Red Dead Redemption gets into our articles every second week or so because it’s being rumored all the time that the sequel is in development. However, we’re now talking about the first game! This is going to be a somewhat long story, so get a cup of coffee ready…

So, a former Rockstar North executive named Leslie Benzies sued Rockstar for 150 million dollars for unpaid royalties and other damages. According to Benzies’ lawyer, „While on sabbatical, Mr. Benzies discovered numerous deceptions on the part of Take-Two, Rockstar, Rockstar North Ltd, Sam Houser and Dan Houser, who sought to force him out of the company and terminate his portion of royalty payments based upon arbitrary actions by the company’s royalty Allocation Committee, a committee that may or may not have actually ever met. As the lawsuit describes, based upon agreements in place, as one of three named Rockstar Principals, Mr. Benzies is owed more than $150,000,000 million in unpaid royalties.”

Sam Houser and Dan Houser were supervising the development of Red Dead Redemption at Rockstar‘s San Diego studio. According to Sam himself, they weren’t progressing with the development without the help of Benzies and at the autumn of 2009. They were reaching a deadline. Sam Houser wrote an email to Leslie Benzies in his desperation. A day after, he stated that RDR was a recurring nightmare. Eventually, Benzies returned and helped finish the game.

Benzies left Rockstar in January 2015, and he was kicked out of the building in April when he tried to return. Rockstar responded to the lawsuit; they say „His claims are without merit and in many instances downright bizarre, and we are very confident this matter will be resolved in our favor.”