2011 is shaping up to be a great year for video games. Titles like Dead Space 2, Portal 2, Bulletstorm, Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, L.A. Noir and many more are reasons why this year will be great. But there are two events that will happen this year that the gaming industry will be keeping its eyes on very closely, and they will not be on consoles, but in the courts.
The first event will be a battle between ex-heads of Infinity Ward, Vince Zampella and Jason West, and Activision. In March of 2010, Activision fired Zampella and West, who are the creators of the very popular and lucrative Call of Duty games, after claims by Activison of breaches of contract and insubordination. Activision is suing for the said accusations, and Zampella and West responded with a counter suit, claiming that Activision avoided paying royalties by firing Zampella and West. The two parties were originally to meet in court in May, but Activision decided to include Electronic Arts in their lawsuit, claiming EA persuaded Zampella and West to leave Infinity Ward in an attempt to sabotage Activision, and because of this inclusion, the trial has been pushed back to a later date. No matter which side is at fault, this case will be an example of how thin relationships between developers and publishers can potentially be.
The second event involves the Supreme Court and the first amendment right. On November 2, 2010, as the country was in voting booths picking new governors and new bills, law makers from California were defending their proposed bill that would make it illegal to sell violent video games to minors. The bill, which was first introduced in 2005, has been criticized by the video game industry as being unconstitutional because it violates the game developers and publishers their first amendment rights. The Supreme Court saw the case in November and have until June of this year to decide on a ruling. It is perhaps the most important decision of the year for the video game industry, and will be interesting to see how the industry reacts to whatever decision is made.
This is of course is a quick rundown of the two cases. We will have a closer look at both cases, including the decisions, and potential impact of those decisions as the court dates get closer, but be ready to strap into a dramatic, and bumpy ride.
