That’s it for Pokémon Unite. Tencent‘s once-popular MOBA is being switched off in March 2027. The Pokémon Company announced the news today, saying: “We regret to inform you that service for Pokémon Unite will end on Tuesday, March 23, 2027, at 00:00 UTC.”
By way of thanking people for playing, a “special event” runs from now until service-end, which brings a number of additions to the game. Among them is an intriguing Library feature that lets you continue using the game, to a degree, after its end.
The Library allows you to access the Practice Area of Pokémon Unite to view your earned items – Holowear, cosmetics, Pokémon, and achievements – so your efforts in the game won’t entirely disappear. It’ll be available starting 12th November. But note that you’ll need to use the Library before the 23rd March 2007 switch-off date to get the data Library needs to show your achievements, and because that data’s stored locally, you may lose the data if you change device.
“Library data generally cannot be transferred when changing devices,” the Pokémon website said. “If the game or library data is deleted or otherwise lost after service ends, it may not be recoverable. Support for the library feature will not be available after service ends.”
It seems like a thoughtful way to sunset a game, allowing players a record of their progress and some interactivity, instead of yanking everything away entirely.
Pokémon Unite launched in 2021, first on Switch and then on mobile devices. It’s a free-to-play MOBA, essentially, where two teams of five battle it out in an arena with various routes through it and control points to secure and, as Pokémon battle, they earn experience and level up. Pokémon Unite had already been shut down in some European countries because of loot box gambling concerns.
