The Coral Castle is a building that came with Season 3 of Fortnite. It is now the reason why the developer Epic Games received a lawsuit for copyright infringement.
What is the Coral Castle in Fortnite? Coral Castle is a so-called “Point of Interest” in Fortnite Season 3. Previously, there was a whirlpool in the water at this location, which dissipated on August 1.
It revealed a kind of Atlantis of Fortnite. It is a sunken area in the water with colorful corals, where various buildings and temples stand.
What is the “real” Coral Castle? At the same time, Coral Castle is also a real place in Florida, USA. Built by a man named Ed Leedskalnin, it is now a museum where stone monuments made of more than 1,100 tons of coral rock stand.
Leedskalnin worked for 28 years on his Coral Castle, which features carvings, furniture, bathrooms, and a castle tower. With a few exceptions, most of the items were made from individual coral rocks. It is also called “Florida’s Stonehenge.” (To the Wikipedia article)
Now the owners of Coral Castle are suing the developer Epic Games.
Why is Epic being sued? The name Coral Castle, Inc. is trademarked, and the company that owns the rights to the name is unhappy about the new building in Fortnite.
Accordingly, they filed a lawsuit against Epic in the Miami court. However, the name is not the only similarity that they claim exists between the Coral Castle in the game and the museum. There are also:
- “nautical and beach motifs
- parts of the castle
- stone objects
Furthermore, the lawsuit states that both the real and the virtual Coral Castle “evoke the feeling of an ancient and mysterious place.”
Thus, the building in Fortnite is, according to the plaintiff, a clear violation of copyright. Financial compensation is being demanded from Epic.
In general, there is a lot going on with Epic currently in terms of lawsuits. A few days ago, the company went to battle against Apple and Google.
