
While it's not uncommon for a game publisher to withdraw support for the online portion of a game due to server cost issues, it is unheard of for a company to flat-out cancel offline use of a downloaded game at an arbitrary date. But that is exactly what EA plans to do with its iOS game ROCK BAND on May 31st. Despite this death sentence, amazingly, the game is still up for sale on the app store.
The company has not commented on the issue, but has updated it's product FAQ:
So what do you think Temp? Is this an isolated incident from an ethically bankrupt company or possibly a growing trend as the game industry continues to shift towards digital downloads?I've heard ROCK BAND will not be available after May 31. Is this true?
Yes, we will be suspending support of ROCK BAND after May 31 and focusing resources on other EA titles. We thank everyone for playing ROCK BAND, and we encourage you to explore some of the other exciting titles in our mobile line-up.
Can I still play ROCK BAND if I've already downloaded it?
The ROCK BAND servers will be live through May 31, 2012. If you have already downloaded the game, you can continue to play until then.