French mobile games firm Voodoo has successfully sued Zynga-owned hypercasual studio Rollic.
As reported by the Financial Times, the Paris-based company sued the Istanbul-based firm – acquired by Zynga in August – earlier this year, after Rollic and the game’s developer Hero Games updated its hypercasual title Wood Shop, a rival game to Voodoo’s woodturning. However, the French firm claimed that Rollic took attributes from its title, namely adding polishing and painting stages.
“We’re super excited at the outcome. The decision of the court sets a precedent especially for hyper-casual game copies,” said Voodoo head of publishing Alexander Shea.
The ruling will see Rollic pay €125,000 in damages, along with Wood Shop being removed from app stores. Rollic and Hero Games will also have to publish an announcement about the judgement in three magazines or newspapers of Voodoo’s choosing.
Easily copied
Many hypercasual titles share similar characteristics. However, Voodoo’s legal counsel Nassim Ameli-Jouffroy claimed that “because it’s out in the public from a very early stage, there’s high visibility and games are easily copied.”
She went on to explain that “there is very little precedent in the hyper-casual sphere about where the line is to protect your games.”
Shea added: “Ninety-nine per cent of studios absolutely hate copies. That one per cent ruins it for the great developers out there. We invest heavily into a game that is being copied so that the road-map is quicker and so that the original is always better than its copy.”
Recently, the French mobile games developer and publisher has expanded across Asia with multiple offices.
