Last March was the final bell tolling for multiplayer racer The Crew 1, as Ubisoft completed an announced sunsetting of its servers, effectively making the game unplayable. It looks as if the company has decided to go above and beyond that step; it’s straight-up removing the game from player libraries.
Players began reporting that licenses to the racer began disappearing from Ubisoft’s digital storefront, along with the game being moved to an “inactive games” section and its original store page sharing a message that reads, “You no longer have access to this game. Why not check the Store to pursue your adventures?”
When approached for comment by Eurogamer, Ubisoft PR gave what amounts to a text version of a shoulder shrug:
“We announced on December 14, 2023 that after almost a decade of support, we would be decommissioning The Crew 1 on March 31, 2024. While we understand this may be disappointing for players, it was necessary due to server infrastructure and licensing constraints.
Unsurprisingly, Ubisoft’s move has caused an uproar among gamers, as players were already calling for legislative action, suggesting this is the killing blow for any rogue server plans, and offering multiple references and linkbacks to the Stop Killing Games initiative. “With this move, Ubisoft seems to be begging for digital consumer protection legislation to be passed,” a Redditor succinctly remarks.
