‘Stop Killing Games’ Petition Hits 1 Million Signatures — European Commission Now Forced to Respond

In a massive win for game preservation advocates, YouTuber Ross Scott’s “Stop Killing Games” petition has officially crossed the 1 million signature threshold—triggering mandatory action from the European Commission.

The campaign, which began as a passionate plea to preserve access to video games even after publishers shut down their servers, has exploded in recent days—surging past several hundred-thousand milestones in quick succession. With today’s news, the movement enters a new phase: direct political engagement in the European Union.

The site says we have cleared 1 million signatures! I hate being like this, but there’s a chance a significant number of them aren’t real. That means we have to keep signing in overdrive mode to make up for them! I’ll have a video on this later today.https://t.co/EpnNTDR85U

— Accursed Farms (@accursedfarms) July 3, 2025

“The site says we have cleared 1 million signatures,” Scott confirmed. “I hate being like this, but there’s a chance a significant number of them aren’t real. That means we have to keep signing in overdrive mode to make up for them! I’ll have a video on this later today.”

The “Stop Killing Games” petition was launched to oppose the growing trend of developers delisting or deactivating purchased games—sometimes permanently—even when the titles could feasibly be preserved in offline, single-player form. Ubisoft’s recent decision to pull The Crew from digital shelves and make it entirely unplayable served as a catalyst for the campaign.

A screenshot from The Crew (2016), Ivory Tower

Now that the 1 million signature milestone has been reached, EU law requires the Commission to formally respond. Scott will also be granted the opportunity to present the initiative during a public hearing at the European Parliament. This creates a rare and powerful platform to challenge what many see as one of the gaming industry’s most anti-consumer practices.

The petition’s core demands are simple:

• If a game is delisted, players should receive a refund or
• The game should remain accessible via a preserved offline mode.

PewDiePie throws support behind the Stop Killing Games movement. – YouTube, PewDiePie

Support for the campaign has snowballed, thanks in part to endorsements from gaming influencers like PewDiePie, who urged followers to support the cause, and former World of Warcraft developer Mark Kern (Grummz), who told That Park Place that the movement reflects long-standing preservation goals he’s championed for decades.

“Games cannot just vanish, and I’ve taken a pledge with our own games that if we no longer support a game, that we will release the code and license that game to gamers who want to keep it going,” Grummz said. “This is the way forward that makes most sense to us.”

While the EU must now engage with the petition, Scott’s caution about non-EU signatures not being counted means there’s still work to do. Fans across the globe are continuing to sign in “overdrive mode” to ensure a clean, verified count.

A screenshot from The Crew (2016), Ivory Tower

Whether the EU ultimately enacts legislation remains to be seen, but the pressure on game publishers is already mounting. At the very least, the “Stop Killing Games” petition has forced an international conversation about consumer rights, game ownership, and digital media preservation.

Did you sign the “Stop Killing Games” petition? Sound off in the comments and let us know!

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