The citizens’ initiative Stop Killing Gameslaunched by videographer Ross Scott after the sudden shutdown of the game’s servers The Crew by Ubisoft, has just reached a decisive milestone. In the lands of Silicon Valley, the bill AB 1921, also called “ Protect Our Games Act “, was approved by the California State Assembly by a comfortable majority of 43 votes to 16. This is a strong signal sent to an industry accustomed to disconnecting its services without notice.
What are the new obligations imposed on publishers?
The law directly addresses the painful reality of purchasing simple ephemeral “user licenses”. For all video games marketed or resold after January 1, 2027publishers will have two major constraints. On the one hand, they will have to provide a notice of at least 60 days before any online service interruption.
On the other hand, and this is the crucial point, they will have to guarantee that buyers maintain a functional access to the title. This guarantee may take the form of a patch hors-ligne or an alternative version. If no such solution is technically or legally possible, the reimbursement will become obligatory for the consumer.
Which games are really affected by this protection?
It is crucial to note the limitations of the text, which does not cover the entire market. The law explicitly excludes several product categories. Titles distributed via subscription services, such as Xbox Game Pass or the PlayStation Pluswhere the player does not technically own the game.
Likewise, the jeux free-to-play and those that are already natively playable offline indefinitely do not fall within its scope. The law therefore specifically targets the model of dematerialized paid game whose playability depends entirely on an online connection. In addition, it will prohibit continuing to sell a security whose servers have already been cut.
What is the future of this law and its potential impact?
The victory is not yet complete, because the legislative process is not over. The text must now be validated by the California Senate before potentially being signed by the governor. Unsurprisingly, the industry lobbythe ESA (Entertainment Software Association), strongly opposes this law. The organization raises the threat of security risks and violation of the intellectual property if companies were forced to open source the code of their abandoned servers.
Conversely, organizations like the Video Game History Foundation strongly support the initiative. They remind us that video games are a cultural heritage in the same way as cinema or literature, and cannot simply be erased for reasons of profitability. If the law is passed, it could force allAmerican industry to review its policy and create a major precedent in the rest of the world.
