E-petition debate relating to consumer law and videogames - Monday 3 November 2025:
The Petitions Committee has scheduled a debate relating to consumer law and videogames. Ben Goldsborough MP has been asked by the Committee to open the debate. The Government will send a Minister to respond. Read the petition: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/702074
The video discusses the urgent need to protect consumers’ digital ownership rights in the video game industry, which is a significant cultural and economic force in the UK. Gamers invest time, money, and emotional attachment to their games, yet many face losing access when companies shut down servers or cease support, especially for online or live-service titles. The debate highlights concerns over outdated laws not adequately safeguarding players from digital obsolescence, and calls for clearer regulations ensuring players are informed about game support and longevity. Examples like shutdowns of popular titles such as "The Crew," "Law Breakers," and "Anthem" illustrate the problem, emphasizing that consumers should have rights similar to physical ownership—being able to access or preserve their games long-term. The consensus is that the government, industry, and cultural institutions should collaborate to establish transparency, preservation efforts, and responsible practices, safeguarding both consumers and the UK's cultural heritage
Very interesting. I've had a fair number of games I used to play just close up shop and then they were suddenly inaccessible. I think one of them I spent a small amount of real currency on to buy packs and stuff like that.
The first MMORPG I played, Everquest, took up a significant part of my life - and my career, because the foreman on the HGTV house I was a finish carpenter on purchased the game and subscriptions for the crew on the job so that we could discuss job related matters while we farmed giants.
Eventually Sony failed to continue access to their servers (I don't remember details after more than 20 years), and my considerable investment of time and money in the game was all consumed by the whirlpool of obsolescence. It was kinda traumatic. I lost many contacts with people I met online, Fabled gear I farmed during Sony's 5th Anniversary celebrations, skills and knowledge that enabled me to tank dragons in raids (a quite elite position in EQ), and all the social and emotional capital I had invested in that game over years.
This greatly discouraged me from investing in games thereafter, both monetarily and in my time and attention, so more recent examples of similar abandonments by subsequent games hasn't impacted me. Calling the grapes sour hasn't otherwise done me good, but being immunized against that level and kind of loss is significant. Another game I played in the '90s was risk. This was not an MMORPG, but comparable to Solitaire that I played while waiting for downloads, or sites to load (back when online access was achieved with 300 baud modems, these could be significant time sinks). Last year I found that specific Risk game and managed to get it to work using Wine on Linux, and it's today the only game I play, in a little window on the corner of the screen while listening to podcasts and etc.
Fool me once, shame on you, Sony. Can't be fooled again, GW Bush.
I was more of a WoW guy, but I know what you are saying. Just imagine what would happen if EVE Online ever went down and all of those users lost all of their investment!
Remember the microsoft mp3 player the zune? They simply closed the store and nobody could access the music they thought they had "bought"
Yeah, I remember that one. I never owned one thankfully!