A previous developer is taking legal action against the creators of Anime Vanguards, one of Roblox’s highly popular anime games, asserting he was unjustly removed from the project and denied millions of pounds in unpaid revenue. Rehaab Haque and his company Boss Studio LLC filed a federal complaint in the Southern District of New York on May 22 versus Vladislav Popov and Andrei Acuña, claiming disputes over ownership, profit distribution, and IP protections. Haque claims he was instrumental in restoring the tower defense title after its player community collapsed, enabling its recovery to over 100,000 concurrent users before being suddenly dismissed from the project in January 2026 with no notification or compensation. The lawsuit demands restitution for his claimed involvement and unpaid compensation.
The growth and collapse of a development team’s collaboration
According to the lawsuit, Haque was initially brought on to deliver coding support in September 2024, when Anime Vanguards was already performing well on the Roblox platform. However, the game’s fortunes soon took a dramatic turn for the worse. Within three months, the player base fell from approximately 100,000 concurrent users to fewer than 5,000, representing a catastrophic decline that jeopardised the game’s long-term sustainability and profitability on the platform.
Understanding the seriousness of the circumstances, Haque assumed an growing significant role in the project. By December 13, 2024, he was awarded a 20% earnings share and became a co-owner of Anime Vanguards. Under his management, Haque claims he managed the game’s direction, operational development, patches and improvements, and hiring decisions. His contributions were significant, encompassing the development of dozens of fundamental systems, over 130 visual effects, systems for over 40 units, and more than 10 cutscenes.
- Haque brought back the game to over 100,000 concurrent players
- He was awarded 20% revenue share in December 2024
- Forced to reduce share to 10% in December 2025
- Completely removed from the project on January 14, 2026
From co-owner to complete removal
The dynamic between Haque and his business partners began to deteriorate in the latter stages of 2025. According to the lawsuit, Vladislav Popov pressured Haque in December 2025 to significantly lower his revenue share from 20% to 10%, a significant cut that would diminish his financial stake in the thriving game. Haque claims he consented to the decrease on the understanding that his responsibilities would be similarly decreased. However, the complaint alleges that this agreement was not upheld, and he continued to shoulder the same management and development responsibilities despite the substantial pay cut.
The situation intensified quickly in January 2026. On or around January 14, 2026, Haque was abruptly removed from Anime Vanguards in full, without advance notification or any financial settlement talks. The lawsuit claims he was removed from his roles across several platforms simultaneously—removed from the Roblox ownership group, stripped of access to Discord ownership channels, stripped of his management position, and excluded from all income distributions. The complaint also asserts that Popov then told developers within the Anime Vanguards community a version of events that disputed Haque’s account of his departure.
The contested December discussions
The December 2025 talks represent a pivotal turning point in the disagreement. Haque maintains that he entered into good faith negotiations with Popov concerning his financial stake in the game. Per his account, Popov initiated the dialogue about reducing Haque’s earnings share, framing it as a essential adjustment to the ownership structure. Haque claims he reluctantly accepted the cut from 20% to 10%, viewing it as a compromise that would still allow him to gain from the game’s sustained performance whilst addressing any concerns Popov had highlighted.
However, the critical dispute centres on what was purportedly promised in return for this compromise. Haque’s lawsuit argues that Popov explicitly agreed that a lower income split would come with fewer duties and obligations. The complaint suggests this was a core provision of the agreement—that Haque would take on a lighter position befitting his lower monetary stake. Yet Haque claims that after taking the salary reduction, his duties remained unchanged, leaving him in a position where he was doing the same work for considerably lower pay.
Millions in dispute in copyright and revenue claims
The monetary scope of the lawsuit go well past the disputed revenue share percentages. Haque’s complaint alleges that he is entitled to significant unpaid wages spanning several months of work following his removal from the project. The precise monetary damages sought remain a central focus of the federal litigation, with the complaint detailing various streams of income that Haque claims were wrongfully withheld. These figures represent not merely lost wages but what Haque contends amounts to a deliberate breach of contractual duties by the purported proprietors.
Beyond direct compensation claims, the lawsuit raises wider intellectual property concerns. The complaint asserts that Haque was instrumental in creating numerous core systems, visual effects, and game mechanics that form the backbone of Anime Vanguards’ gameplay experience. Haque’s legal team argues that these original works represent substantial assets with considerable value, particularly given the game’s commercial success and massive player base. The dispute over credit and ownership of this creative work could have repercussions reaching beyond financial restitution to matters concerning intellectual property rights and development credits.
| Claim Type | Alleged Amount |
|---|---|
| Unpaid revenue share (20% period) | Undisclosed millions |
| Unpaid revenue share (10% period) | Undisclosed millions |
| Intellectual property contributions | Undisclosed value |
| Damages for wrongful removal | To be determined |
- Haque asserts rights to 130 visual effects created during his tenure
- Over 270 additional visual effects reportedly developed under his leadership
- Systems for over 40 characters attributed to his creative work
- More than 10 cutscenes created during his management period
- Player recovery from 5,000 to 100,000 simultaneous users attributed to his leadership
Trend of disputes within the Anime Vanguards group
The lawsuit filed by Haque represents the latest in a series of disputes that have troubled the Anime Vanguards project and its leadership. Community members and previous partners have earlier voiced issues regarding the management of ownership stakes, income sharing, and developer credits within the game’s ecosystem. The current litigation has revived discussions across the Roblox development community about legal safeguards for creators and the potential vulnerabilities developers encounter when working on joint ventures with unclear ownership structures. Industry observers point out that such disputes are fairly common in the competitive world of Roblox game development, where rapid growth and scaling can stress relationships between co-creators.
The Anime Vanguards case has garnered particular attention because of the game’s significant commercial success and the important creative contributions reportedly made by Haque. With close to 1.9 billion visits and a maximum concurrent player count exceeding 340,000 users, the game represents a prominent revenue-generating title on the Roblox platform. The financial stakes involved in this dispute are considerably higher than in many other standalone game development disputes, making the outcome potentially significant for establishing precedent regarding developer rights and ownership claims in the Roblox ecosystem.
Prior claims and responses
Prior to Haque’s formal legal action, the Anime Vanguards development team faced allegations regarding payment practices and developer treatment. Community members reported concerns about payment delays and ambiguous profit-sharing structures, though formal legal proceedings were not launched at that time. The wider Roblox creator ecosystem has expressed frustration with cases in which skilled creators have found themselves marginalised or insufficiently paid for their contributions to successful projects, pointing to underlying problems within specific studios.
The alleged owners of Anime Vanguards have not publicly responded in detail to the particular allegations raised in the federal complaint. However, the circumstances surrounding Haque’s departure in January 2026 and the following lawsuit filing in May 2026 indicates a substantial deterioration in talks involving the parties. Industry analysts have observed that such disputes often centre on conflicting accounts concerning ownership percentages, contractual terms, and the valuation of creative contributions, making resolution via court proceedings increasingly prevalent in high-stakes game development disagreements.
Regulatory challenges and IP disputes
The legal action filed by Haque and Boss Studio LLC raises several intricate legal questions regarding intellectual property ownership and agreement obligations within the Roblox development ecosystem. Central to the disagreement is the question of whether creative input to a game development process—including code development, graphics work, and gameplay systems—constitute adequate basis for ownership claims when written contracts may be unclear or contested. The complaint alleges that Haque’s significant creative contributions, encompassing dozens of core systems and hundreds of visual effects, should entitle him to continued revenue share regardless of his removal from the development. These matters highlight broader challenges in the gaming industry where fast-paced teamwork and changing responsibilities can create confusion about intellectual property attribution and ownership interests.
The federal complaint also examines the question of whether Popov and Acuña unlawfully retained control of assets and revenue streams that Haque claims to have developed. The lawsuit seeks damages for contractual breach, unfair gain, and alleged breaches involving copyrighted work included in Anime Vanguards without proper payment or credit. Such intellectual property disputes in video game creation often depend on establishing what constitutes work-for-hire arrangements versus freelance creative contributions, and whether verbal agreements or informal arrangements can establish enforceable ownership rights. The result of this case could set important precedent for how Roblox developers safeguard their IP and discuss ownership terms in joint ventures.
- Claims Haque produced over 130 visual effects and core game systems
- Alleges improper retention of income from the successful game revival
- Questions validity of ownership agreements and revenue-sharing contracts
- Seeks damages for unjust enrichment claims and breach of contract