Why reviving the shutteredAnthemis turning out tougher than expected

On January 12, Electronic Arts (EA) pulled the plug on the official servers for Anthem, rendering BioWare's sci-fi multiplayer adventure unplayable for the first time since its rocky debut in 2019. Recently, however, the Anthem community was stirred by a new video that showcased the game partially loading on what seems to be a simulated server environment. The creators of this video and the broader Anthem revival initiative shared their optimism with Ars Technica, expressing hope that they can manipulate EA’s notoriously fickle Frostbite engine to run the game without relying on EA’s servers. However, they also cautioned against the risk of heightened expectations following the proof-of-concept video. "People are getting excited about the video, and naturally, hopes are rising," said project administrator Laurie. "I don’t want to be the one managing the fallout if we can’t make this work." The revival project is primarily organized through a Discord server called The Fort’s Forge, where a small group of volunteer engineers and developers have come together to dissect the game’s unique infrastructure. Laurie explained that they formed the group largely out of frustration towards EA and BioWare after the shutdown was announced in July. Although Laurie had prior experience with the Gundam Evolution revival project Side 7, they knew they would need expertise from those familiar with EA’s Frostbite engine. Fortunately, they attracted the attention of skilled individuals from that specific field without extensive outreach. Among them is Ness199X, a proficient tinkerer with the Frostbite engine, who admitted he had little experience with Anthem before its closure. However, once he learned of the game's impending shutdown from a friend, he felt compelled to help preserve it for future gamers.