Parents Sue Fortnite Creator, Saying Children Are Addicted to the Game

• Parents claim that their children were addicted to Fortnite.
• The class-action lawsuit was approved by the Canada Supreme Court on Wednesday.
• “We intend to fight this at court. Epic Games stated in a statement that they believe the evidence will prove this case to be unfounded.

A Canadian Supreme Court judge approved a lawsuit against Fortnite’s maker filed by Quebec parents who claim their children were addicted to the game.

Justice Sylvain Liussier was informed by three parents that their children were becoming severely dependent on Fortnite. They stopped eating, sleeping, and even showering because of this. BBC News reports.

Lussier’s Wednesday ruling confirmed that the class action suit was not “frivolous nor manifestly ill-founded.” according to Global News.

Lussier ruled that “the court concludes there is a serious problem to be argued, supported with sufficient and specific allegations regarding the existence of dangers or even risks arising out of the use of Fortnite.”

The attorney representing the firm that brought the suit said that Epic Games’ maker was likened to a tobacco company in an interview and that the legal responsibility was “basically” the same.

Global News reported that lawyer Alessandra Eposito Chartrand stated, “Our motion was heavily inspired from the tobacco motion just as it relates to what we were alleging.”

Lussier agreed with the comparison of tobacco and video games addictions. “The harmful effects of tobacco were not acknowledged or admitted overnight,” he said.

However, the court disagreed that Epic Games had made Fortnite addictive.

“The court finds no evidence for these allegations regarding the deliberate creation an addictive game,” the judge wrote. “This does NOT exclude the possibility of the game being addictive and that its creator and distributor are presumed aware of it.”

BBC obtained a statement from Epic Games denying the validity of the suit.

The company stated that parents can request playtime reports to track their child’s play time each week and that they must give permission before purchasing any products.

“We will fight this in court. We believe that the evidence will prove that this case has no merit.

Fortnite has an average of more than 80 million active players per month. according to techacake.com. Other Fortnite players in Quebec have been included in the class-action because they believe they have experienced symptoms of addiction.