Ross Scott, known for his YouTube channel “Accursed Farms” and the “Freeman's Mind” series, has launched a global initiative called “Stop Killing Games.” Its main purpose is to raise awareness and stop publishers from destroying video games after ending support.
Ross Scott
Scott announced his “Stop Killing Games” campaign in a new video. He said more games now rely on servers managed by publishers, so more titles than ever before are at risk of becoming unplayable if companies decide to abandon them. It pointed out.
Here's Scott's rationale for launching the initiative, explaining why he thinks players should care about publishers shutting down video games.
“Video games are mainly just entertainment and are of no great importance, but When a seller destroys a product someone has already paid for, it represents a fundamental attack on consumer rights and even on the very concept of ownership.. If this practice is not stopped, it could be codified into law and spread over time to other more important products, such as agricultural equipment, educational products, and medical equipment. It's important [that] Consumers maintain a basic level of rights Don't indulge in predatory behavior. Furthermore, video games are unique creative works. The concept of destroying all existing copies of books, songs, movies, etc. is considered a cultural loss to society. Although a lesser-recognized medium, video games require basic protection against the complete and intentional destruction of many of their creations.”
He has been researching the issue for some time, but the starting point for his Stop Killing Games campaign was the closure of The Crew. Back in December, Ubisoft announced that the game's servers would be shut down on April 1st. With 12 million players worldwide, this could raise awareness of the broader issue and perhaps cause governments around the world to consider this practice in the industry.
“If we could find just one major country to punish this practice, everything could be solved,” Scott explained. “If a company knows that a game needs to be kept in one country, it might as well make it a global policy. Because we're here. We could really end this with just one win.”
Moreover, France, where Ubisoft is headquartered, has strong consumer protection laws, so if the initiative is successful it could start a chain of events and set a precedent.
In his video, Scott also shared a list of games that have been discontinued by various publishers over the years. Some of them can be seen in the screenshot below.
Image credit: Cursed Farm
To unite gamers and take action, Scott launched the Stop Killing Games website. His website has a detailed FAQ and is translated into 15 languages. Anyone who wants to participate can select their country and see a list of available options. For example, even if you don't own The Crew, you can sign an official citizen initiative that will be sent directly to the government. This should be more effective than web petitions on platforms like Change.org.
Options available to gamers based in the EU
Scott emphasized that the publisher doesn't want to support the game forever. Instead, he asks people to continue playing the game. He points to examples of companies that don't prevent you from playing online-only titles even when their servers shut down, such as Sony allowing users to play Gran Turismo Sport's single-player mode or Velan Studios allowing users to run private servers. I gave an example.
Game preservation is a serious issue for the industry. For example, only 13.27% of classic video games published in the United States are currently available for purchase, according to a study conducted by the Video Game History Foundation.
Scott concludes in the video that to his knowledge, “no one has ever challenged the legality of game destruction, and certainly no one has attempted it on this scale.” Ta.
