Over the last year, the Stop Killing Games initiative has gained major traction. It argues that developers and publishers shouldn't be able to make games unplayable after consumers have purchased them, much like what happened with The Crew, which served as the catalyst for the movement.
Quickly gaining one million signatures, Stop Killing Games began to be taken seriously. It became eligible for debate in the EU in January, and in April, the campaign's organizer was invited to speak in the EU Parliament.
Alongside the EU Parliament, the initiative has reached the US, with the California State Assembly voting to advance the act to the State Senate, moving it one step closer to becoming a reality.
The Protect Our Games Act would require developers and publishers to provide at least 60 days' notice before shutting down servers or making a service change that would render a game unplayable. It would also prevent companies from completely deleting the game, requiring them to provide a way for buyers to continue using it independently. It would only affect games released on or after January 1, 2027, and wouldn't include free-to-play titles, but it's a huge step forward in the fight for video game...
