Ubisoft announced this week that Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles, its NFT-enabled turn-based strategy game, will be shut down. The announcement was shared on the game's website and its official Discord server, stating, "After careful consideration, we have made the decision to sunset the game. The Champions Tactics servers will officially shut down on October 30." Ubisoft said the game will remain fully playable until then.
Champions Tactics launched in 2024, well after much of the wider tech industry had cooled on Web3 gaming pitches. The game let players mint and trade in-battle units as NFTs on a blockchain marketplace, with some characters listed for over $63,000 shortly after launch, according to PC Gamer. It's unclear how many characters actually sold or for how much.
Signs of the game's wind-down appeared earlier this year. In May, Ubisoft said it would "progressively transition away from blockchain functionality" due to upcoming changes to the blockchain infrastructure supporting the game's Web3 features, according to PC Gamer. Kotaku reported this was tied to changes in the game's Oasys blockchain infrastructure. Ubisoft subsequently removed the ability to mint and sell NFT characters, converting existing player characters into standard, non-blockchain in-game items.
Ubisoft also released a free-to-play version called Champions Tactics Reforged on Steam that removed the core NFT functionality, though Kotaku reported it received mixed reviews and did not draw a strong audience.
As compensation, Ubisoft said players who reached Divine rank at least once during the last three seasons would be eligible for rewards in Might & Magic Fates, a digital collectible card game Ubisoft launched in early access in February. That game also includes a marketplace allowing players to buy and sell cards via external means, according to PC Gamer, with Kotaku noting it can be done for cash or crypto through technology powered by Immutable. Both outlets note that reactions from remaining Champions Tactics players in the Discord have been mixed, with users debating whether the game was a scam, and Kotaku reporting little enthusiasm among players for making the jump to Might & Magic Fates.