
After filing cases against Sony for various reasons such as violation of his rights to the First Amendment, his broken Xbox360 caused him “undue stress”, and for the Nintendo Wii for interfering with his “right to pursue happiness”, Erik Estavillo of San Jose, California is at it again. This time, he has turned his attention against Blizzard and World of Warcraft. Estavillo claimed that the game has a “harmful virtual environment” with “sneaky and deceitful practices.”
He recently filed the $1M suit against Blizzard for causing him undue mental health.
Here’s the excerpt from the report at Gamespot:
He first takes exception to the game’s $14.99 monthly subscription fee, calling it the highest of any MMORPG. He contends the fee is aggravated by the game requiring players to travel great distances at a slow walking or running pace, with fast travel options like teleportation stones and mounts only available to gamers who rise to an advanced level or purchase the game’s expansion packs.
He also cited the game’s resurrection process, in which players travel in spirit from cemeteries back to the spots where they died in order to revive themselves, as an unnecessary part of the game designed to cost gamers money. Other fees at issue include the charges (up to $25) Blizzard levies to change their characters’ names, races, factions, or servers.
In addition to the suit, the plaintiff also wants a pair of celebrities to attest to the effects of alienation. The gamer is subpoenaing Depeche Mode’s Martin Lee Gore “since he himself has been known to be sad, lonely, and alienated, as can be seen in the songs he writes.” He is also calling Winona Ryder to testify, saying the actress’ appreciation for Catcher in the Rye will make her a relevant witness “to how alienation in the book can tie to alienation in real live [sic]/video games such as World of Warcraft.”
The gamer is asking for $1 million in punitive damages and a court order forcing Activision Blizzard to address the problems alleged in the suit. As of press time, representatives with Activision and Blizzard had not returned GameSpot’s requests for comment.
The other cases against Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft have already been dismissed. Best of luck here, Mr. Estavillo. Well… you got one thing right – you do have mental health issues. Lolz!
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