Donkey Kong champ defeats Aussie YouTuber in court
A judge has ruled that an American gaming personality and former Donkey Kong champion has been defamed by an Australian YouTuber.
A Queensland court has ordered YouTube creator Karl Jobst to pay US gamer Billy Mitchell at least $350,000 in damages plus interest after finding he defamed Mr Mitchell in a 2021 video.
The District Court ruled that Jobst made reckless claims in his video, The Biggest Conmen in Video Game History Strike Again!, falsely linking Mitchell to the death by suicide of YouTuber “Apollo Legend”.
Judge Ken Barlow KC found five defamatory statements, including the false claim that Mr Mitchell had demanded money from Apollo Legend, which Jobst suggested contributed to his death.
During his ruling, Judge Barlow likened the case to a medieval tale of heroism and downfall, stating that Jobst saw himself as a “crusader” against Mr Mitchell, who had not backed down.
“Mr Jobst clearly intended to be a knight who slew the Mitchell dragon,” Judge Barlow said.
“Unfortunately, for him, his lance was not as strong as he believed it to be, and it broke in the contest.”
Mr Mitchell, who did not attend the ruling, is a well-known figure in the arcade gaming world since the 1980s, has held world records in Donkey Kong and Pac-Man and was recognised by Guinness World Records and Twin Galaxies, a gaming leaderboard authority.
In 2018, Twin Galaxies stripped Mr Mitchell of his titles after determining some of his Donkey Kong records were not achieved on original arcade hardware.
However, after he sued the company in a case that settled in January 2024, Twin Galaxies accepted expert opinion on possible hardware issues and reinstated his scores. His Guinness World Records were reinstated in 2020.
Brisbane District Court was previously told Mr Mitchell had launched defamation proceedings against Benjamin Smith (Apollo Legend) in 2020, though that case was settled outside of court without monetary compensation.
Jobst’s legal team argued that he had never accused Mr Mitchell of directly causing Mr Smith’s death but instead suggested that the stress of litigation had been a contributing factor.
During the trial, the court was told that Mr Mitchell’s reputation suffered significantly after Jobst’s video was published.
His paid gaming appearances reportedly dropped from 20 to 25 per year to just four to five.
Jobst’s legal defence countered that Mr Mitchell already had a tarnished reputation due to the cheating accusations and his history of litigation.
Judge Barlow found that Mr Mitchell did have a reputation as a cheat, having been banned by Twin Galaxies and known for suing those who accused him of cheating. However, he rejected Jobst’s claim that his video could not have caused further reputational damage.
Judge Barlow found that Jobst had acted with malice, publishing the video without verifying key claims and refusing to retract or apologise despite knowing the content was false.
“It was reckless and showed absolute disregard for the truth or for the effect of this video on Mr Mitchell and his reputation,” Judge Barlow said.
The court also noted that Jobst mocked Mr Mitchell’s legal action, further exacerbating the harm.
In addition to the $300,000 awarded for non-economic loss, the court granted Mr Mitchell an additional $50,000 in aggravated damages and $34,668.50 in interest dating back to the first publication of Jobst’s video.
He may also be ordered to pay Mr Mitchell’s legal costs, which will be decided on a later date.
Following the ruling, Mr Mitchell posted on X, writing, “Nothing like the smell of victory in the evening air.
“Billy Mitchell always has a plan.”
Outside court, Jobst stated that he would continue creating content.