Closers RT: New Order is shutting down. The announcement came from the CEO of Naddic Games, Seo-ju Lee, just a week after the game launched on June 7, 2023.
Closers RT: New Order Announces End of Service
New Closers Game Close Just As It Opens
Closers RT: New Order's announced that the game will end its service on July 14, 2023 in Korea, putting the game's total service period at just 37 days. It has already been delisted from both the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. Also included within the casualties are the game's official website and YouTube channel.
According to the message by Naddic Games' CEO, the sudden and unexpected end-of-service (EoS) announcement was because of the team's inability to fulfill player expectations. Naddic Games had decided after a thorough internal discussion and finalized it upon the announcement. The CEO then profusely apologizes multiple times as both the CEO and as a part of the team behind the game. However, he does mention that this failure will serve as a lesson for them and hints that there will be another Closers game in the future.
Despite the game's fantastic artwork, people were more critical of its buggy release, relatively expensive in-game purchases, and extremely bland gameplay. In fact, the gameplay was so dull that it became a joke that players who streamed the game were paid to do so. It seemed like Closers RT: New Order was designed with auto-play in mind, but the devs completely forgot that some people would also like to play the game manually. Watching the result was hilarious as the characters stiffly navigated the map and attacked with horribly animated moves while their teammates wailed at enemies with drunk abandon. If the reviews of the game are anything to go by, most people who tried out the game immediately decided not to continue, primarily due to its gameplay. Considering the original Closers received positive reviews that mostly raved about its excellent combat system, it's a shameful point to be criticized for.
Payment services have already ended as of June 14, 2023, but a refund process will be available for all players who have made in-game purchases since June 7, 2023. The processing period is until the game's EoS on July 14, 2023.
Possibly 2023's Fastest EoS Yet
Closers RT: New Order might have achieved the End of Service speedrun any% record for 2023. However, it is far from the fastest mobile game to shut down. Here are some other unfortunate mentions:
Sakura Ignoramus (61 Days)
Sharing a 2023 release year with Closers RT: New Order, Sakura Ignoramus initially held the year's record, which started on February 27 and ended on April 28. Even though the game had spent three years in development, sales of Sakura Ignoramus had been far below expectations. Marvelous Inc. cited its inability to provide a satisfactory experience to its players as the main reason for its closure.
Shining Nikki Korea (42 Days)
The Korean server of Shining Nikki proves that even conflict between cultures within a gaming community can result in entire servers getting shut down. The controversy started with the game releasing hanbok outfits on the Chinese, Korean, and Taiwanese servers. The Chinese community then complained that hanboks were Chinese clothing, prompting an enraged response from the Koreans, who accused them of appropriating their culture. The conflict escalated when Papergames decided to support the Chinese side by utilizing censorship, banning, and eventually shutting down the entire Korean server.
Gwisal-ui Geom (5 Days)
With an impressive lifespan of just five days, Gwisal-ui Geom was a release that immediately sparked controversy due to it being a blatant Kimetsu no Yaiba (Demon Slayer) ripoff. Although the issue never came to a point where the developers were charged with copyright infringement, it was still clearly a case of copying someone else's homework way too closely.
WAVE!! Naminori Boys (4 Days)
After being released on March 1, 2021 to a slew of errors like missing text, WAVE!! Naminori Boys immediately went into a maintenance period on March 4, 2021 to address its issues. Little did everybody realize that it would be the last time they would be able to play. The maintenance period continued indefinitely until an announcement was made a month later telling players that the game was shutting down.
