A Call of Duty lawsuit has been dismissed after it was determined that a lawyer in the case hadn’t actually played the game. Call of Duty is one of the biggest franchises out there, making billions of dollars each year. Like any other successful franchise, there tends to be a group of people that want to get a piece of the pie, whether they’re actually entitled to it or not. Just recently, wrestler Booker T lost a lawsuit to Activision where he claimed Black Ops character David ‘Prophet’ Wilkes was modeled after G.I. Bro, a character created by Booker T.
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One of the most recent lawsuits was filed by Brooks Entertainment, Inc. back in November 2021. The company specializes in film and TV production in addition to other forms of media such as two games known asย Save One Bankย andย Stock Picker. Brooks Entertainment alleged that Activision’s Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare featured a lot of similarities to the aforementioned projects from Brooks Entertainment such as a set piece in a mall and even called the game’s protagonist, Sean Brooks, and was based on the company’s CEO. Most of this is untrue or exaggerated as Brooks is not the main character and the shopping mall setpiece takes place in the distant future without Brooks. Activision sent a letter to Brooks Entertainment’s counsel asking them to withdraw the lawsuit, stating their complaint featured “serious factual misrepresentations and errors, and that the claims set forth therein are both factually and legally frivolous.” After Activision filed motions for sanctions in March, the Southern California District Courtย dismissed the case with prejudice in July and noted that the plaintiff’s counsel could have verified these facts by playing even an hour of Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare
“Call of Duty: Infinite Warfareย is a first-person shooter game, not first- and third-person as alleged, and Sean Brooks does not conduct a scripted battle scene in a high fashion couture shopping mall,” the court said in its ruling in favor of Activision. “Plaintiff’s counsel could have easily verified these facts prior to filing the factually baseless Complaint, just as the Court easily verified them within the first hour and a half of playing the game.”
The plaintiff’s counsel has been ordered to pay Activision for the time and money it spent on the case. It’s a rather strange case and one that appears to have been an easy win. As it stands, Brooks Entertainment will not be able to refile in that court. Activision’s next entry in the FPS franchise, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, will release on October 28th, 2022.
What do you think of this case? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @Cade_Onder.
[H/T Kotaku]
