Stop Killing Games Has Enough Signatures for UK Debate
The “Stop Killing Games” movement has achieved an important objective by collecting enough signatures to put pressure for new laws in the United Kingdom. This effort, which focuses on closing video games and made unplayable, will finally be seen by the British Parliament.
This initiative began in 2024 when the creator of game content Scott Ross launched the movement. Since then, the Stop Killing Games campaign has obtained strong support and could change the laws of the United Kingdom and the EU. The British petition, which was created to bring this question to the government, targeted 100,000 signatures. Now he has far exceeded this number, with more than 130,000 signatures and still growing.
Reaching 100,000 signatures is a big problem in the United Kingdom, as in the petition system means that the government must consider debating new laws. The objective of this potential law is to prevent game publishers from closing the games that customers have already bought. In case of success, the Stop Killing Games movement could help create stronger legal protections for digital purchases, make sure that buying a game means that you can continue to play it and get closer to having it really, even if the publisher ceases to support its online features.
The main problem that the “Stop Killing Games” movement is fighting is the way publishers sometimes make games unplayable after people bought them. Many more recent games only work if they are connected to online servers. This creates a problem for players because if a business decides to close these servers, the game can no longer be played, even if you paid it.
The petition argues that when the games are sold, they should not have an expiration date, but often, their design means that they stop working when the editor no longer supports them. This is considered a form of planned obsolescence, which hurts buyers who lose access to their purchased product and also makes it much more difficult to preserve games for the future. Currently, the legality of this practice is not clear in many countries, which is why petitions like this exist.
Apart from the United Kingdom, the Stop Killing Games movement is also progressing in the initiative of European citizens. This distinct petition has done even better, collecting more than a million signatures. This European effort is particularly powerful because if it achieves its objective, the European Commission must meet, which is responsible for many countries. There is a good chance that this can lead new laws to protect the rights of consumers to keep their games and help preserve the game.
If a great economy like the European Union transmits laws to preserve digital purchases, it could have a global impact. Due to the operation of the markets, publishers can change their policies worldwide to correspond to these rules, helping players everywhere. Although only certain citizens can sign these petitions, the propagation of awareness is always important for the inhabitants of other countries who wish to support the cause of keeping the playable games.
The British campaign will then focus on the legislative process. Now that the petition has enough signatures, the question will pass to Parliament, where legislators will discuss if new rules are necessary to stop the planned obsolescence in the Games.
Source: British Parliament
