Recurring Datastore Instability and Major Outages Spark Widespread Data Loss and Developer Frustration
The platform's core infrastructure is facing scrutiny due to persistent datastore instability, culminating in a significant outage on January 6, 2026, that rendered many popular experiences unplayable and caused widespread player progress loss. During the hours-long incident, players were unable to load their saved data, and developers could not save or publish their work, leading to dramatic drops in concurrent player counts for even top-tier games. This event is not isolated, but rather part of a chronic pattern of instability, with notable incidents of data integrity problems also recorded in May 2021, October 2023, and August 2025. Developers consistently report frustratingly slow data loading times, inexplicable failed save operations, and unhelpful 'InternalServerError' messages. This recurring issue highlights a critical and unresolved vulnerability in the platform's cloud services, which are fundamental for saving player progress, inventory, and game states. The persistent instability erodes player confidence and developer trust, as the risk of data loss discourages investment in complex, data-driven experiences and demonstrates the profound consequences of such outages on the platform's entire ecosystem.