Bless Online's Western Servers Following Japan's Lead, Shutting Down Sept. 9

A few days ago, we learned that Bless Online's Japanese servers would be shutting down on Aug. 8 and wondered how much longer the Western version of the game might have, considering its low player count. Actually, let's be real -- we've been wondering that for the better part of a year, and now it's official: Bless Online will be shutting down in the West on Sept. 9.

Neowiz announced the impending closure on the Bless Steam page, saying that "the Steam online service for Bless Online will close on September 9th, 2019 00:00." The only way to play Bless right now is via Steam, so if you're really optimistic, you could interpret that as meaning that there will be another way to play in the future, such as via a standalone launcher or something like the Epic Games Store. Doing so, however, would no doubt alienate everyone who's played via Steam and further erode the player base of a game that's already down to nearly nothing.

There's no word on what the future of the Xbox One-based Bless Unleashed will be, though that project seems to be continuing apace. A new dev diary about dragons went live just yesterday, and earlier today, fans were prompted to sign up for a newsletter that would give them a chance to participate in the next beta.

If you're still playing Bless on Steam, you can enjoy the game's final three months with a host of bonuses, including lower prices for in-game items, no dungeon entry limits, bonuses to XP and crafting, and more. These will go into effect, as well as the prohibition of further cash sales, following the June 10 maintenance. Also, if you're still playing Bless on Steam, leave a comment below. We'd really like to know why.