Take-Two (finally) settles with investors for $20m over 'Hot Coffee' losses
by Randy Nelson 
{ Sep 1st 2009 at 6:30PM }
According to Take-Two, class members will receive a share of a $20.1 million settlement. (Investors had originally demanded a jury trial and an undisclosed amount to cover their losses, attorney fees, etc.) In a prepared statement, Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick said, "We are pleased to have reached this settlement, which represents another important step forward for the Company." Not as pleased as the plaintiffs are, we bet.
[Image credit: Kanko]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Sly [Planeteer | Power of Teets & Crumpets] @ Sep 1st 2009 6:33PM
$20.1? not bad, not bad at all.
jedimacfan @ Sep 1st 2009 8:21PM
Yea, if only someone had put an "M" rating logo on the package to "warn" people of the contents of this game. Oh, wait...
HippoHero @ Sep 1st 2009 8:30PM
They shouldn't have had to account for the 'hot coffee' content in their rating at all because the only way you could play it is if you modded the game.
It would be like installing an anti-blur mod in The Sims and going "OMG! pornography!"
Radical Dylan @ Sep 1st 2009 6:40PM
I was looking at the picture, and kept seeing some gruesome beast... with a long tongue...
Special Agent Steve @ Sep 1st 2009 6:47PM
Lol, me too.
Markez @ Sep 1st 2009 6:52PM
Yeah but it's iced coffee? Not hot coffee? Zuh?
[Tre, aka YOUR FATHER, FOOL] [blogs at trespeak.tumblr.com] @ Sep 1st 2009 6:58PM
Did the beast have six fingers?
Was it a chicken?
If it was, did it have large talons?
The Dark Wayne @ Sep 1st 2009 7:12PM
lol i see it too
Lukeyo @ Sep 1st 2009 7:26PM
Yeah at first I saw one of those Lickers from Resident Evil 2. Then a mangled Carnage. Then I read the headline and proceeded to facepalm.
Roger @ Sep 1st 2009 8:17PM
I saw a fly or a smoker at first but now it looks like a glass of RC cola.
Wardo @ Sep 1st 2009 6:44PM
That picture is actually making me kind of thirsty...
nick @ Sep 1st 2009 7:18PM
Me too. That's a great photo.
Kinsey @ Sep 1st 2009 7:30PM
Its the damn yellow ... it makes people hungry and thirsty
The Baron @ Sep 1st 2009 7:01PM
They should have just fully developed the sex minigame and put it in from the start. I guarantee that it would have doubled the already pretty insane sales figures.
Ignatius @ Sep 1st 2009 7:09PM
Except for the policy against AO games by both stores and by the console makers. They would have never been able to sell it in a store, let alone have it work on the console. I forget if Sony has a no-AO policy or not, but it seems pretty universal.
The Baron @ Sep 1st 2009 8:09PM
Oh yeah, I forgot about the console makers. I'm sure given the hype around the game at the time a fair few stores would have carried the game anyway though.
Lucas Coberly @ Sep 1st 2009 7:05PM
Broken link on hot cofee
Wardo @ Sep 1st 2009 7:16PM
I know, what a cock tease.
The Dark Wayne @ Sep 1st 2009 7:16PM
I still dont understand why it got to AO, all the news people reporting on it completely ignored you had to illegitimately mod your console to get it, so there was no reason to make it Ao.
Wardo @ Sep 1st 2009 7:18PM
Has the news ever reported a gaming scandal with actual good reporting? They just want to find evidence that gaming is the devil.
Blank-Mage @ Sep 1st 2009 7:49PM
That would be Dante's Inferno.
The Baron @ Sep 1st 2009 8:12PM
I think it was just that the content was on the disc. They did the same to Oblivion.
Here's a thought: if Guitar Hero came with a porno bonus video that you had to beat a literally impossible song to unlock, would it be classed as AO?
Shmoops @ Sep 1st 2009 7:50PM
"Cost the plaintiff a whole lot of beans"
... I think you mean the defendants.
Kevin949 @ Sep 1st 2009 8:13PM
No, they mean the plaintiffs, because they're talking about the investors (the plaintiffs) when they lost money due to the stock dropping.
Re-read the article, you'll get it.
Plastic Rat @ Sep 1st 2009 10:55PM
Wow, if there ever was anything that showcased the myriad facets of utter stupidity in today's culture it was this debacle.
vdeogmer @ Sep 1st 2009 11:56PM
I never did see why Hot Coffee mattered at all, it was completely inaccessible to anyone who wasn't purposefully modding their game to look for it.
gfan102 @ Sep 2nd 2009 2:53AM
Its funny Take two may have one of the best known gaming franchise GTA, but it seems like they always end up paying big money to some one or losing money each year.
rbtroj @ Sep 2nd 2009 12:03PM
How do I get my $0.79 of the settlement? I assume $20 million will go to the lawyers, and the $0.1 million will go to the class members.