Earlier this year, video game publisher Ubisoft shut down servers for The Crew, a 2014 open-world racing game. This would be expected and arguably even fine if it only removed multiplayer, but The Crew is one of those video games where a constant online connection is required, even if you play purely solo and own a physical copy. This shutdown rendered the game completely unplayable. An industrious group of fans, however, is bringing it back by taking matters into their own hands.
Rogue modders have built a server emulator that, in the words of video game outlet Kotaku, “will let players essentially trick the game into thinking the official Ubisoft servers are still operating like it’s 2014.” Dubbed The Crew Unlimited (a nod to The Crew‘s spiritual predecessor, Test Drive Unlimited), this emulator can even be configured to run locally on your own PC for a truly offline experience.
It’s set to be released on September 15 and is being made available free of charge, mostly so there’s less incentive for Ubisoft and its lawyers to get involved, per Rock Paper Shotgun.
The Crew‘s shutdown was central to the birth of the Stop Killing Games initiative that pushes European lawmakers to introduce legislation that would prevent video game publishers from permanently disabling games that have already been sold.
On its face, protecting access to old video games may feel far from the most pressing issue in the world, but it’s not hard to draw potential parallels between it and the increasingly connected services that come with the real cars of today.
Take, for example, GM’s Super Cruise semi-automated driving system. Great, industry-leading system in terms of its on-road abilities, but at the end of the day, it requires periodic connections to a GM server to receive data and updates on compatible roads. It’s also a paid subscription service past an initial free trial period. But what happens to Super Cruise on a 2025 Cadillac Escalade IQ come, say, 2045? When GM itself has largely moved on from this system in its new offerings, but the few owners who have held onto their cars for 20 years would still like to use it? (Not an unfair ask, in my opinion, considering how much the thing costs.)
History tells us that, through official channels at least, those Escalade owners will very likely be S.O.L. But that’s where unofficial channels come in. Just as gamers are banding together to revive a decade-old Ubisoft racer, perhaps future tinkerers will put their hands and heads together to keep stuff like Super Cruise and other OEM-connected services alive.
Because nothing says luxury like driving a car that depends on some guy named Johnny in Ohio running a server emulator in his basement.
Top graphic image: The Crew Unlimited
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