Some Anthem fans are working on bringing the online multiplayer game back to life almost immediately after it shut down. The BioWare title was an infamous disappointment, debuting to mixed reviews and complaints about repetitive missions and technical issues despite considerable pre-release hype. Still, some Anthem players think the game deserves a second chance, and they're trying to give it one.
EA first revealed Anthem at E3 2017, showing off an impressive gameplay demo to bring BioWare back into the public's good graces after the disappointment of Mass Effect: Andromeda. Unfortunately, what players saw in the demo and what they experienced for themselves were two different things. After a lackluster 2019 release and continued poor sales performance, EA shut down Anthem's servers on January 12, 2026, but it now seems like that may not be the end of the story.
Why Did Anthem Fail
Interest in Anthem is increasing following the announcement of its 2026 sunset; however, it's unlikely to change anything.
Anthem Fans Think It's "The Perfect Time" to Resurrect the Game's Servers
In a January 17 YouTube video, user And799 showed off a proof-of-concept of them being able to get some Anthem features up and running. The fan made it clear that the video didn't represent any actual server revival progress, but others in the comments were impressed by and supportive of the project. Several offered to help follow through with the POC and attempt to bring the game back online, though whether they have or how far they've gotten remains unclear at this point. This effort may come as a surprise to some, given how unpopular the live-service title was, but hundreds of Anthem fans signed a petition to keep it alive when EA first announced its shutdown, so there's at least a small cohort of dedicated players who'd like to preserve the game.
Anthem did not have an offline mode, so without active servers, the game won't run. However, And799 managed to get it functioning, at least in part, by modding it to run via client-as-a-server architecture, which removes the need for a dedicated external host. According to fans working on the project, it still needs a lot of work to make this approach deliver an experience even close to what Anthem offered while it was still active, but the progress in such short time is impressive. It's also likely far more cost-effective than the $10 million Anthem revival plan that former BioWare executive producer Mark Darrah has laid out.
It's unclear if And799 and the other users helping will be able to fully resurrect Anthem, but this is not the first time fans have attempted to bring back dead live-service games. In late 2025, a group of modders brought Concord back to life by reverse-engineering the ill-fated hero shooter to run on fan-made servers. The Frankensteined Concord did not run quite as well as its original state, but it was technically playable, showcasing the potential for dedicated fans to breathe new life into games companies have abandoned. As cancellations and shutdowns rise, efforts like these may become increasingly common, whether a way for fans to enjoy these games or merely for historical preservation.
The movement to prevent live-service shutdowns has picked up significant steam in recent years. The Stop Killing Games petition in the EU has gained over 1.4 million signatures, enough to bring it before the European Parliament, though its chances of getting passed are dubious. Supporters of the movement assert that taking servers down or not offering an offline option hurts consumers, as it means paying customers can no longer use the media they have purchased. There's also an argument to be made about art preservation. However, others point to the fact that maintaining servers is expensive, so it may not make sense for companies to continually invest in IP that does not financially justify it. While those arguments await legal proceedings, it may be up to fans to keep games like Anthem alive.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 61 /100 Critics Rec: 13%
- Released
- February 22, 2019
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Alcohol Reference, Language, Mild Blood, Use of Tobacco, Violence
- Developer(s)
- BioWare
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
