14 DAY TRIAL // Silicon Knights, the developer that is best known for the failure of Too Human, has said that despite the loss of one important witness it will carry on with its legal action against Epic Games, stating that it looks forward to offering proof that it has been negatively affected by the way the Unreal Engine was developed and supported.
Speaking with GamesIndustry.biz Denis Dyack, who is the leader of Silicon Knights, stated, “It is important that the full extent of the rulings in the case be known. Epic filed over 20 separate motions to exclude essentially every aspect of the voluminous evidence against them, including all of Silicon Knights’ expert witnesses and all of the third-party information regarding Unreal Engine 3.”
He added, “It is important to understand that the jury decides damages and will hear evidence from many people and see many case documents. Mr. Lloyd’s testimony was only one piece. It remains an inescapable fact that Epic is going to trial for Fraud, Unfair Competition, Deceptive Trade Practices, Breach of Warranty, and Breach of Contract.”
The judge who oversees the case has said that the testimony of Terry Lloyd, an accountant, would be ignored after Epic Games claimed that he simply made up the sum of 58 million dollars (45.6 million Euro), the losses that Silicon Knights suffered because of the defective Unreal Engine.
The developer launched legal action against Epic in late 2007, claiming that the company misrepresented the capabilities of the Unreal Engine and cause for Too Human to be first delayed and then to launch with a number of significant problems that limited its commercial success.
Silicon Knights has recently worked with publisher Activision to launch X-Men: Destiny during 2011 and has since then announced that it planned to return to its roots with a new, unannounced title.