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Game Preservation News

The latest Game Preservation coverage curated for game developers.

A 12TB Steam “teraleak” spills more than a decade of lost PC gaming history

Ars Technica reports that a 12TB Steam “teraleak” has exposed a huge slice of PC gaming history, including depots from Valve’s old Steam2 era. The dump appears to cover nearly …

News Ars Technica · 3 weeks, 2 days ago
Xbox to let Insiders convert physical game discs into digital entitlements later this month

GamesIndustry.biz reports Xbox will start testing a disc-to-digital entitlement flow with Insiders on August 31. Supported Xbox One and Series X discs can unlock a digital copy, while the disc …

News GamesIndustry.biz · 4 weeks ago
Your Discs. Now Also Digital.

Xbox is testing a way to turn supported disc games into digital entitlements, starting with Insiders on August 31. The feature targets most Xbox One and Xbox Series X disc …

Official XBox Wire · 4 weeks ago
Ars Live recap: How can we stop publishers from killing their own games?

Ars Technica details Ross Scott’s Stop Killing Games push to keep online games playable after publishers shut down servers. The campaign argues that sudden shutdowns leave buyers with unusable products, …

News Ars Technica · 1 month, 1 week ago
UNC Greensboro game preservation project back on track after Trump funding cuts

UNC Greensboro's game preservation effort is back after federal funding cuts briefly threatened it. The project matters because studios still lose build tools, source assets, and playable history faster than …

News Game Developer · 1 month, 1 week ago
Live now: Ross Scott discusses the Stop Killing Games movement

Ross Scott’s Stop Killing Games campaign has moved from protest to policy pressure, with millions of signatures pushing governments to consider perpetual access for purchased games. The push is aimed …

News Ars Technica · 1 month, 1 week ago
Developer Cold Iron Studios shuts down cloud version of $60 game with no refunds

Ars Technica reports that Cold Iron Studios has shut down the cloud version of Aliens: Fireteam Elite on Nintendo Switch, leaving buyers without refunds. The base game launched at $30, …

News Ars Technica · 1 month, 1 week ago
The truth behind the resurrection of Poinpy

Poinpy has been brought back from the dead with a new release that restores access to the game and sharpens its presentation. For developers, the interesting part is the resurrection …

News Game Developer · 1 month, 3 weeks ago
Play More of the Games You Love, Wherever You Play with XBOX Backward Compatibility on PC

Xbox is bringing original Xbox backward compatibility to PC in early release, starting with four games: Blinx, Conker, Crimson Skies, and Fuzion Frenzy. The rollout also covers supported handhelds, including …

Official XBox Wire · 2 months ago
Mobile game Mario Kart Tour is winding down

Mario Kart Tour is winding down, and Nintendo says there won't be an offline version to preserve access after service ends. For teams shipping live mobile games, it's another reminder …

News Game Developer · 2 months, 2 weeks ago
"We are profoundly disappointed by Sony's decision" – Game companies express dismay at the end of PlayStation disc production

Sony will stop producing physical discs for new PlayStation games starting in January 2028, pushing future releases to digital-only. The company is also winding down PS3 and PS Vita Store …

News GamesIndustry.biz · 2 months, 2 weeks ago
European Commission aims to facilitate code of conduct for managing "end of life" for games following Stop Killing Games petition

The European Commission says it won’t force studios to keep discontinued games playable, citing existing IP rights and consumer-law limits. Instead, it plans to broker an industry code of conduct …

News GamesIndustry.biz · 3 months ago
EU Commission to 'engage with the industry' over Stop Killing Games initiative

The EU Commission says it will only “engage with the industry” on Stop Killing Games for now, and it can’t yet impose a legal duty to keep delisted games playable. …

News Game Developer · 3 months, 1 week ago
The Decode — the original Midwinter, reverse-engineered in one day

A fan-led reverse-engineering effort reportedly got the original Midwinter running in just one day, which is a strong reminder of how much old game code can still be recovered when …

News khawk · 3 months, 1 week ago
The California State Assembly passes AB 1921, Stop Killing Games' Protect Our Games Act

California’s Assembly has passed AB 1921, a bill that would force publishers to warn players before shutting down server-dependent games and leave some way to keep them playable. For devs, …

News GamesIndustry.biz · 3 months, 3 weeks ago
PS5 exclusive Destruction AllStars shut down after five years

Sony has taken Destruction AllStars offline and pulled it from the PlayStation Store, ending access to a live-service game that launched in 2021. For teams watching the genre, it’s another …

News Game Developer · 3 months, 3 weeks ago
Bill to block publishers from killing online games advances in California

California's Protect Our Games Act is making strides, potentially reshaping how online games are supported post-launch. Developers may need to rethink their service models, as the bill mandates refunds or …

News Ars Technica · 4 months, 1 week ago
New "vibe coded" AI translation tool splits the video game preservation community

The launch of the AI translation tool, Gaming Alexandria Researcher, has sparked controversy within the video game preservation community. While it aims to enhance access to Japanese gaming magazines, many …

News Ars Technica · 6 months ago