EA is cutting off its online support for a number of titles in its catalog, including games from heavy hitting franchises such as Need for Speed and Battlefield. The good news is that the games being culled haven’t been relevant to pretty much anyone for a very long time. The exodus will stretch across a variety of platforms ranging from 360 to the PSP and feature once popular names such as Need for Speed: Most Wanted and Army of Two. EA states that less than one percent of their total user base plays any of the following titles that will experience this termination of service, during peak hours.
August 11, 2011 Online Service Shutdown
Army of Two for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360
Army of Two Demo for Xbox 360
Battlefield 2142 Demo for PC
Battlefield 2: Modern Combat for Xbox 360
Battlefield 2: Modern Combat Demo for Xbox 360
Medal of Honor Airborne for PlayStation Portable
Medal of Honor Heroes 2 for PlayStation Portable and Wii
NASCAR 09 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 (North America)
NCAA Basketball 10 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360
NCAA Football 10 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360
Need for Speed Most Wanted for PC and Xbox 360
Need for Speed Undercover for PlayStation Portable;
Skate for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 for PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 Demo for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360
October 1, 2011 Online Service Shutdown
Madden NFL 10 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360
NHL 10 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360
Frankly I'm surprised more companies don't do this more regularly and perhaps even sooner into a game's release. Games such as Battlefield 2: Modern Combat could realistically have been shut down 2-3 years ago and I'm sure it could have saved EA a little more money and the outcry would have been minimal.
