Zynga says EA copyright lawsuit ‘ironic’

Zynga has hit back at EA in response to a copyright lawsuit filed by the publisher against the social games company over alleged similarities between The Sims Social and The Ville.

EA says that the art, animations, and gameplay of The Ville are blatant mimicry of their game.

But Zynga has responded with their own allegations, pointing to the resemblance between Sim City Social and CityVille.

"It’s unfortunate that EA thought that this was an appropriate response to our game, and clearly demonstrates a lack of understanding of basic copyright principles," a Zynga representative told Gamasutra.

"It’s also ironic that EA brings this suit shortly after launching SimCity Social which bears an uncanny resemblance to Zynga’s CityVille game. Nonetheless, we plan to defend our rights to the fullest extent possible and intend to win with players."

This is the first time Zynga has faced a legal challenge on this scale, and the precedent set by a court decision could have monumental, but the majority of such cases end in out-of-court settlements, making it unlikely this suit will go to trial.

In the meantime, Zynga plans to continue with business as usual, and isn’t going to let the pressure change their current strategy.

"We are committed to creating the most fun, innovative, social and engaging games in every major genre that our players enjoy."

"The Ville is the newest game in our ‘ville’ franchise – it builds on every major innovation from our existing invest-and-express games dating back to YoVille and continuing through CityVille and CastleVille, and introduces a number of new social features and game mechanics not seen in social games today."