Action RPGDauntlessis shutting down in a matter of months. First released in 2019 after a beta the year prior,Dauntlesswas a free-to-play game that borrowed quite a bit from a familiar gameplay formula. Players could choose from a variety of different weapons, each with its own unique fighting style, and fight a variety of monsters both big and small. It was often compared to a much simpler,“low-stakes” version ofMonster Hunter, including inScreen Rant’s review.
However, as announced on the officialDauntlessX (formerly Twitter) page today,Dauntlessis shutting down on June 10, 2025. It will no longer receive any further content or performance updates, says a representative of Phoenix Labs (also known forthe cozy gameFae Farm) via the social media post. As it’s an online-only game, it’ll be entirely unavailable to play after 11:45 PM PST on that day.
ARPG Dauntless Is Getting Shut Down This May
Update From Phoenix Labs Confirms Dauntless' Closure
Dauntless' shutdown isn’t terribly surprisingin and of itself. It always struggled to find a foothold, especially compared to the much more establishedMonster Hunter, which had recently releasedthe belovedIceborneDLCfor its highly successful gameMonster Hunter World.
However, it always had a small but devoted fanbase, andto shut down the game with so little notice is odd, to say the least. Phoenix Labs states no reason for the closure in its announcement, repeating the same notice almost verbatim - just without the statement of gratitude - in aSteam Communitypost. But with a little digging, we can likely surmise what’s really going on withDauntless' sudden shutdown.
What Happened To Dauntless?
The beginning of the end forDauntlesscame in December 2024, when the Awakening update toDauntlesschanged many elements of the game’s progression. Craftable weapons were removed, and largely replaced with a microtransaction-based system that allowed players to pay a premium to access a better arsenal. To make matters worse,many players found that this update effectively reset their progress, taking away items they’d spent hours grinding for.
A month later,a spate of layoffs hitPhoenix Games, according to its LinkedIn page, affecting “the majority of the studio.” This followed a series of layoffs the previous May, which affected over 100 employees of the company. To me, though,it seems likeDauntless' shutdown is related, more than anything, to Phoenix Games' impending shutdown- it doesn’t seem like the studio has many employees left at all.
But it’s still a shame to see its developers and remaining players left in the lurch. I played a little bit ofDauntlessat the beginning.I’ve always been a fan ofMonster Hunter, so I was definitely part of the target audience. I enjoyed my first couple of hunts, butwhat turned me off the game, even in those early days, was its use of microtransactions. Back then, they weren’t so bad - mostly cosmetic. I just didn’t want to see the Hunt Pass waved in my face every time I logged in.
10 Best Games Like Monster Hunter
Monster Hunter is one of the most beloved franchises in gaming history, which is why it’s understandable that fans would want games just like it.
But it sounds like this issue only got worse over the years. With the Awakening update, it introduced some pay-to-win elements, which was the last straw for its most devoted fans. With its player base dwindling, and its workforce greatly diminished, Phoenix Labs' choice to shut downDauntlessonly makes sense.
