First European government backs Stop Killing Games. Polish Ministry of Digital Affairs supports the campaign and the unfair Steam prices

The Stop Killing Games initiative ultimately gathered more than the one million signatures required to move forward. Since not all signatures are valid, they are currently undergoing verification before the proposal can be submitted to the European Commission. If approved, the process could lead to a public hearing, presentations in Parliament, and an official EU response within six months. Meanwhile, the Vice President of the European Parliament has already voiced his backing, and the Polish government is actively engaged as well.

Community pressure works. Stop Killing Games gets government support in Poland

Poland’s Ministry of Digital Affairs is now backing the Stop Killing Games campaign and standing with players over growing frustration with unfair Steam pricing in the country (via GryOnline). It’s the first time the citizen-led movement has gotten support from a whole government ministry in Europe – not just from a single MEP.

Two weeks ago, representatives from the gaming community (tvgry journalist Szymon Rusnarczyk, Legal Tech Institute lawyer Marcin Barczyk, and Polish SKG organizer Krzysztof Gapys) met with Deputy Minister Dariusz Standerski. They called the meeting a real breakthrough after months of campaigning by players and media.

The ministry was clear: it’s backing both causes. Standerski promised to raise the issues with Poland’s competition authority (UOKiK), the Ministry of Culture, and even Members of the European Parliament as part of the upcoming EU Digital Fairness Act. For campaigners, this was their first direct contact with a high-level government official. “The minister was enthusiastic about both initiatives and confirmed his support,” said Rusnarczyk, calling the meeting a “major step forward” for the community and a potential path toward real legal action instead of just petitions.

Deputy Minister Dariusz StanderskiSource: gov.pl

Importantly, the deputy minister himself admitted that Polish gamers often get a raw deal from Steam’s currency conversion, with prices in zloty sometimes higher than in euros. He said he’s interested in looking into why this keeps happening, something Polish players have been complaining about for a while.

At the same time, SKG organizers say their campaign is still rolling across Europe. In three EU countries, the petition signatures have already been checked and came back with very few mistakes, raising hopes that the initiative will keep building momentum across the EU.

Back in early July, game publishers reacted after the SKG hit the 1 million signature mark, strongly opposing the campaign. A few weeks later, an anonymous complaint was filed accusing SKG of breaking EU rules. Things are definitely heating up on both sides, and with the Polish ministry now stepping in, it’s already being seen as a symbolic win for gamers, showing that community pressure can really push an issue onto the political agenda.

• Poland
• social campaigns
• The European Union