Minecraft creator weighs in on Stop Killing Games debate

The survival of online games has been a hot topic of conversation over the last week, following the shutdown of online servers and discontinuation of support for several different titles. And it looks like Minecraft creator Markus 'Notch' Persson is the latest to weigh in. Critiquing the trend of developers and publishers selling game licenses rather than full ownership, he says that if buying a game isn't considered to be a proper purchase, "then pirating them is not theft."

There has been a lot of frustration from developers and players over the closure of online and multiplayer games and the removal of players' access to them as a result. Now the online petition, Stop Killing Games Initiative, is seeking to rectify this by lobbying lawmakers to support the preservation of games, and "protect consumer rights to retain video games" even after publishers discontinue their support.

The petition has proved popular, garnering over 1.3 million signatures at the time of writing and sparking debate online. Last week, VGC reported that the lobbying group Video Games Europe had responded to the consumer movement, stating that forcing developers to continue support for online games would make live service titles too expensive to develop. And now, Minecraft creator Notch has also weighed in on the discussion.

Writing on X about recent comments on the Stop Killing Games Initiative, he notes that when it comes to players buying access to games over actually owning the titles if buying a game is "not a purchase, then pirating them is not theft."  He also adds in another post that players should "Host your own servers. This is what ALL games used to do."

In response to one X user stating that they were worried forcing developers to keep servers up would "harm gaming," Notch says that "No no we want them to STOP using the servers."

This latest conversation comes after Wargaming Group yesterday confirmed that free multiplayer game Steel Hunters is shutting down later this year, just months after launching. It's the latest in a number of titles that have been closed in recent months.

You can find out more info about the Stop Killing Games Initiative here.

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