Skip to main content PC Gamer THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON PC GAMES Search PC Gamer View Profile Movies & TV Gaming Industry PC Gaming Show Newsletter Signup Community Guidelines Affiliate Links Meet the team About PC Gamer PC Gamer Magazine Subscription Why subscribe? Subscribe to the world's #1 PC gaming mag Try a single issue or save on a subscription Issues delivered straight to your door or device From£35.99View Early Prime Day Deals Essential Hardware PC Gaming Show Dune: Awakening Recommended reading Gaming Industry The 'Stop Killing Games' initiative is close to its final deadline, and after that, its leader is understandably done: 'Either the frog hops out of the pot, or it's dead' Gaming Industry Stop Killing Games surges past its goals, but a possible signature spoofing campaign could cause trouble: 'This is not a Change.org petition. This is a government process' Ubisoft's defense against The Crew lawsuit doubles down on a point we've heard many times before: You don't actually own your games Developer of 'non-consensual sex' game withdraws it from Steam after it's banned in the UK, Canada, and Australia: 'We don't intend to fight the whole world' Netherlands takes Sony to court over digital-only walled garden allegedly costing 1.7m citizens 435 million euros since 2013 After a decade of development, Roboquest's developer is calling time on its roguelite shooter: 'There's no way we can continue to provide content for players with over 1,000 hours of gameplay' Baldur's Gate Larian honcho Swen 'The Hammer' Vincke takes a new victory lap on 'high-profile people' who say singleplayer is dead: 'We've proven with BG3 that you can put in a pretty high budget and expect pretty high results' Gaming Industry European game publisher group responds to Stop Killing Games, claims 'These proposals would curtail developer choice" Stevie Bonifield 5 July 2025 Video Games Europe voices opposition to Stop Killing Games movement as it clears threshold to become an EU Citizens' Initiative. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Westend61 via Getty) This weekend, the Stop Killing Games movement reached a critical milestone to become a European Citizens' Initiative, but not everyone is on board. Video Games Europe, a trade association representing game developers and publishers in the EU, released a statement on Friday pushing back against Stop Killing Games. Video Games Europe said in its statement, "We appreciate the passion of our community; however, the decision to discontinue online services is multi-faceted, never taken lightly and must be an option for companies when an online experience is no longer commercially viable. We understand that it can be disappointing for players but, when it does happen, the industry ensures that players are given fair notice of the prospective changes in compliance with local consumer protection laws." "Private servers are not always a viable alternative option for players as the protections we put in place to secure players’ data, remove illegal content, and combat unsafe community content would not exist and would leave rights holders liable. In addition, many titles are designed from the ground-up to be online-only; in effect, these proposals would curtail developer choice by making these video games prohibitively expensive to create." Related Articles The 'Stop Killing Games' initiative is close to its final deadline, and after that, its leader is understandably done: 'Either the frog hops out of the pot, or it's dead' Stop Killing Games surges past its goals, but a possible signature spoofing campaign could cause trouble: 'This is not a Change.org petition. This is a government process' Ubisoft's defense against The Crew lawsuit doubles down on a point we've heard many times before: You don't actually own your games "We welcome the opportunity to discuss our position with policy makers and those who have led the European Citizens Initiative in the coming months." Video Games Europe's case is that it can be too expensive for developers and publishers to offer private servers or single-player modes in games that lose online multiplayer support, and that open or fan-supported versions of these games could present legal liabilities for companies, particularly when it comes to cybersecurity and content moderation. The other side of that coin, as the Stop Killing Games movement points out, is that players are paying for these games. They don't (usually) get their money back if the game is shut down, so they're effectively paying for a product that's taken away from them. Of course, developers and publishers will argue players aren't buying a product but a license to access a game, but that's not how many players look at it. As the official Stop Killing Games website explains, "Stop Killing Games' is a consumer movement started to challenge the legality of publishers destroying video games they have sold to customers. An increasing number of video games are sold effectively as goods - with no stated expiration date⁠—but designed to be completely unplayable as soon as support from the publisher ends. The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. "This practice is a form of planned obsolescence and is not only detrimental to customers, but makes preservation effectively impossible. Furthermore, the legality of this practice is largely untested in many countries." Regardless of what Video Games Europe has to say on the movement, it's clearly gaining popularity with gamers after garnering over a million signatures for its EU petition. Unfortunately, even if the Stop Killing Games movement eventually succeeds in creating some sort of policy changes, they will only apply in the EU (and potentially the UK, as well), so publishers and developers may still be able to permanently shut down games in other parts of the world. 2025 games: This year's upcoming releases Best PC games: Our all-time favorites Free PC games: Freebie fest Best FPS games: Finest gunplay Best RPGs: Grand adventures Best co-op games: Better together Stevie Bonifield Contributor Stevie Bonifield is a freelance tech journalist specializing in mobile tech, gaming gear, and accessories. Outside of writing, Stevie loves indie games, TTRPGs, and building way too many custom keyboards. You must confirm your public display name before commenting Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name. The 'Stop Killing Games' initiative is close to its final deadline, and after that, its leader is understandably done: 'Either the frog hops out of the pot, or it's dead' Stop Killing Games surges past its goals, but a possible signature spoofing campaign could cause trouble: 'This is not a Change.org petition. This is a government process' Ubisoft's defense against The Crew lawsuit doubles down on a point we've heard many times before: You don't actually own your games Developer of 'non-consensual sex' game withdraws it from Steam after it's banned in the UK, Canada, and Australia: 'We don't intend to fight the whole world' Netherlands takes Sony to court over digital-only walled garden allegedly costing 1.7m citizens 435 million euros since 2013 After a decade of development, Roboquest's developer is calling time on its roguelite shooter: 'There's no way we can continue to provide content for players with over 1,000 hours of gameplay' Latest in Gaming Industry In the wake of Perfect Dark's cancellation, Joanna Dark's voice actor urges fans to help save the series: 'Agent Dark doesn’t give up and neither should any of you' Hideo Kojima's mysterious OD reportedly escapes the cancellation axe at Microsoft CWA union derides Microsoft layoffs when ‘the company is prospering’: 'We are living through a moment of profound corporate consolidation and disruption' Valve's reported profit-per-head from Steam commissions is out there, and at $3.5 million per employee it makes Apple and Facebook look like a lemonade stand Tech billionaires including Palmer Luckey set up dumb new bank for those who didn't get burned enough in the 2022 crypto crash Xbox exec suffers bout of terminal LinkedIn brain, suggests folks laid off by Microsoft use AI to 'reduce the emotional and cognitive load that comes with job loss' Latest in News Former Forza dev says original Motorsport series died in Microsoft's cuts, but Forza Horizon lives on After nearly 4 years, Windows 11 is finally more popular than Windows 10 Even the beginner zone in Dune: Awakening isn't safe from sandworm-manipulating griefers anymore Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, the anime so good it made Cyberpunk 2077 cool again, is getting a sequel Ratatan, the new rhythm game from the designer of Patapon, delays early access release in response to negative demo feedback In the wake of Perfect Dark's cancellation, Joanna Dark's voice actor urges fans to help save the series: 'Agent Dark doesn’t give up and neither should any of you' HARDWARE BUYING GUIDES LATEST GAME REVIEWS Best gaming chair in 2025: I've tested a ton of gaming chairs and these are the seats I'd suggest for any PC gamer Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads Best graphics card for laptops in 2025: the mobile GPUs I'd want in my next gaming laptop Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most Best 14-inch gaming laptop in 2025: The top compact gaming laptops I've held in these hands NZXT N7 Z890 review NZXT N9 X870E review NZXT N9 Z890 review Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 review Razer Joro & Basilisk Mobile review PC Gamer is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. 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