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Rep. Ritchie Torres says he plans to introduce the Power To The Players Act, a bill that would direct the FTC to set rules protecting video game ownership. The proposal would address expiring digital licenses and require games with online features to retain playable offline modes after servers close. It has not yet been formally introduced, and its sponsors and prospects are unclear.
Rep. Ritchie Torres, a New York Democrat, says he plans to introduce the Power To The Players Act, legislation directing the Federal Trade Commission to create rules protecting consumers’ ability to keep and play video games they buy. The proposal would address digital licenses that can expire and require games with online features to offer an offline mode that continues working after servers shut down.
Torres outlined the plan in an interview with Kotaku and a press release. Under the proposal’s broad terms, companies selling digital games would have to give buyers more than a license that can be withdrawn. Games that depend on online services would also need a playable offline mode once those services end. The bill’s text has not been published in the supplied report, so its exact requirements and enforcement provisions are not yet known.
The announcement comes as NBA 2K25 faces a staged end to digital availability and online support. According to the report, 2K Games plans to remove the game from digital storefronts on October 30, with online servers scheduled to close on January 1, 2027. The report says that shutdown would disable the game’s most popular modes. Torres did not say he bought NBA 2K25, but cited the case as an example of why players may lose access to features after paying for a game.
Torres said the legislation would direct the FTC to develop regulations rather than set out every technical standard itself. The proposal is still at the planning stage: it must be formally introduced in Congress before it can proceed through the legislative process. Torres has not confirmed whether other lawmakers will co-sponsor it.
Keeping Games Playable After Shutdowns
The proposal targets a difference between owning a physical copy and buying access to a digital product governed by a license and online services. If a game’s key modes rely on company-operated servers, shutting those servers can sharply limit what a buyer can do, even if the game remains installed. Torres’s proposal would make continued offline playability a regulatory issue for covered games.
That could affect players who buy digital titles, as well as publishers that decide how games are licensed, maintained and supported. The precise impact would depend on the bill’s final language and the FTC rules that might follow. The announcement does not establish that every game would have to preserve every feature, or explain how requirements would apply to games designed around online play.
Torres also frames the proposal as an affordability issue: consumers spend money on games that may become less usable when a publisher ends support. The bill focuses on video games, not other digital media, although Torres told Kotaku he hopes the measure could provide a model for rights in other parts of the digital economy.
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From NBA 2K25 to a Federal Proposal
The proposal comes amid debate over how long consumers can expect digital purchases to remain accessible. Kotaku’s report links the discussion to the Stop Killing Games advocacy campaign, which has urged companies not to sell games that can become unplayable when online support ends. The report also points to growing concern among players about an increasingly digital market, where buyers may have fewer options to retain or transfer a game independently of a platform or publisher.
Torres described the bill as a return to what he sees as the historical norm of buying a game and being able to keep playing it. He told Kotaku he grew up with franchises including Grand Theft Auto, Resident Evil and SOCOM. He also said the proposal is not intended as a radical transformation of the industry, but as a way to protect ownership and continued access.
The legislation would apply to video games, rather than digital purchases such as films or music. Torres suggested to Kotaku that games have a distinct relationship with collecting and the time players invest in them. Any extension to other media would require separate action; the proposal described so far does not cover those products.
“I think there should be a simple rule: if you pay for it, you own it.”
— Rep. Ritchie Torres, in an interview with Kotaku
Bill Text and Support Still Unknown
The proposal has not yet been formally introduced, and the report does not include legislative text. It is therefore unclear how the bill would define ownership, which games or sales it would cover, what exceptions might apply, or how companies would be expected to build and maintain offline modes. The scope and timing of any FTC rulemaking are also unknown.
Torres has not identified co-sponsors or said whether members of the opposing party will support the measure. Its prospects are uncertain: formal introduction would be only the start of the process, including committee consideration. The report also notes that many bills do not receive a full vote, but that general figure does not predict the outcome of this specific proposal.
Formal Introduction Is the Next Step
Torres’s next stated step is to formally introduce the Power To The Players Act in Congress. Once filed, the bill’s text and any co-sponsors should clarify which games and consumer rights it covers. It would then move through the congressional process, including committee review, before any possible floor vote.
Until those steps occur, the proposal is not law and does not change current game licenses or server-shutdown plans. Players and publishers will be watching for the bill’s precise requirements, while the announced NBA 2K25 storefront and server dates remain separate developments reported by Kotaku.
Key Questions
What is the Power To The Players Act?
It is a bill Rep. Ritchie Torres says he plans to introduce. The proposal would direct the Federal Trade Commission to create rules protecting video game ownership and continued playability.
Would the bill require games to work after servers close?
As described by Torres and in the Kotaku report, games with online features would need an offline mode that remains playable after servers shut down. The exact scope and exceptions are not known because formal bill text has not been released.
Has the legislation been introduced or passed?
No. Torres has announced plans to introduce it, but the report says it still needs to be formally introduced. It has not passed and is not law.
What happens to NBA 2K25?
Kotaku reports that 2K Games plans to delist NBA 2K25 from digital storefronts on October 30 and shut down its online servers on January 1, 2027. The report says the shutdown will make its most popular modes unavailable.
Will the proposal cover movies or music?
Not as described so far. The announced proposal focuses on video games. Torres told Kotaku he hopes it may set a precedent for other digital media, but the bill’s stated scope does not include them.
Source: fediverse
