ESA Claims Minecraft and Call Of Duty Community Servers Are 'Illegal

The Protect Our Games Act --a piece of legislation endorsed by the Stop Killing Games movement--has been voted down at the California State Senate.

The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) lobbyist, Jennifer Gibbons, stated that private community servers for Minecraft and Call of Duty are 'illegal' during a legislative battle in California. The ESA considers these servers to be piracy and has pending lawsuits against some private servers. However, critics argue that Gibbons has misunderstood the nature of community-run servers, which are not targeted by the United States Trade Representative for subscription fee circumvention.

An advocate for Stop Killing Games criticized the ESA's claims as an attempt to mislead legislators. Despite the setback in California, the movement plans to introduce similar legislation in other states and possibly at the federal level. The ESA reiterated its stance on private servers, emphasizing concerns about intellectual property rights and player safety.

The Stop Killing Games movement originated from the closure of The Crew by Ubisoft, with activists advocating for the preservation of older games. This has sparked debates between gaming companies and players over the financial implications of maintaining legacy games.