Arcade gaming legend Billy "King of Kong" Mitchell has secured a significant legal victory, winning nearly a quarter of a million dollars in damages after an Australian court ruled that YouTuber Karl Jobst defamed him. As reported by PC Gamer, Jobst's video, titled "The Biggest Conmen in Video Game History Strike Again!" garnered over 500,000 views and contained claims that the court found to be defamatory and unsupported by evidence.
Mitchell's reputation in the gaming world was previously tarnished when his scores were removed from Twin Galaxies' leaderboards in 2018 due to allegations that he used a MAME (Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) instead of arcade cabinets to achieve his high scores in games like Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, and Donkey Kong Jr., which contravened the competition rules. However, after a prolonged defense of his records, Mitchell's achievements were reinstated in a "historical database" on Twin Galaxies' website and also recognized again by the Guinness World Records in 2020.
Billy "King of Kong" Mitchell has won a defamation lawsuit against Australian YouTuber Karl Jobst. Photo by David Greedy/Getty Images.
The defamation lawsuit against Jobst, however, was not about the validity of Mitchell's Donkey Kong scores. Instead, Mitchell took legal action over Jobst's 2021 video, which he claimed implied that his previous lawsuit against YouTuber Benjamin "Apollo Legend" Smith led to Smith paying $1 million in damages and contributed to Smith's tragic suicide in 2020. The video also allegedly suggested Mitchell expressed joy at Smith's death.
Following a legal threat from Mitchell, Jobst edited the video, and Smith's brother clarified that no money was paid. Jobst acknowledged his defeat on X/Twitter, explaining that the judge found Mitchell to be a credible witness and that his own claims were based on misinformation from various sources. He stated, "From that point on unfortunately there was really nothing that could have saved me. I will now obviously consider my options."
Expressing regret for disappointing his supporters, Jobst emphasized his commitment to repaying their support and his pride in standing firm against what he perceived as bullying. He vowed to continue advocating for free expression.
The court ordered Jobst to pay Mitchell $187,800 (AU$300,000) for non-economic loss, $31,300 (AU$50,000) for aggravated damages, and $22,000 (AU$34,668.50) in interest, totaling around $241,000. The judge noted that Mitchell might have been justified in seeking even higher aggravated damages but awarded the amount Mitchell requested.
Mitchell's legacy includes achieving a perfect score in Pac-Man in the 1980s and his portrayal in the 2007 documentary King of Kong, which highlighted his rivalry with Steve Wiebe.
