Copyrighted materials in video games have always been a notable source of legal action that continues to alter how games are played, viewed, and interacted with. While most players often associated copyright claims with music featured in games or streams, there is a growing trend of publishers and developers facing lawsuits over character designs. Activision is one such publisher that faces numerous copyright lawsuits with regards to characters, but a recent judgement regarding Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 has served as another win for the company.
Back in February 2019, professional wrestler Booker Tio Huffman who goes by the ring name Booker T had filed a copyright claim against Activision. The copyright claim was against the Call of Duty Black Ops 4 character Prophet which Booker T believed to be copied from his "G.I. Bro" comic book character. Now after going to court, Activision has won the case against Booker T putting an end to what has been a two year long legal dispute.
Activision representatives would comment on the lawsuit's judgment noting that "to call this a frivolous case would be a massive understatement." Activision Trial Counsel E. Leon Carter would further elaborate that "Activision creates games with the utmost integrity" noting how the jury validated the creative process of Activision developed games.
While the case revolved around Booker T's comic of "G.I. Bro and the Dragon of Death," the character actually dates back much further being an early gimmick for Booker T. "G.I. Bro" was actually Booker T's first ring name, dating back to before he and his brother Stevie Ray would debut in World Championship Wrestling as the tag team Harlem Heat. G.I. Bro would later return a decade later as Booker T reprised the character in 2000 as part of the Misfits in Action stable in WCW. While a part of Booker T's career, the character was never featured in any WCW games, which might explain Booker T's distaste for video games in the locker room.
Since then, Booker T has continued to use the character in various forms of media, the most recent being the aforementioned 2015 comic which was the basis of his lawsuit against Activision. Micah Dortch, who represented Booker T in the original claim, noted that when examining both characters there was "no question" about the influence of G.I. Bro on Prophet. In response, Activision's representation argued that the similarities with the Call of Duty character were exaggerated in Booker T's lawsuit and dismiss the assertion that the G.I. Bro poster was used as a basis by the design team.
While Activision has won this most recent judgement, it likely won't be the last copyright claim over character design. Recent years have seen many famous figures note references in designs and actions that infringe on copyrighted material. The most notable being the lawsuit against Epic Games over the "Carlton Dance" in Fortnite.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is out now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.