Your Ubisoft account may be locked for “inactivity” and then permanently deleted, including the loss of your game library.

I’m pretty sure I have a Ubisoft account – it happens every few years when there’s a Ubisoft game I want to play and I have to use the company’s own launcher/digital marketplace Ubisoft Connect (formerly Uplay) to access it. However, if a Ubisoft account remains inactive for too long, it apparently runs the risk of being permanently deleted.

A Twitter account focused on piracy and anti-DRM. PC_enjoymentrecently shared a screenshot of a Ubisoft support email informing the user that their Ubisoft account had been suspended for “inactivity” and would be “permanently closed” after 30 days. The email included a link to cancel the transfer.

This sounds like a phishing scam, doesn’t it? I and many commenters wondered if this was the case when viewing the original post, but less than a day later, Ubisoft’s verified support account replied to the tweetwhich seems to confirm the legitimacy of the email in the screenshot.

“You can avoid account closure by logging into your account within 30 days (from receiving the email shown) and selecting the ‘Cancel Account Closure’ link included in the email,” Ubisoft Support wrote. “We definitely don’t want you to lose access to your games or your account, so if you’re having trouble logging in, please create a support case with us.”

I couldn’t find anything in Ubisoft’s US Terms of Service or End User License Agreement about closing accounts for inactivity, but the company reserves the right to suspend or terminate services at any time. Ubisoft has a support page titled “Closing Inactive Ubisoft Accounts.” The page first describes cases where the service conflicts with local privacy laws, then states, “We may also close long-term inactive accounts to maintain our database. You will be notified via email when we begin the process of closing your inactive account.”

This page is linked to another page dedicated to voluntarily closing a Ubisoft account and appears to operate under the same rules: a 30-day suspension before permanent deletion. “Since we cannot recover the account after closure, we strongly recommend that you only make the request if you are absolutely sure that you want to close your account.”

It’s not clear how long a Ubisoft account can remain inactive before this suspension notice is received. I’ve asked Ubisoft for clarification and will update this story if I receive a response.

Whichever way you look at it, this is a customer-unfriendly practice and a tiresome sight. Whatever justification Ubisoft has for database maintenance, it’s a poor showing compared to competing digital distribution platforms, many of which have been around longer, presumably have more users, and don’t do this.

I don’t think I or many other gamers would use Ubisoft Connect or Ubisoft accounts to play if we had the choice – it was part of the EA Origin/Games for Windows Live generation of publisher-exclusive launchers and digital storefronts implemented primarily for digital rights management. They’re all coming back to Steam because those proprietary launchers are a burden.

The alternatives to Steam that players continue to tolerate have added value: Epic offers many free games in addition to its exclusives, but is still relatively new. GOG, on the other hand, offers games that you simply can’t get on Steam, and you don’t even have to use the launcher – you can still easily access your library through a browser.

Barely ten years after the EA Origin generation, this wave of proprietary platforms is messing with not only our personal libraries but also game preservation in general – Fallout 3 was only fully exempted from the GFWL in 2021, while a selection of Capcom games remain lost in the GFWL abyss. Nobody asked for Uplay or Ubisoft Connect, and then it has the audacity to make you choose the continued existence of your game library.

It should not be a radical idea that owning digital video games should at least feel like property. Our extensive digital libraries could very well be rescued from oblivion by a bad deal or an alien invasion with an EMP, but I don’t think we need to be pushed around until then. Account deactivation for inactivity feels like shoddy marketing email logic applied to what could potentially be a pretty big monetary investment.

The problems with Ubisoft’s online services aren’t limited to its own launcher. Last year, we reported that many Ubisoft games from the 2010s were having their online components shut down, affecting DLCs as well, even on Steam.

All of this is a source of legitimate consumer anxiety right now, but it also has long-term consequences. Ephemeral digital libraries could well add to the 87% of games that are unplayable without piracy, a potentially hard-to-find physical copy, or archival access.