Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad, the curiously Fortnite-ish mobile action title that Ubisoft launched last year, is already shutting down. Despite the inclusion of many popular Ubisoft franchise characters, including Sam Fisher, several of the Rainbow Six Siege operators, and other Tom Clancy characters of varying degrees of obscurity, it seems the game was not able to drum up a decent audience. The update released today will be the last one, and the servers will shut down permanently on October 4.
The developers announced the shutdown in a blog post today that reads: “This was not an easy decision, but after exploring multiple options with our teams, we came to the conclusion that it was no longer sustainable. We want to assure you all that we really gave it our best… We hope that some of you stick around with us and have fun reaching level 70 and unlocking all of the soldiers you can before we say goodbye.”
Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad was first announced at E3 2019 and was officially released in August 2020. If you were present for the trailers, you might remember that the primary attention the game got was derision at the inclusion of Sam Fisher, who many fans believe is well overdue for a new Splinter Cell title in which to star rather than a token inclusion in a mobile title.
It should be noted that the game’s cancellation comes shortly after the announcement of Tom Clancy’s XDefiant, a colorful action-shooter game that stars characters from past Tom Clancy titles. Perhaps removing Elite Squad, a lesser-known property, is to make way for a very similar title that will get more marketing money. The game’s short life has not been without controversy, as the developers were criticized for making the logo of the villainous in-game organization a raised fist.
Source: Elite Squad