Out of luck? Games from the USA arrive in Europe 6 months later! [April 1]

A new law is making life difficult for gamers worldwide. Games from America will now arrive in Europe much later.

Thanks to globalization, everything is just a small step away from us. When a game is released in Japan, America, or Korea, it usually only takes a few days before it hits our market as well – often it happens simultaneously. That may now be temporarily over, as a law from America is putting a stop to that.

Yesterday, on March 31, 2017, American President Donald Trump signed a new decree that will also have significant impacts on gaming culture in Europe. By law, the broadly defined term “technological achievements” may only enter the market elsewhere in the world with a delay of 6 months after its development and release in America. What was primarily intended for weapons, automotive, and industrial technology is proving to be a setback for all video game fans due to the wording of the decree.

For gamers, this means in plain language: American games will be released in Europe at the earliest 6 months (180 days) after the release in the USA.

In a press conference after the signing of the decree, Trump himself commented on this order:

“America is a leader in technology and software development. No one understands the development of software and technology as well as I do. It’s a shame that we pass software and technology on so quickly to other countries. Really bad! The new decree will ensure that new software and technology remain with the good people they are intended for: Americans.”

Meanwhile, Electronic Arts has already released a response to reassure customers in Europe.

“Even though many of our fans are disappointed that games will now be released late, we want to emphasize the positive aspects of this law. Our European customers may come into contact with our products later but will then receive a significantly improved version. Consider the delay as an extended beta test that you unfortunately cannot participate in but will benefit from all the advantages of this phase!”

Looking back at the game releases of recent years, that seems to be true. Especially in the first months, games are often improved with patches to fix the worst design flaws.

Blizzard has already announced that they will adjust the release dates of their games in the coming days. The latest Hearthstone expansion “Journey to Un’goro” will likely only be released in October – it’s indeed a particularly long journey.

On Twitter, the “Federal Act of Knowledge Export” (F.a-KE-Pact) triggered a worldwide backlash that is still ongoing. Trump countered this by stating that “America first” means that the American people also take precedence in entertainment.

Furthermore, they aim to further curb the copying and counterfeiting of software by ensuring that products do not leave their own country.

“There are many evil men and women out there. They want to do evil things. They copy our work, the good work of hard-working men and women. And counterfeit it. That’s sick!”

This may lead to a very lukewarm gaming summer in Europe – without American new releases.