Skip to main content

Court orders Silicon Knights to recall, destroy its Unreal Engine games

Too Human
Image used with permission by copyright holder

For the majority of the past half-decade, developers Silicon Knights and Epic Games have been locked in a vicious legal battle. The former claims that Epic failed to fully document the feature set found in its famous Unreal Engine, thus sabotaging not only Silicon Knights’ titles built on top of this technology, but also games developed by a number of other companies. Further, it claims that instead of improving support for the Unreal Engine, Epic was actually channeling all of the licensing money it earned via the tech to improve its own Gears Of War series (to the detriment of possible competitors using the same engine). In turn, Epic claims that Silicon Knights has repeatedly violated the terms of its Unreal Engine licensing contract, to the point that the former has infringed on the latter’s copyrights.

That’s all a lot of “he said, she said,” but the important point here is that Epic eventually won the battle. In May of this year a court in North Carolina ruled that Silicon Knights had failed to provide ample evidence of its claims against Epic. As a result, the court decided to award Epic Games a sizable $4.45 million ($2.65 million for Epic’s counterclaim against Silicon Knights, and $1.8 million for Epic’s claim that Silicon Knights had infringed on its copyrights to the Unreal Engine). 

Recommended Videos

While that victory is certainly a feather in the obsessively well-rendered cap of Epic Games, things would only get worse for Silicon Knights. On November 7 the court ordered Silicon Knights to recall and destroy any unsold copies of games it had created using the Unreal Engine technology. Silicon Knights has never been what you’d describe as a prolific developer, so while this directive affects only a small handful of games, it’s still a pretty striking decision. The list of titles Silicon Knights has to scrap includes games we barely know anything about (The SandmanThe Box/Ritualyst, and Siren in the Maelstrom) but also two titles that have been on retail shelves for quite some time. Specifically, 2011’s X-Men: Destiny and 2008’s Too Human.

According to the court order, Silicon Knights has until December 10 to gather and destroy all copies of these titles. That’s a little over a month, and while we don’t know exactly how many copies the company has to find and destroy, this seems like a massive undertaking, especially given recent rumors that only five employees remain at Silicon Knights. Whether the company can fulfill its obligations to the court remains to be seen, but to be honest with you we’re more interested in seeing how Silicon Knights fares after this event has been consigned to the annals of history. The company has been teetering on the brink of collapse ever since the Activision-published X-Men: Destiny proved an expensive failure, and this court order looks increasingly like a major nail in the developer’s coffin. Expect a report on the fallout just in time for the holiday season.

Earnest Cavalli
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Earnest Cavalli has been writing about games, tech and digital culture since 2005 for outlets including Wired, Joystiq…
All Silent Hill games in order, by release date and chronologically
A girl staring at a shrine.

Among the best horror games in video game history, the Silent Hill franchise might be the most iconic. Starting back on the PS1, this claustrophobic and psychological horror series stood apart from the rest with its dense fog and otherworldly monsters. Sadly, the franchise has had more lows than highs after the third entry, but it is making a strong comeback as of late. Now is the best time to immerse yourself in the dark world of Silent Hill, but where should you start? Unlike the Resident Evil games, which are very tied together, the lore and canon of Silent Hill is much harder to track. Make sure your radio is turned on and grab a pipe as I walk you through the entire Silent Hill series in release order and chronologically.

All Silent Hill games in release order

Read more
How to make copper chests in Minecraft
Copper chests in Minecraft.

Before the last update drop of 2025, copper was kind of useless in Minecraft. We all used to toss away this material since it had so few uses, but now there are some very compelling reasons to hang onto it. The first is to make Copper Golems, a new creature that can help out around your base. But, to give them more value besides their company, you will need to make some copper chests as well. Note that you need to make a Copper Golem before you can get the recipe for a copper chest, which I will explain in detail below.

Read more
Romero Games’ cancelled title might not be dead yet
John Romero

In the wake of Microsoft's layoffs and studio closures last week, rumors circulated that Romero Games — the studio founded by Doom creator John Romero — had also shut down after funding for its still-untitled game was pulled. Those rumors are false, and the studio is still alive and kicking, even if it isn't out of the woods yet.

Romero Games shared an update on its social media accounts late yesterday afternoon that the studio "is not closed, and [they] are doing everything in [their] power to ensure it does not come to that." Perhaps more exciting is the possibility that the cancelled game still has a lifeline.

Read more