America's Army, The Government's Video Game Used For Recruiting, Is Shutting Down
The official video game of the US Army, used in part for recruiting efforts, is coming to a close. America's Army: Proving Grounds will shut down on May 5, after eight years of ongoing support, the Army has announced in a post on the game's forums.
In its announcement, the Army said the free-to-play game was the first large-scale use of video game technology for recruitment and communication when it launched years ago. The franchise has three main installments and reached more than 20 million players; the latest version, Proving Grounds, was released in 2013.
But the game has now «fulfilled its mission» and is winding down. Going forward, the Army said it will shift its focus to «other new and innovative ways» to communicate and recruit would-be soldiers.
«None of this would have been possible without our players, so thank you for your dedication and continued support throughout these years,» the Army said. «We look forward to what the future could hold for AA, and encourage you to stay tuned for future announcements on the series.»
America's Army is available on PS4 and PC through Steam, but not Xbox. On May 5, official servers for the game will be shut down, ending all online services. The game will be removed from PSN that day, and online play and player stats will be unavailable; offline features will still be supported. On Steam, official servers are closing, though anyone who owns a private server or the Mission Editor can keep playing after the end-date. Offline features for the Steam edition will also be supported.
Additionally, the America's Army website is closing, so players won't be able to log in, check their stats, or access other content.
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