‘Call Of Duty’ publisher Activision files lawsuit against cheats website

Activision has filed a lawsuit against video game cheats website EngineOwning for “trafficking in circumvention devices”, predominantly in Call Of Duty.

Filed yesterday with the Central District of California, the lawsuit states that the trafficking, “intentional interference with contractual relations” and pushing of “unfair competition” from EngineOwning have damaged “Activision’s games, its overall business, and the experience of the COD player community.”

According to the document almost all modern Call Of Duty games are affected, and Blizzard’s (Activision’s affiliate) Overwatch is also suffering from cheating software developed by EngineOwning.

The cheats do things like allow players to see opponents through walls, automatically aim with aimbots, and generally give them typically unseen information. These malicious software products are being brought up in the lawsuit as Activision claims have “caused Activision to suffer massive and irreparable damage to its goodwill and reputation and to lose substantial revenue.”

Back in December it was announced that 48,000 bans had taken place in both Warzone and Vanguard to curb cheaters. This caused mixed responses from the community, as some were happy with the bans, whilst others saw it as yet another call for more permanent measures that prevent cheaters from entering the game in the first place.

The Call Of Duty owner and publisher is currently still embroiled in a slew of ongoing workplace and sexual harassment claims. Staff walkouts, calls from other gaming giants, and multiple lawsuits currently engulf the publisher.

Activision is also demanding that the case go to a jury trial, and the lawsuit was officially filed yesterday on January 4. This is a civil action seeking damages paid and injunctive relief.

In other news, Sony Interactive Entertainment has announced the PlayStation VR 2 alongside its specs, and upcoming exclusive title Horizon Call Of The Mountain.