Game publishers responded after the Stop Killing Games campaign crossed the 1 million signature mark

The Stop Killing Games (SKG) campaign has less than a month left to make its target of 1 million signatures. Technically, it already crossed that milestone a few days ago, but not every signature will count after validation. Still, since they’ve likely hit their goal, the campaign is ready to move forward, and now some European game publisher reps have released a statement in response.

They appreciate the passion, but they’re not on board

The past couple of weeks have been pretty intense. It looked like the SKG campaign wasn’t going to reach its target as the deadline approached. But once more YouTubers got involved and the word spread like crazy (plus the whole dispute with Jason “Pirate Software” Thor Hall gave it even more attention), the petition blew up. It ended up getting to 1 million mark just in few days, which means the initiative will go to the next stage.

That’s when Video Games Europe released a statement, a lobbying group for game publishers operating in Europe, including Ubisoft, Electronic Arts, Activision/Blizzard, Epic Games, Nintendo, Sega, Riot Games, Microsoft and more.

Source: Video Games Europe

Not long after the statement was issued, Ross Scott posted another video in response.

Video Games Europe says shutting down online services isn’t easy. It’s complicated and sometimes necessary when a game isn’t making money anymore. But the SKG campaign isn’t trying to stop shutdowns; it’s about making sure companies act responsibly.

VGE also claims the industry gives fair notice before shutdowns. However, as Ross points out, in The Crew’s case, Ubisoft likely broke the law by giving just three months’ notice before pulling the plug.

They also argue that letting fans run private servers isn’t always realistic because of legal risks like data protection, illegal content, and moderation. But Ross explains that companies could easily add disclaimers to their EULAs, and plenty of abandoned games already exist where players are simply left to figure things out on their own.

Another VGE argument is that the campaign’s proposals would make online-only games too expensive to develop. Ross counters this by saying most of the cost comes from things like payments, anti-cheat, and analytics – which wouldn’t be needed in a simplified “end-of-life” version. He also notes many publishers already have test environments that would make it easier anyway.

In short, the statement clearly opposes the SKG campaign. It could be a reminder that gathering the required numbers of signatures is just a beginning of the fight against “killing” video games. So now, Ross encourages all EU citizens to contact their Members of European Parliament, particularly those on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee, to inform them about the initiative.

The Crew

December 2, 2014

Rate It!

• Overview
• Guide
• Review

• Ubisoft
• scandals and controversies
• social campaigns
• shutdown of servers
• The Crew (brand)