Activision sues over Brutal Legend - Report

E3 2009: Publisher taking developer Double Fine to court over EA Partners game it passed on after Vivendi Games merger; Tim Schafer offers lyrical response.

LOS ANGELES--This week's Electronic Entertainment Expo was supposed to be a sort of coming-out party for Double Fine Productions' Brutal Legend. The game is set to complete its rocky road to release with an October launch, and publisher Electronic Arts has been promoting it heavily at the show. It dedicated a portion of its press conference to the game and plastered a massive Brutal Legend banner over the front of the Los Angeles Convention Center's South Hall.

Time for a legal power ballad...

Time for a legal power ballad...

Activision is looking to crash that party. The Associated Press reports that the Tony Hawk publisher filed suit against Double Fine in a Santa Monica court yesterday to prevent the game's release. According to the news service, Activision is claiming it still has the rights to release Brutal Legend, even though the game was among a slew of titles dropped by the publisher last year in the wake of its merger with Vivendi Games. The publisher also noted that it had invested roughly $15 million in Brutal Legend, according to the report.

The lawsuit isn't entirely surprising. Activision had threatened such a move in February, according to a report in Variety. At the time, an unnamed EA source told the trade magazine, "We doubt that Activision would try to sue. That would be like a husband abandoning his family and then suing after his wife meets a better looking guy."

Representatives with Activision and Electronic Arts had not returned requests for comment as of press time.

[UPDATE]: Double Fine president Tim Schafer passed the following comment on to GameSpot: "Hey, if Activision liked it, then they should have put a ring on it. Oh great, now Beyonce is going to sue me too."

971 Comments

  • uncannyone53543

    Posted Feb 23, 2011 6:42 pm GMT

    @Gambitcrawfish: As far as I know it was settled out of court.

  • fLaMbOaStiN

    Posted Jun 19, 2010 10:30 am GMT

    Bah.. Go pump out another COD knock off and let the new IPs have a chance Activision.. Beh, they actually make EA look like the good guys.

  • Moloch121

    Posted Jun 17, 2010 6:56 pm GMT

    Activisions smartest move has been selling crap to people for $60...CoD: Modern Warfare. I hate them so much

  • diesel_lee

    Posted Jun 16, 2010 12:29 am GMT

    Activision shot themselves literally in the foot and butt by firing the director and lead head designers from Infinity Ward. Yeah great move...

  • Gambitcrawfish

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 8:49 am GMT

    Did anything more come of this?

  • xtoperchris

    Posted Jun 20, 2009 8:39 pm GMT

    Activision feels like they are the greatest, just because of modern warfare's success doesn't mean that you're in control of everything. Throwing out a game and now that the better company picks it, you want to get it back? That's crazy.
    Modern Warfare's the only game I liked from Activision and the credit goes to Infinity Ward.

  • xtoperchris

    Posted Jun 20, 2009 8:34 pm GMT

    They let it go, now, they want it back. Activision is st***d.

  • JunkyMcMuffin

    Posted Jun 17, 2009 8:45 pm GMT

    Activision = Haters.....

  • gedbyz

    Posted Jun 15, 2009 5:52 pm GMT

    I don't think Activision is horrible. Mainly cause of Modern Warfare. But i probably have actually EA in the past.

  • Floymin

    Posted Jun 12, 2009 4:15 pm GMT

    Activision is such a bunch of corporate wimps that Vivendi/Universal should have bought them out instead of offering a merger.

  • Mandalore_Fett

    Posted Jun 11, 2009 9:21 am GMT

    this game better come out because i think it looks friken awsome

  • MrPMPisBeefy

    Posted Jun 11, 2009 7:11 am GMT

    I'm gonna get a lot of hate for this but I like EA. I always have. Okay that said. I think Activision needs to grow up. They haven't produced many games that I've liked recently and acting like a dumped girlfriend because her ex found someone better only makes them sound worse. Had they treated Double Fine properly they may have a game coming out in October. However now they don't and the only reason they are suing now is because they know the game will do well. Good Luck EA!

  • cockneyscouse

    Posted Jun 10, 2009 12:04 pm GMT

    I was toying with buying Prototype this weekend. Now being reminded what a nasty company Activision are, there is no way they will get my money.

  • chupamelpo posted Jun 10, 2009 12:45 am GMT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    chupamelpo

    Posted Jun 10, 2009 12:45 am GMT (hide)

    i love crack

  • Darth_Ultima

    Posted Jun 9, 2009 8:56 pm GMT

    @ PyroPice Glade to see your proud to be an American. However I do not understand what being an American business owner has to do with being an %$#$hole. The fact that people think EA is the good guy should say something to the people at Activision. They obviously do not care about how they are perceived as a company and will steamroll anyone to get what they want. If EA can change the way they do business then so can Activision. They will not get my money so long as they are acting this way. Activision decided that they did not want to do business with Double Fine. So Double Fine went out and found a new publisher. The decent thing to do would be to let them move on. But I do not think that common decency means anything to someone like you.

  • The_Blademaster

    Posted Jun 9, 2009 5:26 pm GMT

    How lame. If Activision 'dropped' the title, the least they could do is give it to someone else to make. It looks quite humerous, and there is no justification for mearly letting the title disappear.

  • xtiansk8

    Posted Jun 9, 2009 4:10 pm GMT

    I hope activision doesn't blow it.

  • Rizer

    Posted Jun 9, 2009 3:47 pm GMT

    the unnamed source is right. You don't get the gold once you already sold the mine.

  • p_lacount

    Posted Jun 9, 2009 3:26 pm GMT

    I hope Activision loses this and Brutal Legend does extremely well because of the increased attention Activisions lawsuit has brought to this game. At first I wasn't interested in the game but seeing how Activision is making a huge deal out if it now has got me wanting to purchase it when it comes out.

  • SQUALL20XX

    Posted Jun 9, 2009 2:53 pm GMT

    Oh come on activision stop it