Epic Games sued over “deceptive practices” in Fortnite’s Item Shop

Epic Games is the subject of a new class action lawsuit filed by two parents in a San Francisco court on behalf of their children. The suit, first reported by Polygon, alleges “deceptive practices employed on a massive scale in one of the world’s most popular video games” (in this case, Fortnite), arguing that Fortnite’s Item Shop creates “the illusion of scarcity” to trigger FOMO in children and pressure them into making in-game purchases.

According to the lawsuit itself, the way Fortnite’s Item Shop’s refresh timers function is deceptive and constitutes an “illegal scheme“. “When their countdown timers expired, Fortnite’s Item Shop products did not disappear or return to full price,” the suit explains. “They remained available for purchase, often at the same purportedly discounted rate, for many days or even weeks at a time“. Consequently, it is alleged that the timers don’t really mean anything. Instead, they are just a fake method to influence impressionable underage players into making impulsive purchases on a cosmetic item that the game is leading them to believe will disappear from sale soon, even when that is not the case.

As you might expect, Epic Games has refuted these allegations regarding unfair business practices. In a response provided to Polygon, Epic Games argues that the lawsuit “contains factual errors and does not reflect how Fortnite operates“. The company cites that it removed the controversial timer from the Item Shop last year and has implemented many safeguards to protect underage players. These include preventing players under the age of 13 from making real money purchases until a parent provides consent.

Mind, this is not the first time that Epic Games has got into hot water regarding its monetisation practices. The company was hit by a massive fine in 2022 by the Federal Trade Commission due to code violations. The company was also fined €1,125,000 in the Netherlands last year for features that “exploited the vulnerabilities of children”, including “misleading countdown timers“.

The plaintiffs in the new lawsuit cite many of these previous counts, as well as violations of various laws in California and Texas (where the two plaintiffs are located) as well as North Carolina (where Epic Games is headquartered) to support its case. The next step is for a judge to determine whether or not the lawsuit can move forward as a class action and potentially bring in more plaintiffs. It will remain to be seen how this lawsuit will play out and if Epic Games will have another substantial fine in its future.