Epic Games is embroiled in yet another lawsuit concerning Fortnite, although its new spat with a Florida tourist attraction brings a little less pressure than Apple and Google. Epic is no stranger to legal action regarding Fortnite in the past. The game's dance emotes, often taken from moves made popular online in viral social media posts, have been called out as theft without credit, which led to some legal rumblings. There was also the matter of PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds calling out the game for supposedly stealing the idea of a battle royale from the genre innovator. Neither of those cases made it too far, but Epic's current docket has some legs to it.
Last week, Epic Games initiated a reduction in the cost of its in-game currency, circumventing the traditional mobile payment structure in the process. This cut Apple and Google out of the loop, something Epic has expressed much interest in doing and that both mobile platform holders are staunchly against. The popular battle royale was kicked off both phone platforms, which led to Epic Games filing suit against Google and Apple. In the case of Apple, Epic also produced an in-game event featuring a parody of the company's classic 1984 commercial, with Apple now posed as the bad guys.
Amidst this high-stakes legal wrangling, Florida tourist attraction Coral Castle is now getting in on the action, according to Polygon. Coral Castle is a series of rock sculptures built in the mid 20th century by Ed Leedskalnin. He charged admission to see his work as he was completing it, and it now stands as a museum that's branded as "America's Stonehenge." The name Coral Castle is also the name used for an underwater palace that emerged in Fortnite's map changes for Season 3, which is a problem since Florida's Coral Castle owns the trademark on the name.
Besides the moniker, the proprietors of Coral Castle also claim that the virtual structure's stonework "evoke[s] the feeling of a centuries-old mysterious place." This is seen as a further lifting of the ideas behind the Sunshine State landmark, and the Floridians are pursuing monetary damages under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Law. The Miami museum, which is currently closed due to the global pandemic, charges guests around $13 to explore its grounds, which include the coral architecture and an on-site gift shop.
Florida is chock-full of oddities like Coral Castle that don't garner much publicity outside of the state, so it wouldn't be surprising to hear that Fortnite had never heard of the establishment before today. When you're competing against Disney and Universal for tourist mindshare, a mysterious rock garden is not going to land the same level of acknowledgment. Still, it's heartening to see a true roadside attraction stick to its roots, offering guests a simpler experience bereft of roller coasters and other gaudy amusements. One hopes that the attraction isn't just seeking easy money from the lawsuit, but it's been a rough time for everyone, and Fortnite is an easy target if you can make a case.
Source: Polygon