Aliens: Colonial Marines drew ire from gaming fans due to its shoddy gameplay and overall lackluster production. The quality, or lack thereof, was so substantial that a lawsuit was filed in a Californian court on Apr. 30 by law firm Edelson LLC at the behest of Damion Perrine for false advertising.
Within the lawsuit, Perrine claims that builds shown off at events such as PAX and E3 were in no way indicative of how the final product would ultimately turn out. The suit further claims that the enforcement press embargoes, which were lifted the very morning of the game’s release, meant that game media could not alert early adopters of the disparity in quality between the demos and the final. It finally claims damages for players who pre-ordered the game or purchased the game on launch.
“Unfortunately for their fans, [the] Defendants never told anyone – consumers, industry critics, reviewers, or reporters – that their ‘actual gameplay’ demonstration advertising campaign bore little resemblance to the retail product that would eventually be sold to a large community of unwitting purchasers,” the suit reads.
This adds another chapter in a laundry list of complaints and allegations against the game, including an anonymous report that Gearbox may have mishandled funds from Sega intended for Colonial Marines’ development. Gearbox President Randy Pitchford, who responded to fan criticism of the game in February via his Twitter account, is also named in the suit
SEGA acknowledged last month that footage of the game didn’t reflect the final product, calling the adverts “inaccurate.” The company promised that future footage will be marked as “demo versions.”
[Source: Polygon]
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good. Im usually very easy going about flaws in games for small mechanics errors or graphics that look outdated. I had originally planned to pre-order the collectors edition but decided against it to to all the pre-release rumors. Im glad I did because when I decided to redbox it to try it out I was appalled by just how bad it actually was. Huge disappointment :[
Kinda split on this. Gearbox are awful and I will never buy another game from them regardless of how good it is. However, Sega were still quite happy to put it on store shelves…
Aren’t pre-release demos just that? Demos, and not the final product? At PAX and E3, was it stated that people were playing the final product? I’ve never played a game demo, and the rep says “this is exactly what you’ll see on release!” – it’s always “this is a pre-release demo, it does not reflect the final product”
@ Barry: All due respect Barry, but games get more polished and finished after demo, not uglier and buggier.
About Fucking time somebody sued Sega for this.
We should all sue Sega every time they drop the ball.
They have exploited us long enough, next time they fuck up a franchsie, we will get our money BACK!
I’m glad that pso2 doesn’t fall into this category…lol
Curious, is it just gearbox, or is Sega being sued as well?
Both companies.
I’m not really sure about what this individual would be entitled to. A refund? I mean, all Gearbox did is make a product, SEGA published it, and the guy bought it. So okay, ask for a refund. But winning additional money would be completely absurd.
People suffer from buyer’s remorse all the time. Return the thing, or just suck it up. I do think that based on info floated around by anonymous source, there should be some lawsuits surrounding the game, but by some random fan? What a complete and utter load of bull. I would be astonished if they won anything.