In 2015, a group of players in the USA went to court and sued the MMORPG ArcheAge for “False Advertising” and loot boxes. Now, more than 4 years later, there is a settlement between the parties.
Update August 17, 2020: A few days ago, payments apparently started coming in for the plaintiffs, as various users reported on reddit. The amounts paid seemed to range between $2,000 (received by one of the main plaintiffs, Aaron Van Fleet) and $5.
Post from January 15, 2020 – What happened? Three players decided in October 2015 to sue the game ArcheAge and its western publisher, Trion Worlds. We reported on this in April 2018.
The reason for this was a promise made to subscribers that was later not fulfilled. Additionally, certain loot boxes sold through the real-money shop were criticized. They saw this as “False Advertising” and a breach of “Consumer Laws.”
Now, more than 4 years later, there is a positive news. They reached a settlement of $420,000, which will cover the court and attorney fees, but also compensate the players.
How did Trion Worlds respond? The negotiation with Trion Worlds dragged on for 3 years, partly due to issues with the EULA and the Terms of Use. A policy prohibited an out-of-court settlement, which Trion was actually aiming for. The lawsuit continued until the acquisition by the German company Gamigo on October 22, 2018.
Even after the acquisition, the lawsuit was maintained. They have now reached a settlement with an insurer of Trion Worlds.
But according to the statement of the plaintiffs, the company was still not willing to accept responsibility at the end:
Trion Worlds does not admit any wrongdoing and continues to deny the allegations made by the plaintiffs in their lawsuit.
Subscribers were supposed to receive a discount
Why was there a lawsuit? ArcheAge was sued by three players, Aaron Van Fleet, Paul Ovberg, and James Longfield, for two reasons:
- Firstly, they promoted their patron program at launch with the promise that players with a subscription would receive a 10% discount in the MMORPG’s real-money shop. However, this was not implemented, as a old forum post indicates. The effort required was simply too high. Instead, patron users received 10% more real-money currency when they purchased it.
- Secondly, the allegations were directed at the “Supply Crates.” These are loot boxes containing virtual items. Some of them were very rare but also very valuable. Thus, the allegation arose that ArcheAge operates a virtual lottery.
Could they have won in court? This question is now on the table. The document summarizing the information around the process states that the parties disagree on who would have won in a legal dispute.
However, the past shows that there can be success in the fight against loot boxes:
- In Star Wars Battlefront 2, loot boxes were removed due to significant criticism and replaced with a new system.
- In Belgium, loot boxes are now considered gambling. Some game developers, including EA, had to remove their boxes.
- The console manufacturers Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo want to ensure that future loot boxes are fairer.
Who benefits from the lawsuit? Players from the USA who had an active subscription and purchased items from the marketplace or who purchased one of the loot boxes before October 22, 2018, will benefit from the lawsuit.
Who exactly qualifies for this can be read on a dedicated website. There is also a form available to submit a claim.
How much each player receives will depend on how many people make a claim on the money.
