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This morning, original Star Control creators Fred Ford and Paul Reiche III filed a response to Stardock’s Star Control lawsuit, which seeks injunctions and damages against Ford and Reiche for, among other things, alleged willful and intentional trademark infringement and trademark counterfeiting. Ford and Reiche also filed a countersuit against Stardock seeking their own injunctions and damages. The response and counterclaim can be viewed here and here respectively. Stardock’s original filing is over here.

The filings are the latest escalation in what is turning into a deeply acrimonious legal battle over who possesses the rights to publish and sell the classic Star Control trilogy of video games—and who has the rights to create new Star Control games. (Or at least who can name their games “Star Control.”)

It’s a twisted tale, and understanding what is going on requires digging back through 30 years of agreements and contracts involving companies that no longer exist. It’s not quite as screwed up as the situation around No One Lives Forever, but it is a hot mess—and now that litigation is starting, things stand to get a lot messier.