EU Law Proposal for MMO Game Preservation Needs One Million Signatures

Ubisoft's decision to shut down The Crew has ignited a significant movement among European gamers, leading to a petition aimed at preventing similar closures of multiplayer games. Delve into the details of the "Stop Killing Games" initiative and its mission to safeguard digital purchases.

EU Gamers Rally to 'Stop Killing Games'

'Stop Killing Games' Petition Seeks One Million Signatures in One Year

A burgeoning movement of European gamers is rallying around a crucial citizen’s initiative to protect digital purchases. The "Stop Killing Games" petition is urging the European Union to introduce legislation that would stop game publishers from rendering games unplayable once support ends.

Ross Scott, a key figure behind the campaign, is optimistic about its success, emphasizing that "the initiative aligns with existing consumer policies." While the proposed law would only apply within Europe, Scott hopes its adoption in such a major market could inspire similar measures worldwide, either through legal frameworks or industry standards.

Achieving legal status will be no small feat. The campaign must successfully navigate the "European Citizen’s Initiative" process, which demands one million signatures from across various European countries to propose legislation. Eligibility is simple; signatories must be European citizens of voting age, which differs by country.

Launched at the beginning of August, the petition has already amassed 183,593 signatures. Although the target is still distant, the campaign has a full year to rally the required support.

The Initiative Aims to Hold Publishers Accountable for Server Shutdowns

The Crew, an online-only racing game released in 2014, became the catalyst for this movement when Ubisoft abruptly ended its online services in March of this year, effectively nullifying the investments of 12 million players.

The stark truth is that when servers for online-only games shut down, countless hours of player investment vanish. Despite being only halfway through 2024, games such as SYNCED and NEXON’s Warhaven have already been slated for closure, leaving players without recourse for their purchases.

"It’s akin to planned obsolescence," Ross Scott declared in a YouTube video. "Publishers are destroying games they’ve sold to you while keeping your money." He likened this to the silent film era, when studios "destroyed their films after screenings to salvage the silver content," resulting in the loss of most films from that time.

Scott's proposal is straightforward: developers and publishers should "leave the game in a playable state at the time of shutdown." The initiative specifies that the proposed law would mandate "publishers that sell or license video games to consumers in the European Union (or related features and assets sold for videogames they operate) to maintain said videogames in a functional (playable) state." The exact method for achieving this would be left to the discretion of the publishers.

The initiative also plans to address free-to-play games with microtransactions. Scott explains, "if you've bought a microtransaction as a product, and then the game becomes unplayable, you've essentially lost your purchase."

This approach has precedent. For instance, Knockout City was discontinued in June 2023 but later relaunched as a free-to-play standalone game with private server support, making all items and cosmetics freely available and allowing players to host their own servers.

However, the initiative does not require publishers to:

⚫︎ Relinquish intellectual property rights
⚫︎ Release source code
⚫︎ Provide endless support
⚫︎ Host servers
⚫︎ Assume liability for customer actions

To support the cause, visit the "Stop Killing Games" website and sign the petition. Remember, you can only sign once, and any errors will invalidate your signature. The website offers country-specific guidance to help avoid such issues.

Ross Scott stressed in his video that even those outside Europe can contribute by spreading the word about the initiative. The ultimate aim is to create "a ripple effect in the videogame industry to prevent publishers from destroying more games."