This one slipped under our radar, but it’s worth catching up on: the Stop Killing Games initiative had its day in front of the European Parliament on April 16, and by all accounts, it went about as well as the movement could have hoped.
Stop Killing Games was launched in April 2024 by YouTuber Ross Scott. The core of the argument is straightforward: when publishers shut down server-dependent games, they effectively destroy every copy ever sold, leaving players with nothing to show for their purchase. The initiative crossed one million signatures last year and has been picking up industry support ever since.
Scott presented the case to the European Parliament’s committee alongside organizer Moritz Katzner, with Concord serving as one of the primary examples. The argument was simple: publishers disable every copy of a game so it can never be played again. Stop Killing Games consultant Daniel Ondruska framed the movement’s ask as a modest one, not a radical position, just a call for laws that stop games from being destroyed outright.
The committee’s response was striking. Committee chairwoman Anna Cavazzini thanked the founders and confirmed the initiative has support from every political group in the Parliament. Vice chair Nils Ušakovs agreed that the movement raises a valid concern for millions of European digital consumers. European Commission director Giuseppe Abbamonte pledged alongside Ušakovs to examine the copyright regulations that currently allow publishers to pull the plug on games, with a response promised by July.
Ross Scott described the outcome as close to a perfect result. Katzner was more measured, noting there is still a long road ahead before any of this translates into real policy.
The July deadline for a response is notable. It doesn’t mean legislation, but it does mean the conversation is now formally on the Parliament’s docket in a way it wasn’t before. For anyone who bought Anthem, Concord, or any of the other games that have since become glorified paperweights, that’s at least something.
Source: Stop Killing Games
