The legal feud between Destiny 2’s developer Bungie and AimJunkies, a creator and distributor of cheating software, commenced on Monday with a jury trial, nearly three years following the initial lawsuit filed by Bungie’s lead attorney Jacob Dini in a Seattle court. The case has seen numerous developments: AimJunkies, under Phoenix Digital Group’s ownership, countersued Bungie in 2022, alleging unauthorized access to James May’s computer and copyrighted materials. Then, in 2023, arbitration resolved issues related to anti-circumvention and trafficking violations in Bungie’s favor, awarding them $4.3 million. This decision is currently under appeal by AimJunkies, which claims procedural errors by the arbitrator. The ongoing court proceedings this week aim to address Bungie’s claim that AimJunkies infringed its copyright.
On Monday, eight jurors were selected, and opening statements were presented. Lawyers from Game File indicated this might be the first instance a video game cheating case has advanced this far in the legal system. Cheating, while frowned upon, is not explicitly against U.S. law. An arbitrator previously determined that AimJunkies breached the Digital Millennium Copyright Act’s anti-circumvention provisions by bypassing Bungie’s security measures and trafficking software designed to do so. Bungie now seeks to establish that AimJunkies also violated copyright law.
Bungie’s legal team alleges that James May hacked Destiny 2 to copy its code, which was then used to create the cheats sold by AimJunkies. Court documents indicate May divided proceeds with Phoenix Digital’s Jeffrey Conway and Jordan Green. According to Bungie lawyer William C. Rava, Phoenix Digital compensated May over $700,000 for his contributions, but sales records from Phoenix Digital only reflect $43,000. Bungie contends that Phoenix Digital deleted cryptocurrency transactions and other records, prompting them to ask the jury to consider “spoliation of evidence” — implying that defendants destroyed incriminating evidence.
Bungie asserts that deleted evidence includes forum messages, cheat software records, and sales information. They allege May wiped four hard drives that Bungie reportedly accessed in connection with this lawsuit. Phoenix Digital’s lawyers are opposing Bungie’s request to have the jury consider this allegation.
Additionally, Bungie referenced other perplexing details to the jury, such as Phoenix Digital’s alleged 2022 sale of AimJunkies for 7,000 bitcoins (over $480 million) to Blome Entertainment, which Phoenix Digital founder David Schaefer later admitted was fabricated to mislead Bungie. Schaefer’s behavior during depositions led to Phoenix Digital being fined $5,000 plus attorney fees as a sanction for unprofessional conduct.
Representing Phoenix Digital and AimJunkies, attorney Philip P. Mann stated that May did not create the Destiny 2 cheat. Mann argued that the extensive questioning during discovery was an effort to unearth a supposed international conspiracy theory of cheat development, with Bungie lacking substantive evidence. He argued that the lawsuit severely impacted Phoenix Digital’s business and May’s employment, portraying the situation as a David versus Goliath battle over minimal profits from Destiny 2 cheats. Mann asserted that cheating is not illegal and no copyright infringement occurred since May did not develop the cheats and AimJunkies functions merely as a marketplace.
The cheating software enables players to gain unfair advantages, such as seeing through walls or improving aim, which, while potentially violating Destiny 2’s terms of service, is not illegal per se. Bungie’s contention is that using copyrighted code to develop cheats is unlawful, an argument they have pressed successfully in previous cases through defaults and settlements.
The court proceedings resumed on Tuesday and are expected to continue throughout the week. The trial will focus on the copyright dispute, while the arbitration appeal will be addressed later by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. This appeal is considered a landmark effort to obtain a judicial determination on whether in-game cheating constitutes a legal breach absent specific intellectual property violations. The appeal may be argued in Portland, Oregon, in August or September. Both Bungie and Phoenix Digital/AimJunkies have been contacted for comments by Polygon.
