 had already built a closed alpha before launching the project last month but has managed to accrue over £50,000 in Kickstarter pledges, five times more than the initial goal. However, The Store Is Closed has also caught the attention of Ikea, which has told Shaw to completely overhaul the game's visuals because its in-game store setting looks too much like an Ikea store. Specifically, Ikea's New York lawyers, Fross Zelnick, informed Shaw in a letter that his game uses Ikea's iconography 'without our client's authorisation.' 'Your game uses a blue and yellow sign with a Scandinavian name on the store, a blue box-like building, yellow vertical stiped shirts identical to those worn by Ikea personnel, a grey path on the floor, furniture that looks like Ikea furniture, and product signage that looks like Ikea signage. All the foregoing immediately suggest that the game takes place in an Ikea store,' it reads. The in-game store's logo does use blue and yellow similar to Ikea's own logo. However, it's named STYR, which is a Swedish word for 'controls' according to Google Translate. This is probably just a coincidence since it sounds like the English word 'store,' which was likely Shaw's intention. Ikea itself, meanwhile isn't even a real word to begin with and is instead an acronym. Shaw also claims that the furniture all comes from generic asset packs that anyone can buy, so he doesn't understand what the letter means when it says the furniture looks like 'Ikea furniture.' The letter adds that several websites, such as Eurogamer and Game Rant, have directly compared the game to Ikea and 'numerous com){kind=link}
An indie developer is having to do a visual overhaul of their horror game for allegedly infringing Ikea’s trademarks.
Have you ever heard of The Store Is Closed? Described as an ‘infinite furniture store survival game’ for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, it’s a Kickstarter project being developed by a single UK based developer named Ziggy.
Ziggy (real name Jacob Shaw) had already built a closed alpha before launching the project last month but has managed to accrue over £50,000 in Kickstarter pledges, five times more than the initial goal.
However, The Store Is Closed has also caught the attention of Ikea, which has told Shaw to completely overhaul the game’s visuals because its in-game store setting looks too much like an Ikea store.
Specifically, Ikea’s New York lawyers, Fross Zelnick, informed Shaw in a letter that his game uses Ikea’s iconography ‘without our client’s authorisation.’