EA’s Respawn to Shut Down Apex Legends Mobile in May

Key insights

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The end date

Apex Legends Mobile will cease operations on May 1, 2023, at 4 p.m. PDT.

Electronic Arts and Respawn Entertainment announced the discontinuation of the mobile title.

May 1, 2023

Apex Legends Mobile shutdown date.

Global launch date: May 17, 2022

Market access

The game failed to secure regulatory approval in China, barring it from a major market.

Both the mobile and PC versions of the franchise did not receive mandatory game approvals. This likely contributed to the strategic decision to terminate the mobile project.

It's like trying to sell a product without permission to enter a major store.

Market barrier. Apex Legends Mobile did not receive regulatory approval from China’s National Press and Publication Administration.

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Summary

Electronic Arts and Respawn Entertainment announced the discontinuation of Apex Legends Mobile, effective May 1, 2023. The decision to sunset the title came just one year after its global launch on May 17, 2022. Respawn cited an inability to maintain the necessary standards for content quality, quantity, and release cadence as the primary drivers for the closure.

The mobile battle royale, co-developed by Respawn and Tencent’s Lightspeed Studios, struggled to gain traction in the critical Chinese market. Both the mobile and PC versions of the franchise failed to secure the mandatory game approvals from China’s National Press and Publication Administration, which likely contributed to the strategic decision to terminate the mobile project.

While the game had a brief presence in the esports sector, it lacked significant financial backing from the publisher. Unlike the Apex Legends Global Series, which maintains a robust ecosystem with a $5 million prize pool for its third year, the mobile version saw only minimal investment in competitive prize money. The shutdown marks a swift conclusion for the mobile iteration, highlighting the challenges of sustaining high-quality live service updates in the competitive mobile gaming landscape.