Mecharashi (Metal Storm)’s US publisher HK Ten Tree Limited issued a message on March 27 addressing the lawsuit recently filed against it by Square Enix in the US.
On Mecharashi’s official homepage, the company acknowledges the lawsuit and says that it will be taking careful measures in order to reach an “amicable resolution” with Square Enix over the game. HK Ten Tree Limited encourages players to “continue enjoying Mecharashi with peace of mind,” and promises to keep improving its services. In addition, Mecharashi players on Reddit have noticed that the developer BlackJack Studio has remade some of the disputed in-game assets, such as item icons.
In the lawsuit filed by Square Enix in a Seattle court on March 13, HK Ten Tree Limited is accused of illegally using assets from the cancelled Front Mission 2089: Borderscape (as reported by Polygon). Square Enix announced Borderscape back in 2022, collaborating with BlackJack Studio for its development. However, the game was cancelled only a few months later, and Square Enix terminated the license agreement they had with BlackJack Studio.
Then, in October 2024, the studio released Mecharashi in Japan and China, boasting a similar concept and look to the now-cancelled Front Mission project. Square Enix alleges that BlackJack Studios used Front Mission’s copyrighted materials to create Mecharashi. It seems that while the assets were created by the studio, they are supposedly owned by Square Enix according to the license agreement made between the two parties.
In the lawsuit, Square Enix pushes the courts to stop the game from being released in the US until the copyrighted materials are replaced, and requests compensation of $150,000 per copyright infringement.
It seems that Mecharashi’s developers are trying to resolve the issue by replacing some of the assets in question, but the lengthy lawsuit submitted by Square Enix highlights a range of similarities related not only to the look of icons, but also to gameplay mechanics, which might prove trickier to replace.
While the outcome of the lawsuit remains to be seen, Mecharashi is currently still available in Japan and China, as well as being listed as “Coming Soon” on the US Steam store page.
