Gearbox responds to Aliens class-action lawsuit, throws Sega under bus

Historically, the biggest class-action lawsuits filed against video game companies have stemmed from antitrust and monopoly accusations, such as Nintendo's alleged price-fixing in 1991 or EA's football-series monopolies in the mid-'00s. But in some cases, like a filing over the 2013 shooter Aliens: Colonial Marines, the suit's terms boiled down to little more than "the game stinks."

That's what happened when two fans sued producer Sega and developer Gearbox in May 2013 over that disastrous Aliens game, alleging that the game's previews were so different from the retail release that they "misled" shoppers. On Thursday, over a year after the suit was filed, Gearbox finally responded with a motion for dismissal—and revealed more of the game's woes in the process.

One section of the motion, penned by Gearbox Marketing Director Steve Gibson, recounted the game's development timeline in order to distance itself from any financial obligation should the lawsuit turn out in the plaintiffs' favor. In particular, Gibson alleged that "Gearbox supplemented Sega’s development budget with its own money" to the tune of millions, "none of which was ever repaid."

While no concrete sales figures were mentioned, Gibson confirmed that the game didn't sell enough copies to "trigger any sales-based payments." Additionally, Gibson pointed out Sega's many responsibilities in approving, promoting, and selling the game, and he repeatedly reminded readers that Sega, not Gearbox, was A:CM's publisher.

Gearbox's response ultimately deflected the issue of whether or not the basic allegation was valid. "Plaintiffs’ allegations, even if true, have no merit as a classaction," Gearbox wrote, claiming that the plaintiffs' personal shopping stories weren't wide-reaching enough. Thus, no solid connection could be proven between preview footage on YouTube and how many purchases it may have coerced. (One may wonder how the marketing departments at Sega felt about such a dismissal of preview events and YouTube footage.)

Gearbox probably needed to emphasize that "even if true" part, because company CEO Randy Pitchford had already affirmed fans' complaints over the discrepancy between preview footage and actual gameplay. In February 2013, Pitchford replied to an upset fan on Twitter who asked why the game and its preview demos looked so different. "That is understood and fair," he said. Nearly a year later, Sega ate its own slice of humble pie courtesy of the UK's Advertising Standards Authority.