Just Cause Mobile, slowly dying after a regional test run, is now officially offline.

Square Enix has announced that its free-to-play Just Cause for mobile devices will be shut down before its official global launch.

Just Cause Mobile was announced at The Game Awards 2020 and promised a story campaign with cooperative missions and competitive multiplayer. The game was built using Unreal Engine 4 and billed itself as a mobile extension of the over-the-top series. Players could race around using parachutes, wingsuits and grappling hooks.

The game’s website and Twitter account have now been taken offline as Square Enix has withdrawn the game. They decided not to even wait for the release. According to an archived version of the game’s website, regional early access for the game closed in February this year. Like many other mobile games, Square Enix soft-launched the game in some regions. The plan was to release it everywhere eventually, but that is no longer happening.

VGC quoted Square Enix brand manager Anne-Lou Grosbois-Favreau as saying in a note: “It is with great sadness that we are announcing the end of development for Just Cause Mobile.”

As of July 3, the game is no longer appearing in digital stores. Any in-game currency players may have will be refunded.

The Just Cause series debuted in 2006, with sequels released in 2010, 2015 and 2018. The franchise was created by Avalanche Studios, which has not released a game since Rage 2 in 2019. It is currently working on Contraband for Xbox and PC, although no information has been shared by Avalanche or Microsoft for some time.

Apparently, it’s not the only big IP-based mobile game to have been shelved recently. Earlier this year, EA also cancelled Battlefield Mobile and Apex Legends Mobile.

Source: Eurogamer