Bandai Namco says no refunds as it kills off anime MMO Blue Protocol, but it'll give you 5,000 funbucks a month until it dies

Bandai Namco has announced that the Japanese version of its live service anime MMO Blue Protocol will be ending on January 18, 2025. After discussions with Amazon Games, the release of the title in Europe and the US will also be cancelled.

"We know there has been great anticipation for Blue Protocol since the first announcement of the game," the game's management team says in a blog post. "We wanted to deliver an experience that is like stepping into the world of anime, and we have been challenging ourselves to create a world where each and every player can enjoy adventures as the main character of the anime. We have worked hard to prepare for the release. However, we have come to the conclusion that it will not be possible to provide a service that satisfies all of you."

As you would expect, fans of the game are not happy. "Dude, what the fuck," one player says. "You made me wait three years and had me hyped as this was my most anticipated game, drop the Japanese version and then say global is coming later, and then you cancel it??"

While it definitely sucks for all the prospective players who won't have had a chance to actually see what Blue Protocol is like for themselves, I think the people who have been done the dirtiest are all of those players who have spent bucket loads of money on this game.

In another announcement video, some developers go over the final roadmap for Blue Protocol and what the next few months before closure will look like. Unfortunately, players will not be able to get refunds for the Rose Orbs currency, and you will no longer be able to buy more of the currency. But Bandai Namco will be giving out 5,000 Rose Orbs every month from September until January, so you can still get cosmetics, just for the sake of having cool stuff. Players will also be able to get the newly released battle pass for free.

While it's definitely a shame to see Blue Protocol getting cancelled, there have been a couple of red flags over the last year or so. Blue Protocol's executive producer Sokichi Shimooka even admitted in an interview with Famitsu that Bandai Namco had to divert resources towards figuring out why so many players were dropping off (via Siliconera).

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Elie is a news writer with an unhealthy love of horror games—even though their greatest fear is being chased. When they're not screaming or hiding, there's a good chance you'll find them testing their metal in metroidvanias or just admiring their Pokemon TCG collection. Elie has previously worked at TechRadar Gaming as a staff writer and studied at JOMEC in International Journalism and Documentaries – spending their free time filming short docs about Smash Bros. or any indie game that crossed their path.