Thompson threatens to "destroy" Take-Two as legal battle continues

The continuing legal battle between publisher Take-Two and Jack Thompson became more aggressive over the weekend as the controversial Miami attorney threatened to "destroy" the publisher after it filed a pre-emptive lawsuit.

Take-Two seeks to block Thompson's attempts to have upcoming Rockstar titles Grand Theft Auto IV and Manhunt 2 declared a public nuisance.

"I have been praying, literally, that Take-Two and its lawyers would do something so stupid... that such a misstep would enable me to destroy Take-Two," said Thompson in a statement issued to the press and reported by gamepolitics.com.

"The pit Take-Two has dug for itself will be patently clear next week when I strike back," he added.

Take-Two's lawsuit alleges that Thompson's attempts to label games as a public nuisance violates the rights of the First Amendment.

"Thompson has a history of making multiple threats of legal action, whether substantiated or not, both against (Take-Two) as well as the retailers who purchase the videogames and offer them for sale to the public," reads Take-Two's suit.

It continues: "Because of the vague terms of the nuisance statutes, application of those laws to GTA IV and Manhunt 2 also creates a chilling effect as videogame creators, designers, developers, publishers and distributors will respond to the uncertainty of the law by self-censoring, depriving the public of access to undeniably protected expression."

The lawsuit also lists a number of previously failed attempts by Thompson to restrict the sale of Rockstar games including the recently released Bully.