A Maine mother has filed a lawsuit against the makers of several popular video games, alleging that they profited off of children’s addiction to their products.
“This litigation is not a war on fun,” said the complaint, filed by Somerset County mom Casey Henderson.
Spanning 83 pages in total, Henderson’s initial complaint alleges that the companies behind games like Roblox, Minecraft, and Fortnite have concealed and “exacerbated” the risks their products pose to children in the name of increasing profits.
Sparking the lawsuit was Henderson’s experience with her now nine-year-old child, who she says first began playing these video games when he was just four.
It is alleged in the complaint that these games are deliberately addictive in nature and purposefully marketed toward children. She goes on to suggest that because of this, they have had a negative impact on her child, leading to the development of significant mental and emotional difficulties.
She highlights in the lawsuit how the games in question — and their monetization models — differ from those of other older video game titles, creating the alleged problems she identifies in her complaint.
Instead of relying on a more costly one-time payment made upfront by consumers, many games today lean more heavily on what are known as “microtransactions” — low-cost purchases made in-game that typically provide cosmetic updates for characters, help players speed up their progress, or give access to a “season pass” that allows users to access a selection of exclusive content.
These purchases are typically advertised to players in-game through pop-ups, loading screens, and in-game stores.
The complaint goes on to suggest that “modern gaming companies are enlisting PhD behavioral psychologists and using research to implement programming into their games that will addict players with a goal of increasing the amount of time spent in game.”
Henderson went to allege in her complaint that this research is sometimes used to provide “features that encourage the player to reach a flow state of continuous gameplay, thereby prolonging their exposure to in-game marketing for in-game purchases in order to improve the odds players will engage with microtransactions that generate profits for the game developer.”
“Each Defendant is aware that the more time an individual spends playing their respective games and on their platforms, the higher the likelihood that said individuals will make in-game purchases, thereby increasing each Defendant’s revenue,” the complaint reads. “Each Defendant is also aware that for more than four decades scientists have known about and studied video game addiction.”
“Furthermore, each Defendant is aware that for nearly two decades, science has shown that prolonged use of video games by minors can result in impacts on brain function, cognitive decline, and physical and emotional deficits,” said the complaint.
With this in mind, Henderson goes on to criticize the companies for allegedly marketing their products to minors despite failing to implement “simple safety features, such as adequate parental controls, warnings, or opt-in limits on the time minors can spend in-game.”
“Rather than taking necessary steps to mitigate the known risks associated with prolonged exposure of minors to video games, each Defendant intensified the problem by causing and profiting from youth addiction,” she said.
In providing context as to why her lawsuit names these games in particular, she notes that their “marketing strategies specifically target youth,” allegedly creating a situation where these three games “are often among the first online video games children play and the catalyst to an addiction cycle and disordered relationship with video games.”
Henderson goes on to argue that her own child “developed a disordered relationship with and became addicted to video games” as a result of playing Roblox, Minecraft, and Fortnite.
This addiction has allegedly led her child to suffer “from severe physical, emotional, and economic injuries, including diminished social interactions, lack of interest in other hobbies, and withdrawal symptoms such as rage, anger, and physical outbursts.”
“Each Defendant intentionally caused and designed their respective Products to most effectively cause users with developing brains to become addicted or disordered in their desire to use the Products,” Henderson alleged.
“Any attempt to remove [her child] from their games is met with severe withdrawal symptoms including anger, and refusal to maintain proper hygiene or sleep,” Henderson alleged. “Each Defendant has engaged in deceptive, unfair, immoral, and reckless behavior that damaged and continues to harm [her child] and countless other Mainers and Americans.”
As a result of this lawsuit, Henderson is seeking damages, “including pain and suffering and emotional distress,” past and future economic damages, medical expenses and attorneys’ fees.
