Ubisoft Shuts Down XDefiant; Executive Producer Mark Rubin Retires from Gaming Industry

Ubisoft has officially pulled the plug on XDefiant, its free-to-play first-person shooter that launched less than a year ago to early promise—but quickly lost traction. The game's servers were taken offline yesterday, marking a premature end to a title once billed as a "Call of Duty Killer."

The shutdown also comes with a more personal farewell: Mark Rubin, the game's executive producer and a 20-year veteran of the industry, has announced his retirement from game development.

XDefiant’s Rise and Fall

Launched in May 2024, XDefiant drew significant attention for its fast-paced, arena-style combat and focus on faction-based abilities. Built by a team of shooter veterans and spearheaded by Rubin—who previously worked at Activision on the Call of Duty franchise—the game seemed poised for success.

But despite a strong start, reaching 1 million unique players in 2.5 hours & 11 million in a month, interest rapidly declined. Player counts fell dramatically by the end of 2024, and updates failed to retain a consistent audience.

While Rubin had reassured fans constantly that XDefiant was “not dying,” internal struggles, content delays, and stiff competition in the FPS market appeared to seal the game's fate.

Ubisoft announced the shutdown shortly after that, with Rubin now claiming that all staff previously working on XDefiant have either been reassigned or dismissed.

Mark Rubin Bids Farewell to Game Development

Following the shutdown, Rubin took to social media with a heartfelt post reflecting on his journey—and announcing his departure from the industry altogether.

“As for me, I’ve decided to leave the industry and spend more time with my family,” Rubin wrote. “So unfortunately you won’t be hearing about me making another game.”

In his message, Rubin praised the XDefiant development team, highlighting the quality of the maps and the core gameplay they crafted under challenging circumstances.

“The cards were heavily stacked against you, but you managed to produce a really fun and terrific game,” he added. “I think our maps were some of the best maps ever made for an arcade shooter.”

Rubin's departure marks the end of an era, particularly for fans who followed his efforts to revive the spirit of classic, skill-based shooters.

With XDefiant now shelved, it's unclear how Ubisoft will proceed in the competitive shooter space. The company is still actively supporting other live-service titles, but XDefiant’s short lifespan may prompt a more cautious approach moving forward.