Stop Killing Games fails to secure EU law despite 1.3M signatures

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The ‘Stop Killing Games‘ campaign suffered a significant defeat in Europe. The European Commission has decided not to create laws that would force video game publishers to ensure older games remain playable.

The “Stop Destroying Videogames” initiative, formally presented to the EU, argues that game publishers shouldn’t be allowed to make games unusable after they stop providing official updates, particularly for games that were originally sold as finished products.

The initiative gathered over 1.2 million confirmed signatures in January, which meant the European Commission had to officially review it. It was submitted to the Commission in February, discussed at a European Parliament hearing in April, and then debated by the full Parliament in May.

The European Commission has responded to the “Stop Destroying Videogames” petition. While they won’t be creating new laws, they will start discussions with both gamers and the video game industry to find better ways to handle old or unwanted games.

— Digital EU 🇪🇺 (@DigitalEU) June 16, 2026

EU rejects Stop Killing Games’ key demand

On June 16th, the Commission officially stated it won’t require game publishers to ensure their games remain playable after sales end. They explained they can’t create a legal rule forcing them to do so.

The Commission announced it will start talks by late 2026 with gaming companies and customers to create a set of guidelines for handling games when they are no longer being used.

So, I was following this petition to legally require companies to keep older games running, and the Commission basically said it’s not gonna happen. They think forcing them to do that would be too much. Their reasoning? It messes with copyright stuff, protects their secret business plans, could get expensive for publishers, and they worry about security risks if games aren’t updated anymore. Basically, they don’t want to create a legal headache over keeping old titles playable.

The rules of conduct could be improved by clearly showing when games might be removed from sale, and by encouraging game companies to work with museums and other organizations to keep older games available. However, these rules wouldn’t force companies to offer updates without an internet connection, tools for running private game servers, or other ways for players to keep playing after the company stops supporting a game.

The Commission also pointed out that current EU consumer laws already offer some protection. These laws require companies to be clear about things like how long contracts last, how to cancel them, and whether customers can get their money back if a service stops unexpectedly or doesn’t meet their expectations.

So, I just read that Ubisoft is finally offering refunds for The Crew after the servers went down and made the game totally unplayable. Apparently, a French consumer group, UFC-Que Choisir, took them to court over it. Ubisoft’s been saying we only rented the game, not actually bought it, which is kinda messed up. But the consumer group thinks Ubisoft tricked us about how long we’d be able to play, and I have to say, I’m leaning towards agreeing with them. Glad they’re doing the right thing now, though!

The ‘Stop Killing Games’ campaign did get the issue discussed within the European Union, but the Commission’s reaction wasn’t what campaigners hoped for. This means publishers aren’t yet legally required across the EU to ensure players can still access games they’ve bought, even after official support has ended.

Stop Killing Games says the fight “will not be the end”

Despite the setback, Stop Killing Games has said it is not ending its push for legislation.

Following the Commission’s decision, the Stop Killing Games team stated they weren’t surprised by the outcome and had anticipated it. They are now focusing their efforts on getting Stop Killing Games included as an amendment to the Digital Fairness Act by members of the European Parliament.

The group stated they’re ready to proceed even without a decision from the Commission, echoing previous remarks made by Ross Scott, the creator of Accursed Farms.

We anticipated this outcome and are ready to proceed. That’s why we’re moving ahead with our proposed changes – known as #StopKillingGames – to the Digital Fairness Act. As @accursedfarms previously noted, we can do this even without a decision from the Commission.

— Stop Killing Games Official (@StopKilingGames) June 16, 2026

This response repeats what the account said on June 13th: that the Commission’s decision wasn’t final, and that things were moving forward in California and the European Parliament.

Stop Killing Games stated they believed they could pass laws on this issue regardless of the Commission’s approval, and that EU legislation should proceed either way.

The campaign team believes they have their strongest chance yet of success. They thanked the Commission for challenging them to keep improving and avoid becoming complacent.

This decision by the EU is a significant setback for the initial goal of the European Citizens’ Initiative launched by Stop Killing Games, but it doesn’t completely halt their work. They now seem to be concentrating on impacting future EU laws related to digital consumers instead of trying to get the Commission to act directly.

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2026-06-16 19:50