Bethesda denied Fallout restraining order
Court throws out action against MMO dev.
A court has dismissed Bethesda's request for a restraining order against Masthead, who is supposedly co-developing a planned Fallout MMO with Interplay.
US District Judge the Honorable John F. Walter denied the request - which would have demanded the developer down tools on the project - before Masthead had even had a chance to object.
"[Bethesda] has not demonstrated that it will be irreparably prejudiced if the requested ex parte relief is not granted, or that it is without fault in creating the crisis that requires ex parte relief," he argued, as reported by Milford & Associates, via Gamasutra.
"Indeed, [Bethesda] was aware as early as February 2011 that Masthead was potentially infringing its copyrights... Yet, Plaintiff waited seven months to apply for ex parte relief."
"The Court finds that Plaintiff unreasonably delayed in seeking relief, and that the emergency that allegedly justifies a [temporary restraining order] is self-created."
It's the latest chapter in Bethesda's long-running legal tussle with Interplay. The publisher sued Interplay - who sold the Fallout IP to Bethesda in 2004 - back in 2009 for allegedly taking too long to complete a planned Fallout MMO.
It has since added a range of additional complaints, including a claim that Interplay has been illegally selling older Fallout games and another insisting it was using Fallout assets without permission.