4 as of 20 October 2026).
48 daysuntil the start of 7 December 2026, when The New Denpa Men’s servers are due off
The New Denpa MenGenius Sonority · servers off 7 December 2026in 48 days
Rainbow Six MobileUbisoft · servers off 15 January 2027in 87 days
New World: AeternumAmazon Games · servers off 31 January 2027in 103 days
Madden NFL 24Electronic Arts · servers off 26 April 2027in 188 days
Own one of these? Add your games to Your shelf to see their dates in one place.
Data table
| Game | Publisher | Servers off | Days left on 20 October 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| The New Denpa Men | Genius Sonority | 7 December 2026 | 48 |
| Rainbow Six Mobile | Ubisoft | 15 January 2027 | 87 |
| New World: Aeternum | Amazon Games | 31 January 2027 | 103 |
| Madden NFL 24 | Electronic Arts | 26 April 2027 | 188 |
Square Enix has the most games in the ledger so far
Publishers with 3 or more games in the ledger. Based on 74 verified shutdowns tracked by Shelf-Life, October 2026.
Big publishers run more online games, so more entries doesn’t mean a worse record. A fair comparison waits until the ledger reaches 150 games. Every publisher’s list.
Data table
| Publisher | Games |
|---|---|
| Square Enix | 8 |
| Electronic Arts | 6 |
| Nintendo | 6 |
| Ubisoft | 5 |
| Bandai Namco | 4 |
| Sony Interactive Entertainment | 4 |
| Warner Bros. Games | 3 |
Cite or link
87% of classic games can no longer be bought
Games released in the US before 2010, from a random sample of 1,500 checked in April 2023 (margin of error 2.5 points). Not about servers: this is about older games going out of print.
Data table
| Status | Share of sample |
|---|---|
| Out of print | 87% |
| Still available to buy | 13% |
Method, sources and reuse
- Every figure from Shelf-Life is worked out from the ledger each time the site updates. Each entry links to the publisher’s announcement or to news reports of it.
- How it was sold means how the game was sold when it launched. “Paid for up front” includes subscriptions and games that later went free. “Came with a paid game or subscription” covers games like Resident Evil Re:Verse (included with Resident Evil Village) and Nintendo Switch Online extras.
- Years from release are counted from the release year to the year the servers went off, because the ledger records the release year only.
- Percentages are rounded, so they may not add up to exactly 100.
- The out-of-print figure is from the Video Game History Foundation and Software Preservation Network, 2023. It’s their research, credited and linked. We only drew the chart.
Reusing these charts: Shelf-Life’s charts and the figures on this page that come from our ledger are free to share, screenshot and republish under CC BY 4.0. Please credit Shelf-Life and link to gameshelflife.com/data. Figures from other people’s research belong to them, so credit them too.
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