Activision pays back $42 million, former Infinity Ward group wants more

In arguably one of gaming's most heated battles, Activision has sent out a payment of $42 million today to the group of former Infinity Ward employees that are alleging Activision skipped payments on Modern Warfare 2 employee royalties.

"I can confirm for you that it happened today," a lawyer for the Infinity War Employees Group said to Polygon. "I can also tell you that although it is a meaningful payment, it is only a small portion of what we are seeking in litigation. It is outrageous that they made us wait, they obviously knew they owed the money and this just shows that they breached the contract."

As you can tell by the statement above, the ex-Infinity Ward employees are clearly unhappy with the "discovery phase" payment as Activision has called it. The group's lawyers even called the notion a "cynical" move to "sweeten up" the trial's jury. Indeed, the $42 million paid back is only a crumb of the $75 million to $125 million in unpaid royalties as well as $75 to $500 million in punitive damages that the group is suing for. 
 
Though the trial for this case is scheduled in two weeks, many experts expect this to drag out a lot longer than both parties expect, even with Activision sending partial "discovery phase" payments. Since the case first launched, the former Infinity Ward employees have united together to open up a new studio, which has already begun production on several upcoming titles. 
 
Source: [GamesRadar]