The beloved mobile game Konosuba: Fantastic Days is officially shutting down on January 30, 2025. Sumzap, the game’s developer, announced this decision, marking a bittersweet farewell for fans who’ve enjoyed its regular updates and collaborations with other popular isekai franchises.
Sumzap confirmed that they’ll continue rolling out content related to the main story and special events until the game’s final closure at 3:00 PM JST on January 30. This ending marks the close of a chapter for fans who followed Konosuba: Fantastic Days for its lively storytelling and fan-favorite crossover events with other isekai franchises.
In a final farewell to players, Sumzap also revealed plans to create an offline version of Konosuba: Fantastic Days, allowing fans to continue enjoying parts of the game even after its shutdown, a rare and welcome gesture in the mobile gaming world.
However, this offline version is only confirmed for Japanese players, leaving international fans uncertain. The English version, managed by Sesisoft, has not confirmed any plans for a similar offline option, leaving its dedicated global community hoping for similar news.
Modern gaming’s shift toward online-only play reflects deeper issues in the industry. Corporate game companies, both in the West and Japan are increasingly focused on pushing “diverse” and “inclusive” narratives, often criticized as forced and insincere. Female representation has been eradicated, with attractive female characters being minimized or removed under pressures by progressive agendas, leading to an emphasis on characters perceived as overly masculine.
This shift is guided by consultation firms like Sweet Baby Inc., which claims to ensure games align with “authentic” cultural portrayals, often focusing on Black and LGBT representation.
Some recent games, like Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows, have even stirred controversy by misrepresenting Japanese culture and rewriting history to serve diversity agendas, most notably by fictionalizing the story of Yasuke, a historical Black figure, as a samurai. This politicization has left many players disillusioned, pushing them toward indie titles, older games, or mobile gacha games as the only forms of entertainment left to escape the bullshit.
However, gacha games come with their own problems. Though initially free, they use predatory monetization strategies, tempting players to spend on characters, costumes, and time-saving items. Worse, these games are usually online-only, meaning that when they shut down, players lose both their progress and any money they invested.
This trend of shutting down online-only games has fueled initiatives like Ross Scott’s “Stop Killing Games,” which aims to rally European gamers to advocate for laws protecting game preservation. With enough support, this initiative could lead to legislation requiring companies to offer offline versions of mobile games like Konosuba: Fantastic Days when services end.
This would allow players to keep enjoying their games and retain their purchases, even if in a limited format.
Konosuba: Fantastic Days isn’t the only popular mobile game set for closure. At the end of September, it was announced that Toaru Majutsu no Index: Imaginary Fest, based on A Certain Magical Index, will terminate its service on December 2, 2024. Square Enix has also taken a similar approach, announcing the shutdown of numerous mobile games between December 2023 and January 2024.
Originally launched in Japan in February 2020, Konosuba: Fantastic Days expanded globally in August 2021, initially managed by Nexon and later by Sesisoft for international players.
Over the years, Konosuba: Fantastic Days captivated players with its immersive, voice-acted original story, allowing fans to assemble teams of beloved characters and dive into battles that reflect the series’ unique mix of comedy and adventure. This faithful adaptation made the game a standout in mobile gaming, offering an experience that brought the KonoSuba world to life.
Like many Japanese manga and light novel properties, KonoSuba is ideal for video game adaptations, as seen with titles like Sword Art Online, Goblin Slayer: Another Adventurer – Nightmare Feast, and Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation – Quest of Memories.
Rich fantasy settings, deep lore, and character-driven humor provide the perfect foundation for full-scale games. However, large-scale adaptations are rare, with companies like Kadokawa hesitating to greenlight such projects globally, despite recent releases like KONOSUBA: Love For These Clothes of Desire! and the fan-made Revival of Beldia impressing audiences.
The announcement of Konosuba: Fantastic Days‘ closure has sparked a mix of gratitude and nostalgia from fans across social media and forums. Many recognize the challenges of sustaining a mobile game in an intensely competitive market, where microtransactions and player growth are essential for survival. Even successful gacha games face inevitable declines as player interest wanes over time.
The decision to release an offline version is a positive, and I hope it may set a precedent for future mobile games. This offline option lets fans continue exploring their favorite characters and moments in KonoSuba, preserving a beloved game experience even after its official shutdown.
