Choose a store
Give players meaningful, safe choice over where they buy digital games.
A European consumer-rights campaign
You bought it.
Don’t lose it.
A game library should survive a broken console, a platform switch and the closure of a digital storefront.
For players · Developers · Policymakers · Consumer groups
▶OPEN
GAMES
GAMES
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YOUR LIBRARYYOUR CHOICEYOUR CONTROLLER
The problem
Digital only.
Platform locked.
Console makers control the store, payments, technical access and the player’s library. That gatekeeper position leaves players exposed in three everyday situations.
01
Store closures. A purchase only remains downloadable while its platform keeps the old storefront and account infrastructure running.
02
Platform switches. The same game, DLC and save can become stranded when a player changes console family.
03
Physical disappears. When new releases are digital-only, one platform store can become the only practical route to buy them.
The European direction
Digital markets can
work for users.
The EU’s Digital Markets Act shows a clear principle: when platforms control a gateway, fairness, contestability and interoperability deserve public attention.
Choose a payment method
Let people and developers benefit from fair payment options.
Keep access
Make long-term access, re-downloads and clear terms the baseline for digital purchases.
Switch without losing out
Build practical ways to carry a licence, save and identity forward when players change platform.
What we ask for
Simple rights
for a digital future.
This is not a call to weaken security or attack companies. It is a call for clear, proportionate consumer protections.
Store choice
Players should be able to use competing, trusted stores on hardware they own.
Fair access
Developers need fair routes to reach players without unnecessary platform barriers.
Lasting access
Digital purchases need transparent terms, workable preservation and meaningful access over time.
Interoperability
Competition should be possible where platform-controlled technical interfaces create lock-in.
What players face
Three ways a digital
library can shrink.
Stores close
- New purchases can end overnight
- Re-downloads depend on a legacy service continuing
- Broken hardware or corrupted storage becomes a bigger risk
Licences do not travel
- Buy the same game again on another platform
- Buy DLC again, even for the same account holder
- Leave save games and progression behind
Physical choice ends
- Sony will end disc production for new PlayStation games from January 2028
- Digital access becomes the default
- The PlayStation Store becomes the only standard buying route
One store, many risks
- Less price competition and fewer payment choices
- No alternative retailer when a title is delisted
- One account, store or policy failure can block access
Nintendo ended new Wii U and Nintendo 3DS eShop purchases in 2023; it says re-downloads remain available “for the foreseeable future.” This illustrates why access depends on continued platform support. Sony’s July 2026 announcement applies to new PlayStation releases from January 2028. Nintendo eShop notice ↗ Sony announcement ↗
Physical is not always self-contained
A disc can still
be a download key.
A box on a shelf does not guarantee that the game is stored on the disc—or that it will work when its download server is gone.
Check Does It Play ↗Example · Doom: The Dark Ages
85 MB on disc.
84 GB to download.
Does It Play’s PS5 disc test found roughly 85 MB of data—only a tiny installer. Bethesda confirms an internet connection is required to download and install the game, even for the PlayStation and Xbox disc editions.
Once the full download is installed, the game can be played offline. Its physical Steam edition does not include a disc—it contains a code to redeem on Steam.
A French case study
2015 — 2024
EULAW
GAP
UFC-Que Choisir v. Valve
Buying digital
doesn’t mean owning.
The French consumer group challenged Steam’s ban on reselling and transferring digital games. The case exposed how differently a digital game can be treated from a physical copy.
2019
A Paris court initially found for UFC-Que Choisir on resale.
2022
The Paris Court of Appeal reversed that result.
2024
France’s Cour de cassation dismissed UFC’s appeal. Under the current French position, a platform can prohibit resale of downloaded games.
The lesson is not that players already have a digital resale right. It is that today’s law does not reliably give digital purchases the practical rights people expect from physical ownership.
A Switch case study
2023 — 2026
CLOUDIS NOT
OWNERSHIP
Aliens: Fireteam Elite · Nintendo Switch
Sold like a game.
Delivered like a rental.
Aliens: Fireteam Elite was sold on Switch at the price of a full game, but its cloud version required an external streaming service to keep operating. After that service shut down, the purchased release became unplayable on the console.
2023
Aliens: Fireteam Elite launched on Nintendo Switch as a cloud-streamed release.
2026
The cloud service was shut down, leaving Switch buyers without a working way to play the version they bought.
THE GAP
The storefront presented a purchase, while the technical reality was time-limited access dependent on a third-party server.
A cloud game can be a legitimate product—but buyers should be told plainly that they are purchasing access to a service, not a durable copy. If a full-price game is rendered unusable by a planned shutdown, consumers need clear disclosure, preservation options or a meaningful remedy.
The account problem
One account
shouldn’t erase everything.
Security and moderation matter. But an account lockout should not automatically make every lawfully acquired game, save and add-on unreachable.
Court-backed example · 2026
Blocked Xbox account,
blocked library
A Brazilian Xbox player known publicly as “Ordo_Liberal” lost access to his Microsoft account and purchased game library after the account was compromised and suspended. A small-claims court ordered Microsoft to restore the account and library, and awarded damages.
Read the report ↗Security failures can lock out buyers
In another 2026 report, a compromised long-standing Microsoft account was deleted, taking the owner’s Xbox games with it. Xbox Support later said it was working to restore access.
Read the report ↗Suspension can include purchases
PlayStation’s published suspension guidance says a console suspension can prevent access to content purchased from the PlayStation Store. That is the risk of tying a library entirely to one account.
Read PlayStation guidance ↗Disclosure is part of the problem
“Buy” can mean a revocable licence
A proposed California class action against GameStop alleges that its online store used “buy” and “purchase” language without clearly disclosing that customers receive a non-transferable, revocable licence rather than the ownership rights associated with a physical copy. The case is pending; it is evidence of the transparency question, not a decided legal rule.
Read about the pending case ↗Account closure has library consequences
Games, saves and linked accounts
Ubisoft’s own privacy policy says that closing an account ends access to the account, games, game progress, online services, outstanding store orders and linked external accounts. This is direct evidence that a digital library can be inseparable from a single account.
Read Ubisoft’s policy ↗Our principle
Platforms should be able to enforce rules and protect players. But a proportionate system should separate online and social restrictions from enduring access to lawfully acquired single-player games, saves and purchases wherever technically possible.
A European conversation
Apply the lessons
of the DMA.
1. Recognise
The gatekeeper role
Examine how console ecosystems control access between developers and players.
2. Protect
Consumer choice
Set clear expectations for stores, payments, data and ongoing access.
3. Enable
Fair competition
Create pathways for trusted alternatives and practical interoperability.
4. Review
What works
Measure outcomes for security, players, developers and innovation.
The DMA currently imposes obligations only on services formally designated as gatekeepers. Open Console Initiative calls for policymakers to examine how its principles could inform console markets. About the Digital Markets Act ↗
Questions, answered
Firm on rights.
Practical on delivery.
We advocate for proportionate rules that respect security, creators and the technical realities of consoles.
What happens when a digital store closes?+
New purchases can end immediately. A platform may keep redownloads available for a time, but players remain dependent on its account and delivery infrastructure. There should be a clear long-term plan before a storefront is retired.
Why should a licence and save travel with me?+
If a publisher sells the same title across platforms, switching hardware should not automatically mean repurchasing the game and DLC or abandoning years of progress. Secure account-based verification can make portability possible where publishers choose to support it.
What changes in January 2028?+
Sony has announced that production of physical discs for new games releasing on PlayStation consoles will end from January 2028. That makes a strong framework for digital access and choice more urgent.
Would opening consoles make them less secure?+
Not necessarily. Clear technical standards, trusted marketplace requirements and user permissions can protect security while allowing meaningful choice.
What does “gatekeeper” mean here?+
It describes the practical control a platform can have over access between businesses and users. It is not a legal designation for console makers under the DMA; that designation is made by the European Commission for specific core platform services.
Make your voice count
Write to an EU
decision-maker.
A short, personal message can put digital ownership and player choice on the agenda. Copy our prepared text, add your details, then find the right official contact.
01
Prepare your message
Tip: a personal first sentence makes your message more effective.
About the initiative
Independent.
Pro-consumer.
Open Console Initiative is an independent campaign for consumer rights, competition and meaningful digital ownership in console gaming.
We are not against any company or platform. We want hardware makers to compete through better products and services, while players retain a fair say in where—and how—they buy their games.
Get in touch →