2XKO is Ceasing Active Development...

So, Season 3 and Lux are fast approaching and we have been waiting for news about them since the Coven Bundle came out. An announcement popped up and unfortunately, it is not looking good. Let's jump right in.

I'm back with a brand new post that has some bad and heartbreaking news. So, with fighting games rolling around like tumbleweeds in the wind this year, the fighting game community has been thriving, especially recently with the releases of them, starting with Invincible VS, to Avatar Legends: the Fighting Game, Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls and SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level. There are a ton of fighting games beyond them coming. But specifically, I like to point out to the direction of the tag fighter on this post, the League of Legends tag fighter, 2XKO.

So, this game has came out of Early Access and launched on console in January, being met with positive buzz for innovative tag mechanics and co-op gameplay. However, as soon as the game launched on console, things took a turn for the game. Half of the 2XKO team was laid off. Momentum has not reached the level need for long-term development despite the buzz.

As we're approaching the time when Season 3 comes out, We were desperately waiting for Season 3 info to drop along with Lux's launch. Riot Games has posted a message on X, hoping it's Season 3 news and... can you guess what they announced? They announced that 2XKO is going to cease active development with the intention of leaving the servers online for the foreseeable future and refunding those who made purchases on the Starter Pack and KO Points before August 20th.

Wow. I don't know what to say about this matter. I gotta remain calm in a Buena Vista mood about this while candidly sharing how disappointed I am after seeing this devastating and bitter news that just hit me.

Alpha Lab 1 came out on PC and console and during the course, feedback went all over the place. Then Alpha Lab 2 became a disappointingly short playtest as Riot was working on the infrastructure to get the game prepared for Closed Beta as the first step of rolling out the game to everyone with giving those who playtested a guaranteed access to the game. Then Early Access launched exclusively on PC and a lot of players were itching to play the game on console and TOs were eager to set up the PS5 versions on offline tournaments. The console sneak peek video has made 9.8 million views on YouTube. This should've reflected as player engagement.

I wish they can do another year or so. That level of retention couldn't cover rising costs that doing another year would cost Riot more at the rate of retention, so they have no choice but to cease active development as a responsible and safe choice, meaning that there will be no more new characters or stages. Not even Major events in the Competitive Series can help cover costs. And Overwatch remained an utter success even further after dropping the 2 from the title and keeping it free-to-play.

I made a post on X sharing how disappointed I am about 2XKO ceasing active development due to low player engagement. Even Diaphone is quitting his job to play this game in light of this news and I don't even blame him. Literally weeks after Marvel Tokon and SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level came out, 2XKO is ceasing active development in December and I am very disappointed.

Skullgirls had a low player retention, but the game had continued active development regardless because a publisher like Autumn Games is the holder of the Skullgirls IP, not developers that Autumn worked with. It came with the Season 1 Pass containing Annie, Umbrella, Black Dahlia and Marie, expanding it to Nintendo Switch and Xbox and having a Webtoon comic adaptation and a dedicated esports circuit, and Autumn helped made it happen in the first place.

There are literally a lot of characters just begging to be in the roster, like Riven, Sett, Leona, Veigar, Malcolm Graves, Gangplank, Miss Fortune and even Yunara and everyone else in their treasure trove of beloved characters. But all of that has been scrapped due to 2XKO ceasing active development in December and it sucks. I wish there was a way for Riot to do another year for free... Yunara would've been literally dope in 2XKO.

Final SEGA side:

Ahri
Blitzcrank
Caitlyn
Ekko
Jinx
Samira
Teemo
Vi
Yasuo

Final Capcom side:

Akali
Braum
Darius
Illaoi
Lux
Senna
Thresh
Warwick

Final key points:

Ahri on the SEGA side = NiGHTS
Blitzcrank on the SEGA side = Vectorman
Caitlyn on the SEGA side = Gain Ground
Ekko on the SEGA side = Pulseman
Jinx on the SEGA side = Jet Set Radio
Samira on the SEGA side = Valkyria Chronicles
Vi on the SEGA side = Jet Set Radio
Yasuo on the SEGA side = Blood Will Tell: Tezuka Osamu's Dororo
Akali on the Capcom side = Power Stone
Darius on the Capcom side = Knights of the Round
Lux on the Capcom side = Star Gladiator
Senna on the Capcom side = Devil May Cry
Thresh on the Capcom side = Ghosts n' Goblins
Warwick on the Capcom side = Darkstalkers

Here are the final standings for the SEGA and Capcom sides and the key points. All of this have been finalized as 2XKO is going to cease active development in December because of the fact that the game couldn't have a sufficient player engagement. It has been a Maggie and the Ferocious Beast mess of things that weren't even half-baked because 2XKO not having a sufficient player engagement contributes to sunsetting active development despite early buzz. For that, I am cancelling my future plans by deleting and editing the posts that pertain to the future of 2XKO. I have a follow up post that have the factors that cite 2XKO's flop at launch coming soon. 

I got to keep my act together. I have four reasons to keep my act together. One of them is actually Marvel Tokon. I played the Open Beta before and I am genuinely impressed by the quality that I already found a team for when I get the full game. Since the game is having a ten-year development cycle, I'll be looking forward to seeing more characters and other pieces of content.

The second reason is SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level. In the first livestream, Madxruler and FaRe'N'HiTe have straight up confirmed a bevy or a treasure trove of characters, and it's working; NiGHTS, Honey, Zero, Ristar, Ulala, Shadow the Hedgehog, Falcon and even B.D. Joe have been confirmed. This is definetely something that Riot should've done when developing 2XKO prior to release.

The third reason is a new leadership. I still have a little fire of hope on this one. One user has created a #Save2XKO petition to rally support and talent. Since 2XKO is ceasing active development, maybe a new and independent team can pick up where the old team left off to continue active development under the new and dedicated team and leadership. By independent, I mean not to rely or depend on profits or revenue. If this new and independent 2XKO team picks up where the old one left off, maybe they can give the game a second wind patch to throw in several new characters that should've been confirmed in the first place and turn KO Points back on, who knows? It worked well with Skullgirls that again, Autumn Games owns the Skullgirls IP, not developers they worked with. I'm not confirming that, just saying it's a possibility.

And the fourth and final reason is actually Saturday AM: Battle Manga. Son Studios has knocked it out of the park with a 2v2 tag fighter featuring Saturday AM characters. What is really cool is that if we get a Lux-esque shoto character that wields the power of light, maybe that can shine on us with their light. Get it? Shine? Light? Lux shines bright like a star with her light in 2XKO? Anyway, the gameplay for Saturday AM: Battle Manga is unknown, so we have to wait until the demo comes out.

My condolences and I'm sorry to the team that struggled to maintain player engagement of this game they pour their hearts and souls into and to Diaphone quitting his job. It sucks to end like this. I wish them the best of luck finding new ways to come back stronger for their next game.