The Switch version of Alien: Fireteam Elite has been permanently shut down, leaving players who purchased the game unable to play it.
Developed by Cold Iron Studios, this action game was initially released in August 2021 on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC, before being ported to the Switch platform in April 2023.
However, since the Switch hardware lacks the performance to run the game natively, it was released as a cloud version, with the standard edition priced at $29.99 and the Ultimate Edition, which includes the base game and DLC, priced at $59.99.
Earlier this year, the game was removed from the eShop, and players received a notification stating that the game's cloud servers would be shut down on August 5.
Now that this has happened, it means the entire game—although it remains listed in digital stores on other platforms and can still be played fully offline even after delisting—is no longer playable in any way on the Switch, as it was only available via cloud gaming streaming.
The shutdown of Alien: Fireteam Elite once again highlights the challenges of preserving video games. With physical discs being phased out and console hardware prices soaring, some industry insiders, including the CEO of Take-Two Interactive, have predicted that cloud-based game streaming will grow as an alternative. However, Alien: Fireteam Elite seems to have proven them wrong.
Both Xbox and PlayStation offer cloud game streaming services for Game Pass and PlayStation Plus subscribers as an alternative to downloading and playing games locally. Xbox has also begun testing free game streaming, though it plays ads at the start of games to cover costs.
Meanwhile, services like Amazon Luna and Netflix feature their own exclusive titles that can only be played via cloud streaming, meaning these games could theoretically be removed at any time, becoming "lost media" that is no longer preserved.