Spec Ops: The Linethe intense and dark shooter from 2012, will no longer be available in digital stores, a 2K spokesperson confirmed in a statement.
The spokesperson told Polygon that the game will no longer be available online “due to the expiration of several partnership licenses related to the game.” People who currently own the game can still play it.
“2K would like to thank our community of players for supporting the game, and we look forward to bringing you more offerings from our label this year and beyond,” the spokesperson said.
The message was first discovered by Wario64who noticed that Spec Ops: The Line had disappeared from digital storefronts like Steam and Fanatical. The store listing doesn’t show up in Steam search, and when you go to the store page there’s a note saying “Spec Ops: The Line is no longer available in the Steam store.”
Currently, you can only purchase the game digitally via the Xbox Store for Xbox One and Xbox Series X, as well as third-party stores like GOG. We have asked Microsoft for comment on whether this listing will remain in place in the future.
The game’s director and designer, Cory Davis, Posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the move made no sense.
“Makes no sense – especially because of the themes it portrays Spec Ops: The Line are more relevant today than ever before,” he wrote. “Why is that happend?”
Games are often taken off the market due to licensing agreements, especially older titles. For example the original Alan Wake was delisted in 2017 due to expired music licenses, but was able to be reinstated. Remedy Entertainment said on its X account that this was thanks in part to Microsoft partners renegotiating the agreements.
Similar, Spec Ops: The Line featured music from several well-known artists including Alice in Chains and Deep Purple. There was even a recording of Jimi Hendrix playing “The Star-Spangled Banner” over the main menu.
Spec Ops: The Line was developed by Yager Development and originally released for PlayStation 3, Windows PC and Xbox 360 and was available through digital storefronts on these platforms. Unfortunately, the news that it won’t be available digitally is a huge blow to the game’s availability. While the critical reception was positive, Spec Ops: The Line didn’t initially sell well, but has since become a cult classic as it subverted the violence that gamers saw in games like Call of Duty back in the day. Nevertheless, poor sales meant that the Spec Ops franchise failed to make any progress.
