EA to sunset the Mobile game after 12 years.
Yet another reminder that the digital frontier always has a shelf life, The Simpsons: Tapped Out will be sunset by EA after 12 years.
Ea confirmed plans to shutdown the free-to-play mobile game after 12 years via a Facebook post.
To our beloved fans,
We have made the difficult decision to sunset Tapped Out. In-app purchases have been disabled, and the game will be removed from the app stores October 31, 2024. You may continue playing until January 24th, 2025, at which point servers will be turned off and TSTO will not be accessible.
The decision to end our twelve-year journey is an emotional one. Together with our partners at The Simpsons™ and The Walt Disney company, we have delighted in bringing this game to you, the fans, and seeing how you’ve each built your own beloved versions of Springfield. It has been a remarkable journey, and we are grateful that we’ve been able to deliver 308 updates, 831 characters and including today’s final farewell 1,463 questlines.
As our journey comes to a close, we offer our sincerest thanks to you, the players, who have made this all possible.
– Electronic Arts
As noted above, the game will be removed from the various app stores effective October 31st. Those that already have the game downloaded will be able to play through January 24th, 2025.
The game initially launched on iOS in 2012, followed by an Android version in 2013. For those not in the know, the game was quite popular, thou8ghadmittedly certain updated did better than others (notably, the holiday updates always did well). In 2014, EA claimed that the game had, at that point, made over $130 million in net revenue.
That said, it wasn’t without some mild controversy. Notably, the South Park episode Freemium Isn’t Free skewered the game’s business model, having numerous characters addicted to a game very much like The Simpsons: Tapped Out, in addition to Family Guy: The Quest for Stuff.
That said, this is one less Simpsons game on the market, which… basically doesn’t feature any Simpsons games anymore.
So that’s it, after 12 years, so long, good luck?
“I don’t recall saying ‘good luck’.”
Source: IGN