Update of 06/30/2025:
Just over a year after the project was put on hold, the team has made significant progress and announced a public beta for summer 2025. This beta will allow players to test elite mode combat and compete against other players in the community.
- Account system:
- An account system has been set up on the Arena Returns website. Players are invited to create an account to log in to the game during the beta.
- It is important to note that Ankama identifiers must not be used for security reasons and to respect the conditions imposed by Ankama.
- Implemented features:
- Matchmaking, placement phases, map movement, spell use, damage calculation, healing, AP PM boosts, movement spells, summoning, and trigger systems to manage special effects are all functional.
- The team creator, clans, achievements, start-of-game tutorial, e-mails, exchanges and friends list are also operational.
The project team “needs your love of gaming! Don’t hesitate to share the project with your friends, your communities, etc.”
Original article:
Following the success of Wakfu: Les Gardiens Ashes, a new initiative is born: the resurrection of Dofus Arena, a pure PvP MMORPG developed by Ankama. Although this game probably didn’t reach the heights in terms of statistics and players, some feel it deserves a second chance. But why? For the nostalgia, the freedom to fight with strategy, and the fun of the gameplay.
Released in closed beta in 2006 and then officially in 2010, Dofus Arena closed its doors in 2014. Its turn-based gameplay offered a different perspective on combat from Ankama’s other MMOs, Dofus and Wakfu, allowing players to control multiple characters. Emphasis was also placed on building teams with different classes.
Ankama has officially given the go-ahead to continue with the project, on condition that it remains non-profit, as with Wakfu: Les Gardiens Ashes.
In 2022, the Arena Returns initiative was born. On their discord, the creators declared: “Our goal is to offer a free and open Arena Confrontation server, for nostalgic players (of which we are a part), to be able to replay this game that has marked us so much. “
Two years later, in March 2024, the project appears to be on “extended pause”.
However, despite the initial enthusiasm, the project seems to have suffered a considerable slowdown over the years. In March 2024, the team behind Arena Returns declared that the project was on “extended hiatus”, with little prospect of resumption in the short term. One member stressed, “It’s highly unlikely that we’ll have the time resources to relaunch it in the coming months.”
Team members also explained that their professional and personal lives were taking precedence over the project, confirming that it was currently in a state of suspension: “Let’s be clear and direct: the project is at best on pause, at worst abandoned. For the time being, and for the past few months, most of the team members have been unable to find the time to advance the project. As we said at the outset, we all have busy lives, and the Arena Returns project being a hobby, it necessarily takes second place to our respective jobs and personal lives.”
“Arena Returns” is not definitively buried. Members are still encouraging fans to remain hopeful, and even if the original project seems to be dormant, alternative projects are beginning to emerge. The project’s Discord remains active, nurturing the hope of a Dofus Arena resurrection.
If you’d like to follow the project’s progress or make a contribution, the Discord server is always open:
