Forgotten Runiverse, the fantasy MMORPG built on Ethereum’s Ronin scaling network, is going offline “until further notice” after the team behind the game said maintaining the live service is no longer financially viable.
In a message posted to X on Jan. 27, 2026, the developers—part of the broader Forgotten Runes project—said they had “faced a number of overwhelming challenges” in recent months. While the team stressed they were not abandoning the project, they wrote that continuing to run the game “in its current state” no longer made financial sense. “The Runiverse isn’t gone, merely resting,” the team added.
The open-world game, which grew out of the Ethereum NFT collection Forgotten Runes Wizard’s Cult, launched globally last year after a public stress test that famously invited players to “crash its servers.” The browser-based, free-to-play title will have its servers taken offline on Tuesday, the team said. All account and progress data will be preserved while the developers evaluate potential ways forward; they promised to share updates if and when they have them.
Forgotten Runiverse’s shutdown continues a broader pullback in crypto gaming, where projects have struggled with funding and player adoption. Last year several blockchain titles—including Deadrop, Nyan Heroes, and Pirate Nation—shuttered, and the trend appears to be carrying into 2026. Reactions on social media were mixed, ranging from disappointment to praise for the team’s work.
The project had attracted funding from figures including Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and had at one point been approved for development on major consoles including Nintendo, PlayStation, and Xbox. A representative for Forgotten Runiverse did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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