In March 2024, Ubisoft made a controversial decision: they shut down the servers for The Crew, a racing game first released in 2014. Even though players had paid for the game, it suddenly became completely unplayable, no offline mode, no single-player option, nothing. The game simply died. For many gamers, this moment sparked a realization that they didn’t truly own the games they purchased. This event triggered the launch of the Stop Killing Games (SKG) campaign by YouTuber Ross Scott, also known as Accursed Farms. His campaign demanded that governments step in to protect digital ownership and ensure that when online services end, players can still access and enjoy the games they bought. The campaign has since gained massive traction across the UK and the European Union, with over 1.2 million verified signatures in Europe and more than 100,000 in the UK, prompting formal government responses. However, while SKG raises critical issues about consumer rights and the cultural preservation of games, critics like indie developer Jason “Thor” Hall argue that its demands are too broad and could backfire on the very industry it seeks to protect. This debate reveals a tension between idealism and practicality, and the need to find a middle ground that honors both gamers and developers.
The main argument behind Stop Killing Games is grounded in consumer rights and digital preservation. In most other industries, when someone buys a product, they own it. But in gaming, especially in the digital era, publishers can pull the plug at any time, leaving customers with nothing. The shutdown of The Crew is not an isolated case; other games have quietly vanished in similar fashion. SKG calls for laws requiring companies to prepare for this reality by offering players a way to access the games they paid for after official support ends. These could be offline versions, open-source code releases, or sanctioned community servers. The idea isn’t to force companies to support games forever but to prevent total erasure. This message resonated with millions. High-profile YouTubers like PewDiePie voiced their support, saying it “ties in perfectly with ownership over the games we buy.” Other creators, including Asmongold, Cr1TiKaL, and Louis Rossmann, have joined in. The overwhelming support underscores a growing awareness that games are not just entertainment, they are part of digital culture and history. To allow them to vanish entirely without recourse is to accept the slow deletion of modern art.
But not everyone agrees with how SKG wants to achieve this goal. Indie developer Jason “Thor” Hall, known online as Pirate Software, publicly criticized the campaign. Thor argues that the petition’s demands are unrealistic, especially for small developers. Maintaining a game’s playability after servers go offline isn’t a simple task, it can require removing licensed code, rewriting parts of the engine, or stripping out third-party integrations. For big studios, this is already expensive. For indie teams, it might be impossible. Thor also believes the petition’s wording is dangerously vague. It seems to demand that all games remain playable forever, which could discourage developers from creating online or live-service games at all. Publishers have echoed these concerns. An EU-based organization representing video game studios warned that SKG’s proposed legal requirements could make it prohibitively expensive to build certain types of games. While Thor later apologized for the tone of his critique, he stuck to his stance that the petition, as it stands, would do more harm than good. This pushback shows that while the issue of game preservation is important, enforcing it through broad legal mandates could introduce unintended consequences that might hurt creativity and innovation in the industry.
However, the debate doesn’t have to be a binary choice between doing nothing or regulating everything. A more balanced approach is possible, one that preserves games without punishing developers. In response to the backlash over The Crew, Ubisoft added offline support to The Crew 2 and Motorfest. This kind of voluntary action shows that companies can be pressured to protect their games without needing government mandates. Another middle-ground solution is to legally permit players or communities to run legacy servers once official support ends. This model has worked in the past. For example, Star Wars Galaxies, after being shut down by its publisher, lives on today through community-hosted servers that were built using archived code. These efforts keep the spirit of a game alive without burdening its original creators. Developers could also include clearer end-of-life terms in their End User License Agreements (EULAs), allowing modders or archivists to take over once a game is no longer supported. These steps would provide gamers with continuity, encourage preservation, and avoid the heavy-handedness of rigid regulation.
Stop Killing Games has brought overdue attention to a serious flaw in the gaming world: digital purchases can vanish without a trace. It rightly calls for reforms that protect consumer rights and safeguard games as cultural artifacts. But in its current form, it risks going too far, too fast. Forcing perpetual playability on all developers could stunt the creative freedom of studios and developers, particularly small teams. What’s needed now are practical frameworks that promote cooperation between publishers, developers, and preservationists. That means encouraging offline modes, community-run servers, and legal pathways for digital preservation. The debate sparked by SKG is necessary. But if the gaming community wants lasting change, it must aim for balance, one that protects our digital history without destroying the creative future of the industry.
References
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