Knockout City leaving EA, going free-to-play

Velan Studios is taking Knockout City free-to-play and will publish the game independently, following an initial publishing agreement with Electronic Arts.

In a blog post, the studio announced Knockout City will be free-to-play from the start of its sixth season, due this spring. Players who had previously bought the title will be compensated with in-game rewards.

Velan Studios also announced that it was going to self-publish going forward, while acknowledging EA's role in making the game an early success.

"We couldn't have introduced Knockout City to the world without the incredible support of EA Originals, but now as we switch to free-to-play, the natural next step is for us to take over publishing responsibilities and work even more closely with our community," the post read.

"We have exciting plans for Knockout City, and bringing publishing in-house will allow us to fully realise our vision for the long-term future of this game."

For now, Knockout City players will still require an EA account to be able to play the game, with more info to be announced at a later date.

Knockout City released in May 2021, and launched day-and-date on Game Pass. By June, the title had passed the five million players mark as it temporarily went free-to-play.