Video game ownership bill introduced in Congress

Rep. Ritchie Torres from New York's 15th congressional district in the Bronx has introduced the Power To The Players Act. The bill seeks to guarantee that purchasing a video game translates to actual ownership, rather than a license to play it. If enacted, the Federal Trade Commission would be tasked with creating regulations to ensure consumers truly own games upon payment.

Current games often require an internet connection to a server, which raises the risk of games becoming unplayable if the company shuts down those servers. The NBA 2K25 game is a recent example, as it is set to be removed from storefronts and its servers will be shut down by December 31st. This loss of playability has raised concerns over ownership, playability, reselling, and transferring games, particularly following Sony's announcement to discontinue physical game discs in 2028.

In introducing the bill, Rep. Torres stated that a game becoming inaccessible due to a company terminating servers is not a purchase, but a rental disguised as a sale. The Act would not only grant players ownership of games rather than licenses, but also require developers to implement an offline mode before shutting down supporting servers.

This mirrors the Protect Our Games Act introduced by State Sen. John Kane in Pennsylvania, which would mandate developers to provide an offline gaming mode, an online gaming mode separate from the company's servers, or a minimum 25 percent refund when games are eventually discontinued.