Epic Games gets sued by Canadian parents claiming 'Fortnite' is too 'addictive'

Source: Epic Games

A Quebec judge is allowing parents to pursue a class-action suit against Epic Games for making Fortnite too "addictive." Quebec Superior Court Justice Sylvain Lussier has authorized a lawsuit originally filed in 2019 against the game developer, alleging Fortnite is so addictive it was causing real-life problems. 

The parents of three children who spent thousands of dollars playing the game say it has caused their kids psychological, financial, and physical harm. They claim their kids spent hundreds of dollars on its in-game currency (called V-Bucks), sometimes without their knowledge. They also said the children would have "panic attacks" over Fortnite, with one of the kids frequently playing until 3 AM playing over 7,781 hours of the game in less than two years. Another is said to have played 59,954. Calex, the firm representing the parents, cited addiction specialist Anita Ghadia-Smith who compared the game to cocaine. 

While the lawsuit is moving forward, the judge has said there's "no certainty" that Fornite is deliberately addictive. But he wrote in his ruling, it “does not preclude the possibility that the game is in fact addictive and that its creator and distributor are presumed to know this.”

Epic Games has 30 days to appeal the decision or they'll be forced to defend the allegations in court. Damages will be determined later, but parents are seeking "restitution" for V-Bucks purchases made by the children when they were under 18 years old.

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