Not long ago, the internet learned that Ninja Pig Studios’ upcoming Wii U eShop title Jumpy Cat had made use of stolen art assets, resulting in the delay of the game’s release in North America. However, it now seems that the publisher Meme Run has cancelled the game’s release completely.
Photon Storm’s Richard Davey, the creator of the art that Meme Run has been accused of stealing, pointed out to Ninja Pig Studios that their game’s title could be a problem as well—Jumpy Cat is the name of a smartphone product from Gamgo Games.
The response is what gave away the fate of Jumpy Cat:
@photonstorm thanks for the advice. The game won’t be published so it’s irrelevant, but thanks for the heads up. Didn’t know about that.
— Jordan Schuetz (@ninjapigstudios) January 22, 2015
So, no Jumpy Cat for any of us. Whether Ninja Pig did the right thing here or not, it’s clear that game designers need to be wary and do full due diligence when it comes to using others’ art, even when found for “free” online.
