It’s no secret that Pokemon GO Fest was something of a disaster. Although the event was supposed to be a celebration of Pokemon GO’s first birthday and a chance to collect rare Pokemon with community members, cellular problems soured the day and resulted in Niantic refunding attendees and gifting them some special in-game goodies. But that compensation was apparently not enough.

Jonathan Norton, a California-based Pokemon GO Fest, has filed a class action lawsuit against Niantic Inc. Norton claims that the developer/publisher did not provide the “special Pokemon and other rewards” that were a key selling point of the event.

For those that might not have followed the weekend’s events, Pokemon GO Fest was supposed to feature special events and challenges in which attendees would catch tons of Pokemon. However, what they got was an endless stream of connection errors, as most struggled to access the game.

Since Norton’s filing, several other attendees have joined the class action lawsuit, but it’s unclear at this time what type of compensation the plaintiffs are seeking. Obviously, Norton and others spent money on airfare and hotel accommodations for Pokemon GO Fest, but the suit may be seeking additional damages as well.

As far as Niantic’s response to the Pokemon GO Fest failure is concerned, the developer tried to compensate attendees by refunding their ticket price, giving them in-game money, and gifting a Legendary Lugia Pokemon without having to actually catch it. Clearly for some that was not enough, and so this lawsuit is moving forward.

That being said, it’s hard to say whether the lawsuit will go the distance; it has only just been filed this week. What is clear is that Pokemon GO Fest attendees are disappointed in the event and Niantic’s attempts to defer blame are falling on deaf ears. According to CEO John Hanke, cellular providers were given full notice about Pokemon GO Fest and were told to prepare their cell service, but they either did not do so or underestimated the cell traffic.

While attendees have every right to be disappointed by the Pokemon GO Fest’s failures, a lawsuit is perhaps a little more extreme than expected. These days it’s a knee-jerk reaction to file a lawsuit and it happens more and more often. Hopefully, Niantic can reach and agreement with attendees that feel the first compensation wasn’t enough.

Source: DNA Info