On February 29, also known as Leap Day, players of Theatrhythm Final Bar Line, a rhythm game based on the Final Fantasy series, encountered a bug that prevented the game from connecting to servers. This issue was not unique to Theatrhythm, as players of an EA racing game also experienced a similar problem, requiring them to change the date on their consoles to access the game.
Leap Day occurs once every four years, adding an extra day to the calendar year. While Leap Days are generally uneventful, they can cause disruptions in technology systems that are not programmed to account for this additional day. This phenomenon has been documented online by users who have experienced glitches and malfunctions on Leap Days in the past.
One Twitter user, @Regulus_Tera, brought attention to the bug affecting Theatrhythm Final Bar Line on Leap Day. A user on the Theatrhythm subreddit reported that their save file appeared to be corrupted when attempting to launch the game. However, they discovered that changing the date on their console resolved the issue, allowing the game to function properly.
Similarly, players of EA’s WRC, a rallying racing game, encountered crashes upon starting the game on Leap Day. The official EA support account acknowledged the Leap Day bug and provided instructions for players to work around the issue by adjusting their console clock to skip over the extra day.
While these Leap Day bugs may seem trivial, they highlight the potential challenges that arise when software systems are not designed to accommodate unusual calendar events. As technology becomes increasingly interconnected and reliant on internet connectivity, addressing these seemingly minor bugs becomes crucial to prevent more significant disruptions in the future. The possibility of essential services malfunctioning due to oversight in accounting for Leap Day underscores the importance of thorough testing and preparation in software development.
