Warner Bros. Fires Back at Bethesda’s Westworld “Rip-Off” Accusations

The Company Denies Breach of Intellectual Property Rights

Warner Bros. has responded to Bethesda Softworks’ allegations that the new Westworld mobile game is a “blatant rip-off” of Fallout Shelter, calling their accusations “baseless.”

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In case you need a quick recap, Bethesda recently filed a lawsuit claiming Behaviour Interactive used stolen code for development of the new Westworld mobile game. Behaviour had worked with the Maryland-based company to deliver the venerated Fallout franchise to mobile devices back in 2015. Considering the similarities between the two games, Bethesda’s claims don’t seem baseless. As a matter of fact, their investigation revealed that both games shared the exact same bugs. Nevertheless, Warner Bros. shared a strong-worded response.

Here’s what WB said in a statement to IGN:

“As one of the world’s leading creators of intellectual property, including the ground-breaking television series Westworld, Warner Bros. has a deep respect for intellectual property rights.  As such, the assertions by Bethesda Softworks that Warner’s Westworld mobile game improperly used source code from Bethesda’s Fallout Shelter are as surprising as they are unsubstantiated.  Warner Bros. has been assured by the game developer, Behaviour Interactive, that Bethesda’s allegations are untrue and that none of Bethesda’s code was used in the Westworld game.  Moreover, contrary to Bethesda’s baseless accusation, Warner Bros. at no time “induced” Behaviour to use the Fallout Shelter code in Westworld.”

This is an ongoing story, and we’ll be keeping an eye on the lawsuit as new events unfold. Keep it locked for updates as they arrive.

SOURCE: IGN