Do the big publishers look at fan-made games with a sense of animosity? Or are they proud that the community is creating new game ideas with their characters?
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You don't see Nickelodeon going after people who post their drawings of SpongeBob SquarePants on DeviantArt.
Fan-made games based on established franchises, unless created with permission, are illegal since they infringe on the copyrights of the original creators. Hence most most publishers don't like them. The issue is that many people are either not aware or do not care that they are doing anything wrong.
"I never swear, my lord, I say yes or no; and, as I am a gentleman, I keep my word." - D'artagnan in Twenty Years After
some companies tend to shut them down if they get too popular, if they're about to officially release something similar, or if it looks like they're about to make some money off of 'em. it just depends on where their priorities lie at the moment and what other legal battles they're fighting, i suppose.
That said, games aren't fanart. If someone made a SpongeBob Squarepants show of their own using official characters and artwork and it looked too much like the real thing or it was about to make some bank for the author(s), you can bet it'd be shut down with a quickness.
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[16:43] James: I should learn these site rules more clearly
[16:44] LztheBlehBird: James doesn't know the rules? For shame!!!
So as long as it doesnt make money, these fan games and fan art are ok? Look at the guy who remade the Sonic CD engine, Sega bought that from him and implemented it in the actual XBLA/PSN remake. And there are plenty of people who put video game remixes on iTunes for sale.
It's like, I just love a cowboy
You know
I'm just like, I just, I know, it's bad
But I'm just like
Can I just like, hang off the back of your horse
And can you go a little faster?!
Nobody said the respective owners of whatever trademarks were turned into fan-art or fan-made games (which are we even discussing here? Flipping heck.) couldn't be interested in what the fans were able to create, especially if they see it's popular and well-structured enough to generate good revenue. Such is the case of Sonic CD.
We don't see this very often though, no thanks to the legal shizz that exists nowadays. A lot of people are too afraid to even attempt something like this, for the fear of copyright infringements and the like. And when they do, it's often taken down before it gets that far.
@GameLord08: That legal "shizz" is there to protect the rights of the original creators. If you ever become a commercial artist you will be thankful it's there. Copyright infringement is not something to be encouraged. People who want to make the next donkey Kong game or whatever should go about it the proper way instead of blatantly breaching copyright. To be completely honest the internet could do with less fan-games.
"I never swear, my lord, I say yes or no; and, as I am a gentleman, I keep my word." - D'artagnan in Twenty Years After
@Usagi-san: I wasn't dissing the legal shizz. That was just a name for it. I'm fully aware of the essential use of it, and why it's there. Don't misunderstand me.
EDIT: There's nothing wrong with fan-made games, if they're gone about the right way. Some creators of these actually just want to honour these franchises with their own creations, and are not blatantly trying to rip them off by stealing the trademarks and making their own money. Take Super Mario Bros. X, for example.
Not opinion "understanding". You're allowed to have an opinion but your understanding of where fan-games stand legally is off. Just because they have good intentions doesn't make it right.
"I never swear, my lord, I say yes or no; and, as I am a gentleman, I keep my word." - D'artagnan in Twenty Years After
No, no, no. I didn't say it was right because they have good intentions. I'm just saying it's not blatantly wrong, especially if they're not trying to do harm to the copyright. Fan-games do have their own little booth on the internet, regardless of whatever we may think.
Sure, it's a little off-putting to see so many of them when people can come up with their own original creations and not use other trademarks, but there are some that do take a bit of the limelight occassionally, and they usually have good reason to. I don't play a lot of fan-games, but eh, they don't have too much of a reason to be chased off if they're going about it the proper way. Well, the proper way fan-game wise.
What exactly would you call the proper way? Because to me the proper way would be to study and get into the industry. Your example of when fan-games are done right is the run of the mill justification that just about every fan-game creator uses.
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Topic: Fan-made games based on established franchises
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