
Remember to close the game and take a breather
BEACON TRANSCRIPT – The Russian courts might be seeing an odd case, as a man sues Bethesda for losing his wife over ‘Fallout 4’, which could admittedly be viewed as a compliment for the game developer. This likely falls under the category of ‘gaming is evil’ that restrictive parents so often tell their kids.
An unnamed 28 year-old man from Krasnoyarsk, Siberia is now suing Bethesda under the claims that he’d gotten so addicted that his life fell apart. He was glued to the screen, playing ‘Fallout 4’ for three straight weeks. During that time, he neglected his wife, friends, and even skipped work. Most of us might know the impulse of wanting to binge on gaming, but few actually do it in the face of responsibility.
However, it seems that the Russian man has taken dedication to another level. For 21 days, he isolated himself, reportedly not talking to his wife, friends, and refusing to go to work. His health has also taken a strong hit because of it. With barely any sleep, and no food, there were likely a few more consequences. So, on most aspects, personal, work, and health, the Russian man’s life was worse because of his addiction to ‘Fallout 4’. He ended up fired from his job, and left by his wife.
So, naturally, his decision was to sue Bethesda for creating such a magnificent game.
According to a statement allegedly released by the plaintiff, if he knew the game were so addictive, he would’ve never played it. At least not until he got time off work from the holidays. In his statement, he would’ve left it until Christmas or New Year’s when he had free time. That just paints a clearer picture and perhaps a bigger clue on why his marriage broke apart. It might’ve not been well received by his spouse if he played 24/7 during the holidays.
Regardless, he has reportedly filed a suit against Bethesda, demanding moral damages in the amount of 500,000 rubles (approximately $7,000).
While his reasons borderline on ridiculous, there is a company willing to represent him. According to Konstantin Bobrov, from the Single Center for Protection, they will be taking on this case. However, there are very few expectations to win, and it’s more a way to test out the Russian court regarding this sort of incidences. It’s certainly a first for them.
However, there have been numerous others in the United States. The court instantly deems them baseless though. It would be a good way to see how the Russians handle them.
According to the lawyer, their court doesn’t like to involve itself in matters of moral damages between a foreign company and a consumer. The firm is willing to see how far they can take it. Even if Bethesda loses, which is highly unlikely, it’s safe to say they can afford for $7,000 fine in exchange for the exceptional publicity.
‘Fallout 4’ is already a massively successful game. With added remarks of it becoming addictive, it might just draw more for the sake of a challenge. Could they resist it? Could they limit their time in the post-apocalyptic Boston in order to have an actual life? There are likely hundreds of thousands, if not more, who definitely can.
The case could be an interesting marketing scheme, or we might end up seeing disclaimers regarding addiction on games.
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