Riot Halts Development on 2XKO, Ending Support for the Struggling Fighting Game
Riot Games has announced that it will cease active development on its fighting game, 2XKO. The studio revealed plans to wrap up the remaining work-in-progress content and officially end development by December.
In a statement, Riot shared, “Over the last few months, we’ve been closely monitoring 2XKO’s trajectory, and the data has been clear: while many players have tried the game and there’s a vibrant community that plays daily, we haven’t seen enough players stick around to create a sustainable future.”
Last month at Evo 2026, Riot introduced two new characters for 2XKO, where the game was featured in the tournament’s official lineup, ranking as the third-most popular title, following Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8.
Riot confirmed that 2XKO will remain playable “beyond 2026” on its available platforms. “Throughout the rest of 2026, we’ll be rolling out content, feature improvements, and two new champions (Lux and Samira), with plans to deliver our final bug fix patch in December,” the developer explained. “After that, servers will stay online to support multiplayer, while offline play will remain unaffected. We’ll provide advance notice if anything changes.”
After assessing the game’s performance in terms of revenue, player retention, and engagement, Riot concluded that despite significant updates, there was “no meaningful, sustained change in 2XKO’s trajectory; only a fraction of what would be needed for sustainability. It became clear that continuing active development as we are today was not feasible.”
The developer emphasized, “To be clear: we would have continued development if we saw a viable future, but 2XKO costs us significantly more to operate than it generates, and engagement has remained relatively flat despite our larger updates.”
Riot will also halt sales of KO Points, the game’s premium currency, and unlock all champions.
Players who made purchases in 2XKO on or before August 20 will receive refunds. For PC users, all KO Points and 2XKO Starter Edition purchases made before that date will be refunded to the original payment method. Most refunds are expected to be processed within two weeks, with all PC refunds completed by November 2026. Players are thanked for their patience during this process.
For PlayStation and Xbox users, refunds for KO Points and 2XKO Starter Edition purchases will be handled through the respective platforms. Customer support may reach out to confirm payment details in the coming weeks.
As revealed at Evo 2026, Lux, the Lady of Luminosity, will join the roster in September with patch 1.3.1. Riot describes her as a “shoto-inspired character with a straightforward kit, harnessing the power of light to dazzle her foes.” In October, the final champion, Samira, the Desert Rose, will be introduced, characterized as a bounty hunter who combines swordplay and dual pistols for a stylish combat experience.
A final patch is scheduled for December, focusing on bug fixes rather than introducing major new content.
The 2XKO servers will remain active, and the game will continue to be available for free download on PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X.
2XKO was released in October 2025 after nearly a decade of development and testing, featuring a selection of champions from League of Legends in 2v2 tag battles. Ultimately, the game will include 17 playable characters when active development concludes.
