Ubisoft has made it clear that purchasing a game does not equate to "unfettered ownership rights" but rather grants players a "limited license to access the game." This statement came to light as Ubisoft attempted to dismiss a lawsuit filed by two dissatisfied players of The Crew. These players took legal action after Ubisoft shut down the servers for the original racing game, released in 2014, making The Crew no longer playable as of the end of March 2024. All versions of the game, whether physical or digital, are now inaccessible.
While Ubisoft has taken steps to create offline versions of subsequent titles such as The Crew 2 and The Crew: Motorfest, allowing continued play, no such provisions were made for the original game. The lawsuit was filed by two gamers at the end of last year, who claimed they believed they were "paying to own and possess the video game The Crew" rather than just paying for a limited license.
The lawsuit, as reported by Polygon, accuses Ubisoft of breaching California's False Advertising Law, Unfair Competition Law, and Consumer Legal Remedies Act, along with claims of common law fraud and breach of warranty. The plaintiffs also argue that Ubisoft violated California's state law on gift cards, which cannot expire. They presented evidence showing that the activation code for The Crew had an expiration date set for 2099, suggesting to them that the game "would remain playable during this time and long thereafter."
In response, Ubisoft's legal team argued that the plaintiffs were fully aware at the time of purchase that they were acquiring a license, not ownership. They noted that the game's packaging on Xbox and PlayStation included a prominent notice that Ubisoft could cancel access to specific online features with 30 days' notice.
Ubisoft has now moved to dismiss the case, but should the lawsuit proceed, the plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial. Meanwhile, digital marketplaces like Steam have updated their policies to explicitly inform customers that they are purchasing a license, not the game itself. This change follows a law signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom, requiring digital marketplaces to clarify the nature of digital purchases. However, this law does not prevent companies from withdrawing access to content; it only mandates transparency about the licensing nature of the purchase.
