10 Most Absurd Lawsuits In Video Game History

9. The Olsen Twins Vs. Acclaim Entertainment

Lindsay Lohan Rockstar
Acclaim Entertainment

The case: Acclaim Entertainment's series of games starring the Olsen twins - including such woeful highlights as Mary-Kate and Ashley: Girls Night Out - came to an end in 2004 when the publisher cancelled the series amidst its steady decline into financial ruin.

The twins, through their production company, thought it best to sue Acclaim for what their lawyer described as a blatant abandonment of the girls' "brand in video games which had flourished" and subsequently been run into the ground by Acclaim.

An impassioned speech, no doubt, but given the universal critical revulsion aimed at each and every digital adventure for the Olsen twins, 'flourished' may not be the correct term to use. If anything, it contributed to Acclaim's demise. Fads don't last forever.

The outcome: Whether Acclaim ended up forking over the combined fee of almost $500,000 that Dualstar was seeking isn't clear, but given its non-existence today, the outcome in this case hardly matters.

The important takeaway that does matter is that there were no further instalments for the Olsen twins in video game form following the case's conclusion, and that can only be deemed a positive outcome.

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Joe is a freelance games journalist who, while not spending every waking minute selling himself to websites around the world, spends his free time writing. Most of it makes no sense, but when it does, he treats each article as if it were his Magnum Opus - with varying results.