SEGA and Gearbox are facing a class action lawsuit claiming the pair mislead consumers with advertising which “bore little resemblance to the retail product”.
The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of California court by law firm Edelson LLC on behalf of plaintiff Damion Perrine.
“Each of the ‘actual gameplay’ demonstrations purported to show consumers exactly what they would be buying: a cutting edge video game with very specific features and qualities,” the claim reads. “Unfortunately for their fans, 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 gaming community had a strong reaction to the release of Aliens: Colonial Marines,” said Edelson LLC’s Ben Thomassen. “We think the video game industry is no different than any other that deals with consumers: if companies like Sega and Gearbox promise their customers one thing but deliver something else, then they should be held accountable for that decision.”.