Ubisoft has maintained that purchasing a game does not grant players "unfettered ownership rights," but rather provides a "limited license to access the game."
This statement was part of their response as they moved to dismiss a lawsuit filed by two disgruntled players of The Crew, who challenged Ubisoft after the company shut down the original racing game last year.
The Crew, released in 2014, is now completely unplayable. No version of the game—whether physical, digital, or already owned—can be purchased or played, as the servers were permanently shut down in March 2024.
While Ubisoft took steps to create offline versions of The Crew 2 and its sequel The Crew: Motorfest to allow continued play, no such measures were implemented for the original The Crew.
At the end of last year, two gamers filed a lawsuit against Ubisoft, asserting that they believed they were "purchasing ownership and possession of the video game *The Crew*, rather than a limited license to use it."The lawsuit drew an analogy to buying a pinball machine: "Imagine you buy a pinball machine, and years later, you enter your den to play it, only to find all the paddles, the pinball, bumpers, and the high score monitor are gone."
As reported by Polygon, the plaintiffs accused Ubisoft of violating California’s False Advertising Law, Unfair Competition Law, and Consumer Legal Remedies Act, as well as alleging common law fraud and breach of warranty. They also claimed that Ubisoft violated California's laws regarding gift cards, which cannot expire.
The gamers presented images showing that the activation code for The Crew was set to expire in 2099, suggesting to them that the game would remain playable "during this time and long thereafter."
Ubisoft, however, disputes these claims. "Plaintiffs allege that they purchased physical copies of The Crew under the belief that they were obtaining unfettered access to the game in perpetuity. They also take issue with Ubisoft's failure to offer an offline, single-player option, or 'patch,' when it shut down The Crew's servers in March 2024," Ubisoft's legal team stated.
"The core of the plaintiffs’ complaint is that Ubisoft allegedly misled purchasers into believing they were purchasing ownership rights in the game, rather than a limited license to access it. However, consumers received the benefit they were promised and were clearly informed at the time of purchase that they were acquiring a license," the response continued.
The company pointed out that the Xbox and PlayStation packaging included a prominent notice in all capital letters, stating that Ubisoft may cancel access to specific online features with a 30-day prior notice.
Ubisoft has filed a motion to dismiss the case. Should this fail and the lawsuit proceed, the plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial.
In related developments, digital marketplaces like Steam now provide clear warnings to customers that they are purchasing a license, not the game itself. This change followed a law signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom, requiring digital marketplaces to clarify to customers that they are buying a license to media, not ownership. While this law doesn't stop companies from removing access to content, it mandates transparency about the nature of the purchase before the transaction is completed.
