Defiance Is Being Revived Thanks To Indie Game Studio Fawkes

It seems an MMO from yesteryear is being brought back from the grave, as indie game studio Fawkes has announced that it will be bringing back Trion's old cross-media MMO, Defiance. 

The news comes via Fawkes themselves, the studio announced (H/T MOP) that it's bringing back the long-dead MMO, citing the passionate fans over on the Defiance subreddit as well as through video reviews of the old MMO on YouTube. As a result, Fawkes announced that it has acquired the publishing rights to both Defiance's 2013 launch as well as Defiance 2050 across all platforms. 

The plan according to the post is to re-launch the old 2013 version of the MMO on PC this April, with consoles and a re-release of Defiance 2050 should all go well following the revival. 

"We’re excited to announce that we have acquired the publishing rights for both Defiance 2013 and Defiance 2050 in all platforms. Our first step is a relaunch of the original 2013 version on PC, set for release in April 2025. This is your chance to dive back into a world where every battle, every Arkfall, and every moment shared with fellow players is a testament to the game’s enduring legacy."

Fawkes states that the revival is being done "step by step," starting small with the PC version of Defiance (2013). The team is looking for feedback from players throughout this whole process, stating that the team wants "every update, every new event, and ever epic in-game moment" to be inspired by the playerbase's feedback and passion for the title.

"Your opinions and experiences have always been at the heart of what makes Defiance special. We will start small, with a very clean state of the game, with the design and drop we understood you like, and grow from there together with you, bringing the changes that had an impact and leaving behind the ones that didn’t. We are ready to re-build Defiance together with you, Arkhunters."

For those unfamiliar with Defiance and its history, the MMO was originally published by Trion and then eventually through MMO publisher Gamigo during its lifetime. What made Defiance unique was the strategy of releasing the MMO alongside a television show on SyFy, and while the MMO outlived the television show by six years, it was an interesting idea that never really felt like it fully came together.

It's going to be interesting to see how this all comes together and what the appetite for the MMO is when the April 2025 re-release comes knocking. I'll be honest, I didn't really have Defiance being revived on my 2025 MMO bingo card, but this is a nice surprise. Defiance was the last MMO I bought a physical edition for on PC, and it holds some nostalgia as my dad and I would watch the TV show together for a bit there. I'm rooting for this one.