Launch day Aliens: Colonial Marines buyers could receive a refund

A consumer is taking Sega and Gearbox to court over claims that the pair mislead the buying public.

Of course, Sega has previously admitted that trailers for the game did not accurately reflect the final content” of the release after being taken to task by the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority.

Whether or not that will help US plaintiff Damion Perrine remains to be seen.

Polygon reports that a suit was yesterday filed in California claiming that Gearbox and Sega falsely advertised Aliens by showing demos at trade shows like PAX and E3 which didn’t end up being accurate representations of the final product”.

One interesting angle of the lawsuit was the press review embargo Sega placed on the game that expired on the morning of the game’s release meaning that the game’s pre-orderers and early adopters would have no knowledge of the discrepancies between the demo and final game”.

Did you hear that, games industry?

As a result the lawsuit is seeking damages for all consumers who purchased Aliens: Colonial Marines on or before launch day.

"Each of the ‘actual gameplay’ demonstrations purported to show consumers exactly what they would be buying: a cutting edge video game with very specific features and qualities," the claim itself reads.

"Unfortunately for their fans, Defendants never told anyone – consumers, industry critics, reviewers, or reporters – that their ‘actual gameplay’ demonstration advertising campaign bore little resemblance to the retail product that would eventually be sold to a large community of unwitting purchasers."

Criticism of the game has been widely publicised and Sega found itself in the midst of a mucky developer-whodunnit following its release at retail and an absolute mauling at the hands of critics.