EA Shuts Down Madden NFL 21: Online Play Over
Gamers feel the loss as another title bites the dust amid EA’s ongoing closures.
Electronic Arts (EA) continues its series of game shutdowns, leaving fans disappointed. As of today, Madden NFL 21 is slated to close on June 30, 2025, meaning its online multiplayer features will no longer be available.
End of the Line for Achievements
Starting today, some achievements and trophies within the game are already impossible to unlock. According to reports, players can no longer earn Head-to-Head (win a Head to Head game in an online league)
and Bragging Rights (win the Super Bowl in an online league)
.
So, for players who haven’t yet achieved 100% completion, that milestone will forever remain out of reach after June 30. While Madden NFL 21 wasn’t the most celebrated in the series, dedicated players will need to find a new game.
Successor Also Facing Shutdown
It’s probably best not to jump to Madden NFL 22, because EA intends to shut down that successor title in October 2025. This is part of a larger trend: EA has announced plans to discontinue 14 games this year.
The majority of these closures are already complete, including the recent loss of Madden NFL 21. As gaming industry analyst Daniel Ahmad notes, game shutdowns are becoming more common as companies focus on live service titles and managing server costs (Twitter, 2022).
Another round of EA games are being sunset.
EA is sunsetting online services for a number of older games, including:
– Crysis 3
– Dante's Inferno
– Dead Space 2
– Dragon Age Origins
– Fifa 12/13/14
– Mass Effect 3
– Mirror's Edge Catalyst
– Need for Speed (Multiple)
– Sims 3
– And MoreEnd dates in 2023. pic.twitter.com/RSuOnwM6Ez
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) December 8, 2022
List of EA Game Closures in 2025
Here’s the complete list of EA games shutting down in 2025:
- Rory McIlroy PGA Tour – January 16
- The Simpsons: Tapped Out – January 24
- Blood & Glory Immortals – January 29
- Contract Killer: Sniper – January 29
- Deer Hunter Classic – January 29
- Dino Hunter: Deadly Shores – January 29
- Eternity Warriors 4 – January 29
- Frontline Commando 2 – January 29
- Frontline Commando: D-Day – January 29
- UFC 3 – February 17
- EA Sports UFC Mobile 2 – March 13
- NCAA 14 – March 13
- Madden NFL 21 – June 30
- Madden NFL 22 – October 20
Impact on Players
Some of the titles that have shut down in 2025 are now either completely inaccessible, or have only lost their online multiplayer functionality. Madden NFL 22 will have its online features blocked later this year.
The good news? A new Madden NFL game is expected this summer, continuing the annual release cycle from 2023, 2024, and 2025.
