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

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

Mitchell's reputation as the "King of Kong" faced challenges in 2018 when his scores were removed from Twin Galaxies' leaderboards amid allegations that he used a MAME (Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) instead of authentic arcade cabinets to achieve his records in games like Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, and Donkey Kong Jr. After a six-year battle to defend his records, Mitchell successfully had his accolades reinstated in a "historical database" on Twin Galaxies' site, and his high scores were also recognized again by the Guinness World Records in 2020.

Billy "King of Kong" Mitchell has won a defamation lawsuit against Australian YouTuber Karl Jobst. Photo by David Greedy/Get

However, Mitchell's defamation lawsuit against Jobst was not about the legitimacy of his Donkey Kong scores. Instead, Mitchell claimed that Jobst's 2021 video falsely suggested that his previous lawsuit against another YouTuber, Benjamin "Apollo Legend" Smith, resulted in Smith having to pay $1 million in damages and contributed to Smith's tragic suicide in 2020. The video also allegedly implied that Mitchell had expressed pleasure at the thought of Smith's death.

Following legal threats from Mitchell, Jobst edited the video, and Smith's brother confirmed no financial settlement had been made. Jobst admitted defeat on X/Twitter, stating, "I lost. The judge found Billy to be a credible witness and believed his entire testimony." He emphasized 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 determination to continue fighting against what he perceived as bullying, stating, "I am proud that I never backed down and never allowed a bully to control my free expression." The court ordered Jobst to pay $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's fame in the gaming world began in the '80s when he achieved a perfect score in Pac-Man, and his rivalry with Steve Wiebe was highlighted in the 2007 documentary, King of Kong.