IKEA has threatened to sue the British creator of an upcoming horror game, claiming its virtual location resembles the retail giant a little too closely.
The Store is Closed is a survival game set inside a furniture store called 'STYR' — which means 'controls' in Swedish — set for release in 2024.
The shop's logo is yellow and the building itself is blue, leading IKEA's lawyers to send a cease and desist letter to solo developer Jacob Shaw accusing him of trademark infringement.
A cease and disease letter is a written notice demanding that the recipient immediately stop an illegal or allegedly illegal activity.
The Swedish giant's legal representatives reportedly called out the "blue and yellow sign with a Scandinavian name on the store", as well as "yellow vertical striped shirts" usually work by IKEA staff.
The lawyers also said the "grey path on the floor" resembles that of a real-life IKEA shop, according to Fortune.
It has been reported that lawyers gave the developer ten days to change parts of the game that allegedly represent IKEA branding.
The letter, shared by PC Gamer, says: "Our client has learned that you are developing a video game, The Store is Closed, which uses, without our client’s authorization, indicia associated with the famous Ikea stores.
"Your game uses a blue and yellow sign with a Scandinavian name on the store, a blue box-like building, yellow vertical striped shirts identical to those worn by Ikea personnel, a gray 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."
The lawyers' letter says the "unauthorized use of the IKEA indicia constitutes unfair competition and false advertising under Sections 43(a) of the U.S. Trademark Act, 15 U.S. C § 1125(a), and state unfair competition and false advertising laws."
It added: "You can of course easily make a video game set in a furniture store that does not look like, or suggest, an IKEA store.
"You can easily make changes to your game to avoid these problems, especially since you do not plan to release the game until 2024."
Mr Shaw reportedly said he was not inspired by IKEA for the game's furniture and claimed he bought a generic furniture asset pack that can be used in any game.
The developer reportedly said he plans to make changes to The Store is Closed but he is seeking legal advice himself.
He told Kotaku : "I was going to spend the last week of my Kickstarter preparing an update for all the new alpha testers.
"But now I've got to desperately revamp the entire look of the game so I don't get sued."
The Store is Closed is due to arrive on PS5, Series X|S & PC in June 2024.
An IKEA spokesperson said: "While we think it's flattering that others are inspired by the IKEA brand, we must be diligent to ensure that the IKEA trademarks and trade dress are not misapplied. Various elements of the video game currently correspond in appearance with the IKEA brand features.
"We've reached out to the creator of the video and asked them to make changes to those elements to ensure that this is no longer the case. They expressed that they understand our request and agreed to make those changes.
"This should all be well in time for the expected 2024 launch of the game. We wish the creator of the game the best of luck!"
