Lawyers have furiously filed lawsuits against the biggest video game companies, accusing them of video game addiction: developers and publishers intentionally making their games as addictive as possible to get money out of players’ pockets. Activision Blizzard, Epic Games, Nintendo, Sony Interactive Entertainment and Roblox have been named in most – if not all – of the more than 12 lawsuits filed in the past two years.
At least 11 of the lawsuits were filed by Bullock Ward Mason, an Atlanta-based law firm that claims on its website that the companies’ games are “intentionally designed with the help of behavioral psychologists and ndollarscientists with PhDs” to keep players engaged and spending money. At first glance, the lawsuits are an attempt to hold a powerful industry accountable. (At least a lawsuit was dismissedbut others are still in court. Lawyers in 15 lawsuits trying to consolidate in a mega suit Earlier this year, the case was he ard in a single court, but that motion was denied due to the differences in each case. Microsoft, Epic Games, Meta and others want to dismiss the lawsuits and move the various cases to arbitration; Polygon has reached out for comment.) In addition to the Activision Blizzards and Nintendos of the industry, at least one of these lawsuits raises the addiction allegations not just against major studios, but also against small studios with solo developers. A parent, on behalf of his own teenager and represented in part by Bullock Mason Ward, is suing the 14-year-old developer of a virtual reality game called Capuchin
James Napier, whom Polygon interviewed along with his mother Jennifer Napier, uses the name Banana Analytics for his game Capuchinan iteration of the popular VR game Gorilla Day. Capuchin was released on the Meta Quest Store in 2022 and has thousands of concurrent players. Banana Analytics is now a registered company owned by Napier and his parents. Napier started developing VR games when he was introduced to Unity in 2020 – when he was 10 years old. First, he made Penguin gamewhich he described as a “small VR project” before moving on to CapuchinLike millions of other young people, Napier played Gorilla Daya VR game that is exactly what it sounds like and is the inspiration for Capuchin. Gorilla Day was released in 2021 by Another Axiom, another studio named in this particular lawsuit. Gorilla Day is a mega hit, attracts 1 million active players daily As of June 2024, according to VentureBeat.
“I did it in my room”
“I wanted to cre ate something that would fill what I thought they were missing,” said Napier. “That’s when Capuchin
“It was an interesting feeling [to learn about the lawsuit]”, said Napier. “It was not a good feeling. But it showed me how big Capuchin had become so complicated that we also became involved in this litigation with companies that have billions of dollars.”
KC, the pseudonym of the minor on whose behalf the lawsuit was filed, was 12 years old when his parents filed the suit with Bullock Ward Mason. According to the lawsuit, the child began playing video games at age 6 and “continues to play at an increasing and uncontrollable rate.” Attorneys claim that KC has experienced “a decline in grades, aggression, depression, anxiety, withdrawal symptoms when not playing, withdrawal from daily activities, changes in eating behavior, grief, anger, poor hygiene and physical pain in the hands, eyes and back” due to the “brain damage, gaming addiction and harm” caused by gaming, according to the lawsuit. Carey Courtright, KC’s mother, says she has “given up hope that she could control KC’s gaming time.”
The argument against Capuchin (and all other games of the companies named in the lawsuit) is that it “contains significant psychological aspects that encourage continuous gaming and eventually lead to addiction – particularly among minors, young adults, and neurodiverse individuals.” It is alleged that “Banana Analytics has specifically developed Capuchin working with psychologists and ndollarscientists to figure out what addictive aspects they can build in to their games, and/or basing their game design on that of another game that includes features designed in collaboration with psychologists and ndollarscientists to be as addictive as possible.” The wording of this claim is nearly identical for all of the games listed in the lawsuit, regardless of which studio or company developed the game in question. It also alleges that the studios in question, including Banana Analytics, own patents for “addictive technology.”
“I made it in my room,” said Napier, now 14, when asked if he consulted psychologists or ndollarscientists in creating it. Capuchin. Polygon could not find any patents in Napier’s or his parents’ names in public records. We’ve also reached out to the plaintiff’s lawyers to clarify these allegations. Napier made the game himself, with the help of a friend or two here and there, he said. Of course, he needed his parents’ permission and help to set up the business since he’s younger than 18. His father, Jeff Napier, helps pay the server bills and now legal fees. He even had to get his parents’ permission before adding cosmetics Capuchin; he sells bananas, which players can use to buy hats and costumes for their monkeys.
Napier did not want to reveal how much money he earned with Capuchinbut his mother said fighting the lawsuit cost $15,000 – money that Banana Analytics took from its profits. “As a parent, it’s frustrating because that’s James’ business money,” Jennifer said. The money could have been used for college, she said, but now it’s being used for a lawsuit. “It just sucks,” Napier added.
Napier and his mother said the experience was stressful for their entire family. They said they tried to contact the plaintiff’s lawyers and explain that given the way the game was made, Napier does not have the resources alleged in the lawsuit. (Polygon also contacted Bullock Legal Group about this.) Jennifer said that on one hand she is proud of the success Napier has had in game development at such a young age, but on the other she feels protective of him and wonders what that success can look like.
“One of the things [James] shared with me when he wanted to create this game and I thought that was so cool and I was so proud of him as a parent that he just wanted to fill in the gaps. When he created the game, he saw the gaps in Gorilla Day. He heard complaints from other players when he was in the community. And that’s what he wanted to do: create a safe, fun place for these kids to come and play. If you look at his terms of service, he stuck to them. People were mad at him because he was kicking people out for racial slurs, swearing, things like that,” Jennifer said.
She continued, “He was just trying to keep it good and fun. Being a part of that is really daunting for the gaming community. As a mother, I’m cautious sometimes and I’m not sure I want him to join in now for those reasons.”