Mobile RPG Echoes of Mana will be seeing its service end in 2023, after less than a year since its initial release in April 2022.
“Since Echoes of Mana’s launch on April 27, 2022, we’ve strived to provide an incredible and enjoyable gaming experience for our players every day that could exceed the day before. However, we’ve come to the conclusion that it would be difficult to continue maintaining the app experience, and to therefore end the app service.”
The announcement was made on the game’s official social media channels as well as Square Enix Bridge, the company’s official account system. The game will continue service until the servers are shut off on the 15th of May, with in-game purchases ceasing as of today. The RPG battler is a spin-off from the long running Mana series of games that saw its latest instalment in 2014 with Rise of Mana.
Squaring away Echoes of Mana
Echoes of Mana joins a small but growing list of abruptly shuttered games in 2023. With the most notable example being the sunsetting of Apex Legends Mobile and cancellation of the Battlefield Mobile title by EA. Although sunsetting or end-of-service announcements are not something unusual, the short lifespan of these games and the abruptness of them may be concerning to some players.
It’s not the only Square Enix game to see service discontinued this year either. As Bravely Default: Brilliant Lights was also announced to be discontinuing service in 2023 after a little over a year since its release. Meanwhile Square Enix’s most recent financials restated their dedication to pursuing blockchain gaming as a potential new source of revenue.
Although this is likely a decision that was not taken lightly by Square Enix, it may damage player confidence in any potential future releases. As 2023 continues, many industry professionals are more optimistic about how the mobile games market will perform compared to 2022. But it is possible that the industry will still feel the aftershocks for a few more months.