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Ember Sword, one of the most-hyped blockchain-based MMORPGs, is now officially closed. The developer of the game, Bright Star Studios, has announced this news. After spending seven years in development, this game entered its early access last December. Within a few weeks, it has attracted a crowd of blockchain gamers.
Despite raising over US$200 million through virtual land sales and investor funding, the game failed to secure the necessary resources to survive. As a result, the official announcement mentioned that all the game servers went offline on May 21, 2025, which marks the end of this flagship Web3 gaming.
Ember Sword was initially hyped to bring a new dawn to the MMORPG genre by integrating blockchain technology. This game entered its development stage in 2018. It was a blockchain-based game with its own $EMBER token, based on the Ethereum blockchain. The aim was to make players use these tokens for purchasing and upgrading in-game items, ranging from cosmetics to equipment.
In 2020, Bright Star Studios raised US$700,000 in pre-seed funding for the game development. In 2021, Bright Star raised US$2 million in venture capital. Later, it sold virtual plots of land in the Solarwood Nation, one of the game’s worlds, and received more than US$200 million in pledges from approximately 35,000 applicants.
The economy of Ember Sword was built around its in-game cryptocurrency, EMBER, that players used to use for trading lands, cosmetics, and other collectibles. However, the twist emerged after the early access began. The token’s value witnessed a gradual drop that reached more than 99% since its early access began. This marked the failure of EMBER to win the confidence of investors. These factors combinedly contributed to its downfall.
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The announcement of the shutdown of the game came abruptly. The official notice stated, “Despite strong early support, promising early-access player stats, and a passionate community, we were ultimately unable to secure the funding needed to continue.” The team expressed that they have explored every other way, but nothing worked for them. So, the final option they had was to shut down the game.
The team thanked the community for being supportive and concluded the notice with a heartfelt message for the community, mentioning, “This isn't the ending any of us wanted. But we want to sincerely thank you for being here, for believing in this vision, and for helping make Ember Sword something we'll never forget.”
The sudden closing made players feel betrayed. Players who have invested in virtual lands of the game are now left with assets with no functional value. Therefore, players have expressed their frustration about the game, blaming the lack of transparency regarding the funds raised.
Game shutdown isn’t an alien incident in the gaming world. However, the closure of Ember Sword tells a cautionary tale of the future of Web3 gaming projects that fail to meet the expectations and sustainable funding. Despite its innovative vision and substantial financial backing, this project witnessed a pathetic downfall.
As the Web3 Gaming industry evolves, developers and investors must re-evaluate the feasibility of integrating cryptocurrency and NFTs into gaming to create a more sustainable ecosystem.
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