"Saw they were behaving like this for a decade and got really p**sed off": In conversation with Kian Brose, the YouTuber suing Minecraft (Exclusive)

YouTuber Kian Brose recently posted a controversial video where he stated that he was trying to sue Minecraft and its parent company Mojang. He alleged that Minecraft broke EU consumer protection laws and the EULA due to what he alleged were unclear terms of service and ambiguous content policy.

In response, he decided to pursue a collective class-action lawsuit where he aimed to hold the developers accountable. His original video has gone viral with over 2.8 million views and his GoFundMe page has raised over $100,000.

I recently got to talk with Kian on the matter. He spoke about the lawsuit, the support from the community, and his goals.

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Kian Brose on his Minecraft lawsuit, gambling in gaming, and more

The first question that I had to ask regarding Kian Brose's lawsuit against Minecraft was the origin of this decision. He stated that after witnessing "Mojang's behavior" over the past decade, he felt compelled to take action to ensure the studio complies with consumer protection laws:

"I saw how they were behaving like this for a decade and got really pi**ed off"

Kian talks about the changes to the game's policy in his video (Image via YouTube/Kian Brose)

In 2023, a directive from Mojang leadership changed its content policy and decided that guns and weapons would be non-compliant with the Adult Content requirements for commercial usage of servers. In a document Kian published along with his video, he stated that since guns were against the terms of service, they should not be allowed in the Minecraft Marketplace either:

"The add-ons provided in the marketplace have tens of thousands of purchases, and at this point in the timeline, matched the definition of a gun/firearm. If ewe aren’t allowed to have these, why can they have it?"

Coming to the video, Kian recounted his surprise at seeing the support the community has shown since it went live. His original video went viral with over 2.8 million views as of now, with thousands of comments as well as affected consumers coming forward:

"I did not expect this at all. I expected this particular one to fail miserably based on the afterthoughts section of the accompanying document. Once it did go viral, the stress kept increasing to levels that are hard to put into words. Loads of consumers that have been damaged in some ways have consistently been coming forward."

When asked about his issues with the terms in the Minecraft user guidelines, he said that it was not fair for people to have to "guess" due to the terms of the contract which, he says, were "kept vague":

"Basically it's not fair for people to have to always be on the edge by having to 'guess' whether something is okay or not just because that information is purposefully hidden from them or kept vague."

Kian further stated that his primary objective was to have Minecraft comply with consumer protection laws. When asked if anyone from Minecraft or the parent company Mojang had contacted him, he stated that no one had reached out yet.

In his video, Kian depicts examples from servers where mechanics similar to slot machines are being used (Image via YouTube/Kian Brose)

A major section of Kian's video also showcased how servers allegedly sold loot boxes that worked similarly to slot machines. He stated that gambling was the biggest cause contributing to the EULA issues — arising from the presence of servers allegedly selling loot boxes.

In his video, he depicted instances of Minecraft servers selling crates and crate keys that could be used to play lotteries, which resemble slot machines seen in casinos. When asked about the impact of these features resembling gambling, Kian stated:

"I think gambling is the single biggest cause of damage in direct relation to the EULA issues."

When asked about his message for the community that supported his video and his GoFundMe campaign, Brose spoke about the prohibitive nature of the legal system:

"If the laws that are supposed to protect you are made unavailable due to the prohibitive aspects of the legal system, those laws might as well not exist in the first place."

Kian's original video has surpassed 2.8 million views and received comments from players worldwide. The community is divided, with some praising the YouTuber, and others saying the situation is an “insane overreaction.” When asked about his goal for the lawsuit, he stated:

"[It was to] have Mojang comply with consumer protection laws"

In his latest post on social media platform X, Kian mentioned that he has relocated to Stockholm to pursue the lawsuit full-time. He mentioned that the crowdfunding has reached the "bare minimum" required to initiate legal proceedings.

We have reached out to Minecraft and its parent company Mojang AB for a comment, but they have not responded yet.

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