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Joystiq

Midway wins Psi-Ops copyright infringement lawsuit

by Griffin McElroy on Dec 7th 2008 7:30PM

Earlier last year, screenwriter William L. Crawford III sued Midway, claiming they had stolen the plot, characters and designs featured in his 2001 screenplay, titled Psi-Ops, for their 2004 action game ... titled Psi-Ops. We kinda see the similarities therein, and were fairly certain Crawford would leave the courtroom with 1.5 million of Midway's dollars in his pocket.

We were wrong. Not only about Crawford's ability to carry $1.5 million in his pants (the logistics of which are, well, impossible), but also about how the presiding judge would rule in the case -- according to Kotaku, federal Judge Florence Marie-Cooper recently decided that there was "minimal evidence supporting a reasonable possibility" that Midway had stolen any ideas from Crawford's screenplay, clearing Midway of the copyright infringement charges. That's $1.5 million that Midway no longer has to worry about paying out. Now, about that other $150 million...

[Via Big Download]

Source

Tags: copyright-infringement, lawsuit, midway, psi-ops

Reader Comments (44)

Though not saving their asses.. the fact Midway got a break at all in their situation is amazing.

And now that the legal issues are gone,i suggest someone take the rights to the game from the dying midway and make a sequel..

Seriously,this game was one of those hidden gems of last gen.Nothing beats setting a guy on fire,throwing him at someone with telekenisis,then popping his head with your vulcan mind meltdoown

sadistic bastard I am, I preferred mind controlling the guys and clicking both analogs to make them shoot themselves in the head.

Good times

Not to mention the damned game ends on a cliffhanger. Make it happen!

Plzoplzoplzoplzoplzoplzoplz make a sequel.

plz?

i swear, i've been screaming this forever, the voice acting sucked but it was an extremely fun game.

on another note, joystiq seriously the getting stuck in long black pages from your ads is so annoying its really making me not want to come back. i dont use adblock because i want to support your site, but i may just have to get it.

That was a pretty cool game. Make another to take advantage of the brown, bloom and motion blur of this generation.

I love me some brown.

... does that sound wrong?

Infamous?

i just wanted to comment on your avatar/nickname...i dont think ive laughed out loud that hard in a very long time

Yeah sounds like you have some kind of doo doo fetish.

What can Brown do for you?

Turn you on!

@Hyams

Gordon Brown? Everyone would love a bit of him...

Never a frown, with Gordon Brown.

I'll bet someone here has my first name. Speak up! I'm hankering for some lawsuit action.

Uh...

Sorry, wrong post.

I don't have it.

Psi-Ops? What does the ops stand for, like open faced sandwich or operectomy, or something?

I heard the producer really liked the board game "Operation", so he just went with it.

Now where is Psi Ops 2?

Hmm... though serving as only a warning this time, this case brings up a potential problem that those in the future might someday have to deal with: like it was stated, there AREN'T any million-dollars-in-cash-enabled pants in existence. I shall set to work making a pair that can hold $900,000, and then sell them to the winner for $100,000!

If the condition for me being given $1.5 million was whether I could fit it in my pockets, I guarantee you I'd find a way to make it all fit in there.

A cheque?

Yeah, that's the first thing that came into my mind as well, but that would be too easy :p

Hording large amounts of cash is shit loads more fun than a check. Look a Link.

holding a shit loaded with cash is not as fun as it may sound

i wanted this game and another like it years back. i never had the cash when i could think of them or they were back ordered

Great jobs Midway, now make a sequel to that awesome game for the current gen consoles.

that was a pretty awesome game

There is a $1 Million bill, it's just more of a novelty than a practicality, but it does exist

The jury probably just figured they couldn't draw blood from a stone. 1.5 Million? From Midway?

come on, like those jurors had any idea what financial trouble midway is in, or even who midway is really

um.....your an idiot

There is no such thing as a million dollar bill....

the us mints largest bill is 1000 and the largest ever printed was 100,000 in 1934...and it was not a bill but a gold certificate....

read a book

"your an idiot"

That phrase slays me.

Ditto on the sequel idea.

I just wish MS would add the original to the 360 backward compatibility list. I own the game but can't actually play it :(

Fucking screen writers trying to steal game ideas >:(

Wouldn't it be awesome if Psi-Ops 2 was the game that midway was saying looked better then Gears 2!
Though that's a long shot

PSI-OPS 2 CONFIRMED!

"That's $1.5 million that Midway no longer has to worry about paying out. Now, about that other $150 million..."

stole my joke

Now if only we could see a sequel...

I preferred Second Sight.

Psi-Ops 2 please! Make it happen Midway!

You lost me at "according to Kotaku"

Now, if only she could preside over any of the number of the Wii Remote infringement claim suits.

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Breaking News

Midway wins Psi-Ops copyright infringement lawsuit

Reader Comments (44)

Posted: Dec 7th 2008 7:40PM Greyze said

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