Defiance MMO Could Be Making a Comeback

The video game company Fawkes has announced its plan to revive the MMO Defiance and attempt to relaunch the IP this year. Fawkes boasts the motto “Breathing life to old world and preserving their legacy, together,” which resonates with the company’s current endeavor to revive Defiance. Previously, Fawkes had a hand in resurrecting Shaiya and Last Chaos, while also retaining the rights to Desert Operations and Wargame 1942.

The sprawling title was an MMO third-person shooter developed by Trion Worlds for PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360, and later received the newer Defiance 2025 version for PC, Xbox One, and PS4. Defiance became a transmedia project, similar to the upcoming Oz: Adventures game developed by former id Software level designer American McGee, when the MMO was designed to connect with the 2013 Syfy television show of the same name, which was later canceled in 2015. After its initial launch in the same year, the Defiance MMO switched to a free-to-play model in 2014, but its owner, Gamigo, shut down the servers seven years later in 2021.

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Announced in a blog post, Fawkes confirmed its plans to obtain the license to Defiance’s worldwide development and publishing rights, and shared the first step in the game’s comeback would be a PC relaunch in April 2025. “Our relaunch is designed to be a homecoming… We want you to return to a familiar world that still holds countless memories, and to create new ones,” Fawkes explained, and noted if the re-launch was successful, the company would “explore the possibility” of returning the IP to consoles. Defiance joined some of the best free-to-play MMOs on the market, joining the likes of Runescape, Guild Wars 2, and Star Wars: The Old Republic, and Fawkes recognizes the project is close to gamers’ hearts despite the television show’s cancellation and the game’s eventual shutdown.

Fawkes Announces It’s Reviving the MMO Defiance

Fawkes shares a real passion for video game projects and the players, similar to Nightdive Studios’ work on The Thing remaster, Turok, and System Shock, which follows the developer’s mission to revive abandonedware games. In an attempt to rebuild Defiance with the community or Ark Hunters, Fawkes explained, “We will start small…bringing the changes that had an impact and leaving behind the ones that didn’t. We are ready to re-build Defiance together with you.” Additionally, the company welcomed fans to follow the Fawkes Discord channel to stay up to date with the revival.

Defiance saw players transform into Ark Hunters, navigating a hostile Earth after the alien Votans arrived on the planet and initiated war with humanity. The game is well-remembered for its gripping battles, proving its place alongside some of the best post-apocalyptic games of all time, and players can explore the San Francisco Bay Area to complete missions and take part in challenges with other Ark Hunters.

Game

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Defiance

Third-Person Shooter

Action

Released

April 2, 2013

Developer(s)

Trion Worlds

Publisher(s)

Trion Worlds