Billy Mitchell Wins $237K in Defamation Suit Against Karl Jobst

Arcade gaming legend Billy "King of Kong" Mitchell has secured nearly a quarter of a million dollars in damages following a defamation lawsuit against Australian YouTuber Karl Jobst. As reported by PC Gamer, Jobst, known for his focus on competitive and speedrunning gaming content, featured Mitchell in a video titled "The Biggest Conmen in Video Game History Strike Again!" which amassed 500,000 views. The court determined that Jobst's video contained defamatory, inaccurate, and unsubstantiated claims about Mitchell.

Mitchell's gaming accolades came under scrutiny in 2018 when his scores were removed from Twin Galaxies' leaderboards amid allegations that he used a MAME (Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) instead of arcade cabinets to achieve his records in games such as Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, and Donkey Kong Jr., which violated the rules. After six years of defending his records, Mitchell successfully had his scores reinstated in a "historical database" on Twin Galaxies' website and also had his records recognized again by the Guinness World Records in 2020.

However, Mitchell's defamation lawsuit against Jobst was not related to the validity of his Donkey Kong scores. Instead, Mitchell claimed that Jobst's 2021 video falsely implied that Mitchell's earlier lawsuit against YouTuber Benjamin "Apollo Legend" Smith resulted in Smith having to pay $1 million in damages and contributed to Smith's suicide in 2020. The video also allegedly suggested that Mitchell had expressed joy over Smith's death.

After legal threats from Mitchell, Jobst edited the video. Smith's brother later confirmed that no money had been paid. Jobst acknowledged his defeat on X/Twitter, stating, "I lost. The judge found Billy to be a credible witness and believed his entire testimony." He clarified that he did not accuse Mitchell of cheating and that his claims about Smith were based on "incorrect information from multiple sources." Jobst expressed his intention to explore his options moving forward and apologized for any disappointment caused, emphasizing his commitment to repaying the support he received.

In a follow-up post, Jobst proudly stated, "I am proud that I never backed down and never allowed a bully to control my free expression." The judge awarded Mitchell $187,800 (AU$300,000) for non-economic loss, $31,300 (AU$50,000) for aggravated damages, and $22,000 (AU$34,668.50) in interest, totaling approximately $241,000.

Mitchell is renowned for achieving a perfect score in Pac-Man during the '80s and gained further fame through the 2007 documentary, King of Kong, which chronicled his rivalry with Steve Wiebe.