1up reports that art firm Massive Black is pursuing legal action against the head and a former employee of its Shanghai devision, James Xi Zhang and Jenny Chen, respectively.

A job at Massive Black is a student illustrator's wet dream; they handle art for high-profile games and movies, and their roster of character and environmental artists is second to none. I go to their forums and stare at the threads crammed with 16-year-old Corel Painter prodigies whenever I really want to feel like shit about my own drawing ability. The image at right is by Massive Black boss Jason Manley.

But enough about my trembling self-loathing, let's see what those crazy Massive Black peeps are up to:

Massive Black Inc. vs. James Xi Zhang is a civil complaint for injunction and damages. The complaint outlines 11 claims alleged against Zhang and his co-conspirator, Jenny Chen. The other named defendant in the case is "Studio Takeover" — a term the court instituted to indicate the studio Zhang and Chen planned to form from Massive Black Inc.'s clientele. The case also names Does 1-50, preparing for the inclusion of other conspirators, if the ongoing investigation yields more than just Zhang and Yiqiong behind the alleged plot. Among the claims: Fraud, Unlawful Access to Computer Network/Tresspass, Interference with Contract, Breach of Contract and Interference With Prospective Business Advantage.

To sum up, Zhang and Chen skimmed money via "expenses accounts", secretly accepted clients personally that had contacted the company itself, and hired their own artists to work on the sniped properties, using Massive Black's own studios and equipment. Now THAT is ninja'ing most foul. Eliza Gauger

Read the entire article here [1up]

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