US bill requiring paid games to be playable after they shut down has passed initial vote and moved to the Senate

California’s Protect Our Games Act passed the Assembly 43-16 and now moves to the State Senate.

For paid online games released from Jan. 1, 2027, publishers would need to give shutdown notice and either offer offline play, patch out server dependence, or refund buyers.

The bill would not cover free-to-play or subscription games.

Supporters say it could reduce consumer losses when live-service games shut down, as seen with titles like The Crew, Babylon’s Fall, and MultiVersus.