Rockstar says Benzies’ claims are ‘without merit’ and ‘bizarre’

The shock legal battle between Rockstar Games and former director Leslie Benzies has quickly descended into a slanging match.

News of the falling out emerged last night. It centres around a dispute over royalty payments that Benzies believes is owed to him following his sabbatical in the summer of 2014 and his subsequent departure early this year.

Leslie Benzies was a valued employee of our company for many years,” Rockstar told MCV.Sadly, the events that culminated in his resignation ultimately stem from his significant performance and conduct issues.

Despite our repeated efforts to address and resolve these issues amicably both before and after his departure, Leslie has chosen to take this route in an attempt to set aside contract terms to which he previously agreed on multiple occasions.

His claims are entirely without merit and in many instances downright bizarre, and we are very confident this matter will be resolved in our favour. A core ethos since Rockstar’s inception has been the concept of ‘the team.’ It is deeply disappointing and simply wrong for Leslie to attempt to take personal credit for what has always been the tremendous efforts of the entire Rockstar team, who remain hard at work delivering the most immersive and engaging entertainment experiences we can for our fans. We do not intend to comment further on this matter.”

Benzies’ lawsuit asks for $150m from Rockstar, which he argues is owed to him in the form of unpaid royalties that accrued during his time on sabbatical. He also claims that the Houser’s pushed him from the studio by a series of deceptions”.

Rockstar, meanwhile argues that it was not obliged to pay said royalties for the period in question, which were discretionary by contract, and that Benzies is in breach of contract”.

The short answer is that we believe the detailed and extensive factual allegations contained in Mr Benzies’ complaint amply address those contained in the somewhat sparse Take-Two Complaint,” Benzies’ representatives told VentureBeat. Needless to say, Mr Benzies believes the issues between the parties are far broader than as presented by Take-Two, and Mr Benzies’ complaint reflects that.”