Riot Games is ending active development on 2XKO, its League of Legends-themed tag fighting game, only eight months after its official launch. A final content patch is planned for October, while active development will stop in December 2026.
The servers will remain online, and purchases made in-game before 20 August will be refunded. In its announcement, Riot explained that updates had not produced a meaningful, sustained improvement in the game’s trajectory. The company said continuing development in its current form was no longer possible.
The decision has angered and disappointed players who expected a much longer future for a fighting game backed by the studio behind one of the world’s biggest competitive games. For more arcade and fighting-game coverage, visit the RETROCADE Arcade Blog.
Players did not expect such an early finish
Reactions have ranged from resignation to outright criticism, but disappointment has been the dominant response. Fighting game professional Diaphone joked that he had quit his job to play 2XKO and hoped Riot would refund him as well. He had recently left full-time employment to concentrate on streaming and competing.
Riot had already laid off half of the game’s staff in February, prompting concern about its prospects. Even so, many players did not expect active development to end less than a year after launch.
Streamer Ludwig criticised Riot’s leadership, arguing that the company appeared to demand enormous immediate returns rather than invest in community growth or allow a game time to build an audience. Riot’s decision to end active development on the digital card game Legends of Runeterra in January 2024 also made some players wary of 2XKO’s future.
Other commentators compared the situation with Multiversus, arguing that the platform fighter received more support despite not having the same direct connection to an established global game. Those comparisons have added to the frustration surrounding Riot’s decision.
Why did 2XKO struggle?
First revealed in 2019 under the name Project L, 2XKO was presented as a potential turning point for the fighting game genre. Its free-to-play structure and Riot’s financial backing created high expectations. Riot had acquired Radiant Entertainment in 2016 to work on a fighting game, but the finished title did not officially launch until 2026.
The lengthy wait was followed by a launch roster of just 10 characters, a small number for a tag-based fighter. Players also criticised the monetisation, including a launch skin package priced at roughly $100 worth of in-game currency.
The game’s title was another frequent target. Some players felt that leaving League of Legends out of the name reduced its clarity, while others believed the marketing was too limited. Despite its connection to Riot’s enormously popular MOBA, 2XKO was seen by some as receiving little promotion through that broader audience.
At its core, 2XKO was designed for committed fighting-game players. Its high damage and difficult-to-defend mix-ups could make matches overwhelming for newcomers. Tag fighters are already a specialised part of the genre, and the lack of substantial single-player content made the game a harder recommendation for beginners.
A simplified control option was intended to make the game more approachable, but Riot said dedicated tag-fighter players embraced 2XKO while many other fighting-game fans struggled to find reasons to stay. That gap between specialist enthusiasm and broader retention appears to have been central to the game’s problems.
A dedicated audience was still visible
The cancellation is complicated by evidence that 2XKO had a committed competitive following. At this year’s Evo Las Vegas, it ranked third for registrations, finishing ahead of longer-supported games such as Guilty Gear Strive.
That competitive interest was not enough to meet Riot’s financial expectations. The company said 2XKO cost substantially more to operate than it generated.
Players have also raised broader concerns about what the result could mean for the fighting game community. A discussion on the r/Fighters subreddit argued that investors might point to the financial struggles of 2XKO and Invincible VS—whose developer reportedly laid off about 75 per cent of its staff—as reasons to avoid backing new fighting-game projects.
Memes have provided some relief, but the underlying concern remains serious: a game can attract a visible competitive audience and still fail to reach the commercial scale required by its publisher.
What happens next?
2XKO will receive its final content patch in October, followed by the end of active development in December. Its servers are scheduled to stay online, and eligible purchases made before 20 August will be refunded.
The fighting game genre itself is unlikely to disappear, with established series such as Street Fighter and Tekken continuing to anchor the market. However, 2XKO’s outcome may make publishers more cautious about funding ambitious new fighting-game properties—particularly free-to-play projects that require a large, active community to remain viable.
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