Inside the Stop Killing Games debate, Pirate Software apologizes to Ross Scott but Penguinz0 calls out the hypocrisy

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The “End Game Violence” initiative is nearing its conclusion, and it seems unlikely that the target number of signatures will be reached. Launched by Ross Scott last year, the campaign has roughly one month remaining, yet despite nearly a year’s effort, it has only collected slightly more than half the necessary signatures. There are those who believe that Jason “Pirate Software” Thor Hall may have significantly impacted the campaign’s difficulties, and recently he expressed his thoughts on the matter.

What is the Stop Killing Games campaign

As a passionate gamer, I found myself in disbelief when Ubisoft decided to take down The Crew’s servers back in 2024, effectively removing the game from online platforms. Being an online-only title without any offline alternative, this move left me, and many others like me, unable to enjoy the game anymore. To add insult to injury, they were still selling it at full price in 2023! This unfair treatment sparked the formation of the Stop Kicking Games (SKG) initiative, a movement dedicated to standing up for gamers’ rights and advocating for fair practices within the gaming industry.

SKG’s aim is to keep games playable, including those that publishers stop supporting, by advocating for initiatives like making server code open-source and incorporating offline modes. However, Jason “Pirate Software” has been a vocal critic of this campaign, airing his concerns about it in his YouTube videos: Stop Killing Games and Stop Killing Games – 2. Due to his harsh criticism, many people have responded by accusing him of disseminating misleading information.

SKG vs. Pirate Software

Lately, Ross Scott shared a video summarizing the entire campaign and addressing Jason’s remarks. In this video, Ross expressed that Jason’s comments likely influenced public sentiment and may have contributed to the demise of the campaign.

Jason was criticized by penguinz0 (Cr1TiKaL), who highlighted that the points Jason had presented didn’t align well with SKG’s actual objectives. On June 25th, Pirate Software addressed this matter in his X posts, discussing his own response and Ross’s video as well.

Essentially, Jason maintains his viewpoint that the campaign is detrimental in the long run for developers of online games such as MMOs. However, he acknowledged his mistake in reacting too strongly towards Ross, admitting it was a personal matter and not appropriate. He expressed his comments were made in a moment of heated discussion and has since apologized. Furthermore, Jason wants to emphasize that individuals should think independently when forming their opinions and he’s not trying to sway anyone to take sides.

My opinion on this matter doesn’t automatically make it your truth. Don’t jump on the bandwagon just because I expressed my thoughts online. Similarly, avoid mindlessly criticizing me based on someone else’s words. Take the time to watch my content and understand the initiative yourself. Exercise critical thinking and don’t rely solely on others’ opinions.

Yesterday, I caught up on penguinz0’s latest video, where he tackled a deleted tweet from Pirate Software. In it, Jason accused Ross’s community as toxic and hateful. Penguinz0 highlighted this as quite hypocritical, given some of the harsh and unprofessional statements Pirate Software has made about Ross and the entire movement. Although Jason has issued an apology for his remarks, penguinz0 underscored that it doesn’t rectify the bigger problem of misrepresentation.

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2025-06-27 14:02