Ubisoft has clarified that purchasing a game does not grant players "unfettered ownership rights," but instead provides a "limited license to access the game." This statement was made in response to a lawsuit filed by two disgruntled players of The Crew, after Ubisoft shut down the original racing game in 2023.
The original The Crew from 2014 is no longer playable, with all versions—physical, digital, and even those already owned—rendered unplayable due to the servers going dark completely at the end of March 2024. Ubisoft made efforts to create offline versions for The Crew 2 and its sequel The Crew: Motorfest, but did not extend this option to the original game.
In late 2023, two gamers took Ubisoft to court, arguing that they believed they were buying permanent ownership of The Crew rather than a temporary license. They likened the situation to purchasing a pinball machine that later becomes inoperable due to missing parts. The lawsuit accuses Ubisoft of violating California's False Advertising Law, Unfair Competition Law, Consumer Legal Remedies Act, as well as alleging common law fraud and breach of warranty. They also claim that Ubisoft violated California's laws regarding gift card expiration dates.
The gamers presented evidence in the form of activation codes for The Crew, which were set to expire in 2099, suggesting to them that the game would remain playable until that time and beyond. Ubisoft, however, contends that consumers were clearly informed at the time of purchase that they were buying a license, not permanent ownership. Ubisoft's legal response highlighted that the game's packaging on Xbox and PlayStation contained a prominent notice in capital letters, stating that Ubisoft could cancel access to online features with 30 days' notice.
Ubisoft has filed a motion to dismiss the case, but if unsuccessful, the plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial. In light of such disputes, digital marketplaces like Steam have begun to include explicit warnings that customers are purchasing a license, not the game itself. This change follows a new California law requiring digital marketplaces to clarify the nature of digital purchases. While this law does not prevent companies from withdrawing access to content, it mandates transparency about the terms of the purchase before the transaction is completed.
