The maker of Fortnite is suing a prominent YouTuber over the cheats he has developed for the massively popular video game.
Epic Games says Brandon Lucas is "unlawfully modifying" the game's code to get an advantage over other players and that he also sells these hacks to others.
Lucas has more than 1.7 million followers on his Golden Modz YouTube account and posts videos of himself using the cheats to "troll" other online players.
Legal papers filed in North Carolina state: "Lucas' websites encourage visitors to purchase hacks and/or Fortnite user accounts preloaded with hacks.
"These hacks enable users to unlawfully modify Fornite's software. Lucas is operating these websites and selling these cheats and accounts for his own personal enrichment.
"His ill-gotten gains come at the expense of Epic and members of the Fornite community."
Epic says it is ruining the game for others and creating "an uneven playing field".
"Aimbots" are one of the hacks the company is upset about. It says they allow players to "automatically target and kill enemies without having to aim their weapons".
Lucas and another YouTuber, Colton Conter, who goes by the name Exentric, are both being sued on copyright and breach of contract grounds.
Lucas's website advertises "modding services" for a variety of video games, including Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty. However, it is currently showing a banner that reads: "No packages exist at this time."
Fornite has become a video gaming phenomenon since it launched in July 2017.
Epic says it has more than 125 million players and tens of millions who watch others play via sites such as YouTube and Twitch.
The game's Battle Royale mode is particularly popular and sees players fight it out in a last man standing scenario.
In a video last month, Lucas said Epic had taken down nine of his YouTube clips and that he was afraid he could be sued in future.
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He said there were many others who use cheats in the game and record it, yet have not faced any action.
"I almost feel I am being discriminated against by Epic Games," he said. "I'm just a kid who's making YouTube videos and a lot of people were enjoying this."
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Sky News
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