The Stop Killing Games campaign presented its case to the European Parliament, receiving a favorable response from officials. Committee vice chair Nils Ušakovs highlighted concerns over games becoming unplayable after purchase due to discontinued services. Officials pledged further investigation into consumer protections for digital games.
The Stop Killing Games initiative, aimed at preventing publishers from rendering purchased games unplayable, held a 45-minute hearing in the European Parliament. Ross Scott, the campaign's founder, explained that a game is 'destroyed' when a publisher 'permanently disables all copies of it that have been sold so no one can ever play them again.' The petition gathered over 1 million signatures from European citizens under the 'Stop Destroying Games' project, as reported by Eurogamer.net on April 17, 2026. Scott cited examples including Concord, The Crew—which sparked the movement—Highguard, and Anthem, noting that 93.5% of 400 reviewed titles were disabled upon ending support. Scott emphasized the lack of consumer protections, comparing it to a publisher reclaiming a bought book or abruptly ending an insurance policy while keeping payment. 'This behaviour would be outrageous in other industries,' he said, arguing that such games operate 'similar to scams' by not disclosing end dates, which would hurt sales due to longevity expectations. Committee vice chair Nils Ušakovs summarized the hearing positively: 'This initiative highlights a real concern for millions and, as far as we understand from the presentations, probably hundreds of millions of European citizens, ensuring that digital purchases remain functional and that consumer rights are respected.' Chairs committed to ongoing work on the issue. European Commission director Giuseppe Abbamonte, a copyright lawyer, promised to review inadequate copyright regulations and report findings in July. Scott welcomed practical solutions that allow publishers to end support responsibly without changing business models.
