Ubisoft Under Fire for Deleting Purchased Games: CEO Says ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’

A purchased game disappears – not by defective, but because the publisher pulls the plug. Millions of players demand clear rules against this practice. Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot cannot quite understand that. After all, “is not forever”.

Ubisoft CEO: ‘Deleted games? Nothing is forever! ‘

When Ubisoft finally switched off the online racing game The Crew last year, it was not just fans of the game. There was a nerve of the entire gaming community. Because unlike classic titles, The Crew completely disappeared: The authentication servers were deactivated, the game was no longer started – neither online nor offline.

Buyers had no way to access a product for which they had paid regularly. The case became a symbol: for many it was the crucial evidence that buying digital games is increasingly resembling a rental model. The reaction followed promptly. Under the name Stop Killing Games Formed a dynamic movement that has been demanding since then to regulate that publish games must not switch off without replacement. The associated petition has now collected over 1.3 million signatures.

We provide service, nothing is set in stone. Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot

The demands are also clearly aimed at technical measures: games with online mandatory should be preserved, at least in offline mode, according to servering. Alternatively, the publication of source code or the release for community servers is conceivable. So far, none of these measures are mandatory – and that is exactly what the initiators want to change. Ubisoft is at the center of the debate because of the shutdown of The Crew.

At the latest general meeting, CEO Yves Guillemot was confronted directly with the petition. A shareholder spoke the topic loudly VGC “aggressive”. Instead of responding to the demand for offline additions or technical disclosure, the CEO replied with very general statements. Every software is “overtaken” at some point. And finally, Guillemot also uses a formulaic statement that does not explain anything, but is supposed to create the impression of inevitable: “Nothing is for eternity.”

Forever is relative

Technically, this argument is only partially durable. Although older games can be difficult to maintain due to dependencies on online components – in the case of The Crew, the game continued to have a functioning basis and active users. It was only after the massive criticism that Ubisoft announced offline modes for The Crew 2 and Motorfest – but too late for the original. Guillemot emphasizes that the successor had been offered at a discount, another statement that clearly passes on the topic. The discussion hits a sore point in the industry, which not only tries to win Ubisoft: