Disney Shutting Down Marvel: Avengers Alliance At The End Of September

Avengers, disassemble! Disney has announced that it's shutting down the superhero-themed social network game at the end of the month.

Disney made the announcement on its help site and the game's Facebook page, stating that Marvel: Avengers Alliance and Marvel: Avengers Alliance 2 are shutting down all platforms. The game has already been pulled from iOS and Google Play, but those who already have a copy can keep fighting until September 30. Disney's help site says that it won't be refunding any purchases made via microtransaction, but players can continue using whatever items they purchased until the game closes. As of today no additional purchases can be made.

Fans of the game's Facebook iteration are particularly upset about the news, with comment after comment calling on Disney to keep the game up sans updates or unlock all the content until the game is shut down.

Update: Disney has passed along a statement explaining its initial goals for the series, as well as its reasoning for shutting down the game:

"For more than four years, Marvel: Avengers Alliance has been one of DCPI's most successful games created for Facebook, and our hope was to continue the series with Marvel: Avengers Alliance 2, but the title has not met our performance expectations. As a result we have decided to focus our efforts on new game experiences." 

[Source: Disney (1)(2)]

Our Take
While Disney is giving players a month's notice to use whatever items they spent money on, the outcry from fans is understandable. The idea that a game you spent time and money on could just disappear one day is still a new and frustrating phenomenon for many players.