The Stop Killing Games movement , launched in 2024 by content creator Ross Scott of the Accursed Farms channel, reached its goal of gathering 1 million signatures on the European Citizens’ Initiative by July 3, 2025.
The campaign was born in response to publishers’ practice of shutting down online game servers, as happened with Ubisoft’s The Crew, leaving the titles unrecognizable and useless, even for those who purchased them. The central idea is to demand legislation that forces publishers to keep games functional, at least in offline mode, or to offer refunds when they shut down the servers.
Once the number of signatures reaches one million, the European Commission is legally obliged to respond publicly to the petition and can organise a debate in the European Parliament, with Scott likely to be called upon to present his case. However, there is a catch: some signatures may not be valid because they were not submitted by European citizens or due to errors in the process. So Scott has launched an “overdrive” phase to collect 400,000 more signatures to make up for those that may be rejected.
Furthermore, the deadline for collection at ICE is set for July 31, 2025. Therefore, there is still room for increased support.
At the same time, a version of the petition addressed to the UK Parliament was launched , which also surpassed 100,000 signatures, currently around 144,000, and which will be the subject of parliamentary debate.
Despite this, the British government has already stated, in response to a previous petition, that it does not intend to change legislation relating to digital consumers in the UK.
In the European Union, the next step is to verify the signatures. If they are validated, the European Commission will have to review the case and may take it to the European Parliament. This paves the way for discussions on new laws on consumer rights and the preservation of gambling.
In the UK, the petition has also already surpassed the number required to be debated in Parliament. However, the British government has not committed to any changes to the law.
On the organization’s side, Ross Scott has already admitted that the campaign had high personal and financial costs. In addition, he faces criticism from other creators, such as PirateSoftware, who accuse him of misinformation, accusations that Scott rejects.
Although the target of 1 million has been reached, the process still depends on the validation of signatures by July 31. Only then will there be an official response from the European Union.
The movement has gained strength and visibility, but it still needs support. Signing, spreading the word and putting pressure on the authorities until the end of the month remains essential.
