Skip to main content

Long read: How TikTok's most intriguing geolocator makes a story out of a game

Where in the world is Josemonkey?

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.

Ouya's game store closes for good next month

R.I.APP.

It's the end of the line for Ouya, the Android game console which sprung into life during the Kickstarter boom.

Four years after the final Ouya console dropped off the end of the production line, the platform's game store is also being switched off.

Razer, which now owns Ouya, is binning off the Forge TV and MadCatz Mojo game stores at the same time - on 25th June 2019.

Ouya owners are being encouraged to make any final purchases and ensure all games they want to keep are downloaded.

If you do still have any funds on your account you might as well spend them. An FAQ on the shutdown has confirmed there will be no way of withdrawing the money otherwise.

"You will continue to have access to games that have been downloaded," Razer's FAQ states, though any games which require a "purchase validation upon launch" will not. "Contact the game developer for confirmation," Razer concludes.

Released in 2013 after raising $8.5m via Kickstarter, the Ouya was one of crowdfunding's highest-profile success stories - with some analysts questioning whether the upstart console challenger would disrupt the console market forever. But it was not to be.

After shipping enough consoles to fulfil its Kickstarter audience, Ouya struggled to find interest anywhere else. Within two years, it had burnt through a further $25m from various investors and was languishing in debt. It was at this point Razer swooped in to buy Ouya's software assets - while ending hardware manufacture of the console itself.

Farewell, Ouya.

Read this next