Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Sony For ‘Defective’ PS5 Controller

Law firm Chimicles Schwartz Kriner & Donaldson-Smith LLP (CSK&D) has formally filed suit against Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) alleging that the company knowingly released their new DualSense PS5 controller with defects.

The complaint filed on behalf of Lmarc Turner and “all others similarly situated” alleges that the PS5 DualSense controller contains “a defect that results in characters or gameplay moving on the screen without user command or manual operation of the joystick.” Moreover, SIE “at all relevant times” had been aware of the alleged defect “through online consumer complaints, complaints made by consumers directly to it, and through its own pre-release testing.”

CSK&D also alleged that SIE did not give adequate support to customers who experienced controller defects. “When consumers experience the Drift Defect, the options for repair are slim,” CSK&D said. “Reportedly, Sony PlayStation’s dedicated portal for issues with PS5 hardware—including the DualSense Controller—is experiencing a backlog and redirecting consumers to contact a customer service agent via the contact page for PlayStation support. Customers are experiencing long wait times and having to deal with a maze of pre-recorded phone prompts before finally speaking with an agent concerning repairs for DualSense Controller drift.”

CSK&D is the same law firm filing suit against Nintendo for similar controller defects in the Nintendo Switch’s JoyCon controllers. CSK&D indicates they would like their case against SIE to be heard in front of a jury, but a judge determined in CSK&D’s suit with Nintendo in 2020 that the case would be dismissed from court and handled by an arbiter. This means that the current suit against SIE is unlikely to reach a jury.

CSK&D calls for a court order that SIE stop all “unlawful, deceptive, fraudulent, and unfair business practices,” and establish an accessible and free DualSense replacement or recall system. The firm also hopes for compensatory damages to be recognized for their plaintiffs.