Microsoft to shut down Games for Windows Live Marketplace on August 22

Microsoft’s Games for Windows Live service hasn’t exactly been the most popular one out there. The company has announced that it is shutting down the marketplace for GFWL on August 22. The announcement was made through a post on the Xbox.com support page. According to the post, the closure of the service comes alongside the switch that Microsoft is making from using Microsoft Points for transactions to using real currency.

The limb represents Games for Windows Live, in case the symbolism wasn’t clear enough

“As part of the recent Xbox 360 system update, Microsoft Points will be retired and the Xbox.com PC Marketplace will be closed as of August 22, 2013,” the support notice reads. “We encourage you to spend your Microsoft Points balance prior to this change. Although you will not be able to purchase new games, you can continue to enjoy previously purchased content by downloading it through the Games for Windows Live client software as usual.”

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However, this doesn’t mean that GFWL itself is going away. It only means that the company will no longer be selling games through its digital portal. The service itself will still stay up, so games that use the service, such as Fallout 3, will continue to function as they did before. However, it might not be possible to purchase DLC for games that use GFWL after August 22. Microsoft has stated that to purchase additional content, gamers will have to contact the game’s original publishers. In the Fallout 3 example, this would mean Bethesda. Microsoft has urged users to finish spending their Microsoft Points on the GFWL store if they wish to purchase any more content.