Rockstar find themselves in trouble with the law as the Pinkertons set their sights on them

It’s hard to believe that the law enforcement agency that was established in the middle of the 19th century, the Pinkertons, still exists today. They’re a much different entity now, as they’re a subsidiary of a Swedish security firm, Securitas AB. But they’re still around, and apparently, they’re not happy for the portrayal of their company in Red Dead Redemption 2.

According to The Verge, Pinkerton sent Take-Two Interactive a cease-and-desist letter of the main antagonists of the game, Andrew Milton and Edgar Ross, both who are Pinkerton agents after the Dutch van der Linde Gang, and are demanding royalties for using its name in the game. In a counter move though, Take-Two is suing Pinkerton to have the characters declared as fair use.

Take-Two argued in it’s the lawsuit that Pinkerton is trying to profit off the success of Red Dead Redemption 2, which sold incredibly well since release, saying that the name Pinkerton have been used in historical fiction before such as movies, television, plays, books and even other games and that they “cannot try and use trademark law to own the past.”

It’s funny how things like these come out a couple of months after a game’s successful release, and Take-Two certainly have a point when they say the security agency’s trying to cash in on their success. For now, we’ll have to wait and see how this one pans out, but don’t be surprised if we see a few more legal battles heading their way after the release of Red Dead Redemption 2. After all, it just wouldn’t be a Rockstar game otherwise.