The bill passed the State Assembly with bipartisan support and will now move to the State Senate.
Cue the victory music from Final Fantasy. The California State Assembly passed the Protect Our Games Act, which aims to preserve access to online games even after companies stop supporting them. Assemblyman Chris Ward, who introduced bill AB 1921, said it received 43 votes in favor and 16 against, and is now headed to the state Senate committee level.
The bill, first introduced in February, in its current form would impose new rules on publishers and “digital game operators” who delist games, similar to what happened with Ubisoft and The crew. The bill requires a company to provide two months’ notice to game owners before removing a game, a full refund if a game is removed, and a way for players to continue playing the game even if the publisher stops supporting it. If passed, the Protect Our Games Act would apply to digital games released on or after January 1, 2027, but free-to-play or subscription-based games would not be covered.
Of course, the bill still has a few hurdles to overcome, including winning the state Senate and getting the signature of California’s governor. However, the proposed laws have the support of the Stop Killing Games initiative, which is also working on similar policy changes across the Atlantic. Campaign leaders recently attended a public hearing with the European Union Parliament in hopes of establishing similar law across the EU.
