Gearbox and SEGA targeted for misleading advertising
SEGA and Gearbox have been slapped with a class action suit forAliens: Colonial Marines, accused oflyingabout the game to get it sold. It was only a matter of time.
Edelson LLC has taken the case, which alleges thatdemo footage was usedto promoteColonial Marines, advertising the shooter with images that “bore little resemblance” to the (un)finished product. The suit was filed on behalf of oneDamion Perrine.
“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,” reads the suit, as nabbed byPolygon.
“The gaming community had a strong reaction to the release ofAliens: Colonial Marines,” said Edelson, on why it took the case. “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.”
Some have wondered whyColonial Marinesis getting singled out, when games likeKillzone 2and evenBioShock Infinitehave demonstrated gameplay unrepresentative of the retail product. Indeed,Killzone 2‘s E3 demo was a sham, and Elizabeth has no horse resurrection scene inInfinite.
Well, aside from the fact that neitherKillzone 2norInfiniteturned out to be a load of buggy, undercooked, disrespectful shit, the major difference is that Gearbox and SEGAkept showing the false footage. The advertising standards authorityactually had to step into stop SEGA Europe misleading its customers with demo footage, weeks after the game had launched, while the American site still uses misleading videos and completely doctored screenshots to advertise the thing.
We got to see what the other games looked like before they were up for sale. Not so withColonial Marines.
I’m generally not a fan of class-action suits, but I’m not about to whip out a little violin and lament the inconveniencing of a pair of companies that still,despite claims of investigation, have refused to address why this game turned out the way it did, or evenwho actually developed the fucking thing. At the very least, it’d be nice to find out what went wrong, or at least get someone to stop showing images of players fighting an Alien Queen with a Power Loader, rather than pressing six buttons topatheticallyfling her out of an airlock.
We probablywon’tget answers, as those responsible for this mess have proven themselves slippery and obfuscating under pressure. It’d go some way toward making things right, though.
