ToolFan2007 on 21/7/2007 at 15:36
Quote Posted by malau
I've often wondered this, but do you have FULL WRITTEN PERMISSION from the Legal Department at EIDOS/SCi to use their intellectual property ?
Just changing the names and not calling the protaganist 'Garrett' doesn't make a difference to Lawyers. It would be like me writing a book about a wizard who's name is Larry Scotter who goes to school at Bogsports and hoping that the publisher's don't care.
So why is Thievery allowed to get away then? But that could be just because the game was just so small and bugged to death no one gave a damn. Thievery in fact had very little to do with Thief and played almost entirely differently.
As for the Dark Mod, they are using copyrighted paintings from museums to add textures to the game. That above anything could be used against them IF Dark Mod is ever released in 2010.
OrbWeaver on 21/7/2007 at 16:02
Quote Posted by ToolFan2007
So why is Thievery allowed to get away then?
Presumably because they, like the Dark Mod, are
not using Eidos' copyrighted assets. How many times does it have to be said?
Quote:
As for the Dark Mod, they are using copyrighted paintings from museums to add textures to the game.
Care to cite an example? You realise that 16th-century oil paintings are not actually copyrighted, don't you?
demagogue on 21/7/2007 at 16:05
I'm thinking you (toolfan) are being ironic in that ^ post (oops 2 posts in the way) ... but you can never tell these days.
Anyway, a few points coming from a lawyer:
Classic paintings are quintessentially in the public domain. No Copyright. Placement, organization, photos of the paintings (or of their placement) don't add anything original, so no "authorship", so no copyright there either.
Gameplay, like any "application functionality", can't be copyrighted; nor for the same reason can the basic functional elements of gameplay (even "published" elements) like a lightgem, frob-highlighting, health bar/potion, etc, just like you can't copyright a "recycle" icon or "File" button. Computer law would seriously be completely upended and rioting would take place in the streets if this were overturned!
Generic medieval setting or characters certainly can't be copyrighted.
Plot can only be copyrighted if it is incredibly parallel, practically by the page, but that's not even an issue here. Characters might conceivably get protection, but only if the copy's "personality" is depicted in great detail and in obvious, displacing overlap to the published version, so it cannot reasonably be distinguished as another character. There is no detail as to the personality of the avatar or any AI in DM. A "generic" character is a guaranteed safe harbor. So no issue here.
"Look and feel" might conceivably get protection, but again it has to be so obviously parallel that you can't reasonably imagine the look coming from another source. "Real world" looking is a safe harbor, and FPS's generally are especially safe for similar reasons, esp in this era of FPS clones ... once you aren't talking about plot or character. But anyway it isn't even an issue here, as DM is merely an authors' package.
Direct assets can definitely be copyrighted, but all of the assets here are either custom made or are from explicitly public sources.
Really, they have their bases covered.
Schwaa2 on 21/7/2007 at 20:25
Well since we are all obnoxious and arrogant I will add:
Garrett had a mechanical eye, our thief doesn't so HA! Not even close to character infringement.
sorry, just had to do it.
OrbWeaver on 21/7/2007 at 20:42
Quote Posted by Schwaa2
Garrett had a mechanical eye, our thief doesn't so HA! Not even close to character infringement.
Yes, but Luke Skywalker
didn't have a mechanical eye, making this a clear-cut case of INTELLECTUAL copyright infringement. As a close personal friend of George Lucas, I will definitely be bringing this up at the next Oscars ceremony.
New Horizon on 22/7/2007 at 06:23
I have truly begun to HATE the internet lately.
Quote Posted by malau
No need to take that attitude.
I thought it was just New Horizon, but it seems all of you DarkMod lot are really
obnoxious and arrogant - not to mention totally uninformed about INTELLECTUAL copyright infringement (it was created to stop people like you saying exactly what you just said).
I beg your pardon? You don't even know me. I'm no more obnoxious and arrogant than you are, and whether or not I am...is your own mis-informed interpretation. Read your own posts, they're no walk in the park for us either. You might want to take some time to consider WHY people react to you as they do
I've got bigger things to deal with in my life than to put up garbage like this in life.
If you want to confuse enthusiasm with being obnoxious, that's fine, but keep hurtful comments to yourself. You know nothing about me. In the last seven months, I've lost my father to cancer and yet...I've managed to remain enthusiastic about life, the projects I have passion for, and have clawed my way back out of a VERY dark place. If anything, I should be pissed at life...but I'm not, and I don't go around insulting people online because I have a poor opinion of them.
We're all here trying to do something fun for the community. So if all you can do is hurl insults and threaten us with legal action...then stay out of it. Your negativity is not needed, nor welcome. I have to say, your threats are definitely the lowest thing ANYONE has ever said to us in the years we've been working our asses off on this project. Pretty low, pretty low indeed.
Quote:
I've often wondered this, but do you have FULL WRITTEN PERMISSION from the Legal Department at EIDOS/SCi to use their intellectual property ?
To answer this question myself. Very early on, I contacted the Thievery gang and asked what type of permission they had sought. Their response was that Looking Glass was aware of Thievery, thought it was a cool idea, and gave it their blessing. The only things they advised, was to 'not use original content' in Thievery. All the textures, models and sounds had to be made by Thievery. Following those rules, they didn't see any issues.
We're following the same rule of thumb. We create all our own materials and they are inspired by the original series.
You toss around the fact that there is a ton of evidence on the forum to incriminate us, well...there is a TON of evidence all over the internet. Perhaps you could do a search and find where we've addressed this same question a dozen times already. Whether you're aware or not, we've had a few articles written about us in different magazines around the world, and articles in several online magazines as well. So, it's not like we're hiding...and it's not like Eidos doesn't already know about us. We are extremely vocal in our interviews about being respectful of their Intellectual Property, so we're hoping they're aware of that and appreciate it.
There have been mods, that didn't have half the publicity we had, shut down for infringement. The difference being, they were outright abusing the IP of the publishes...using names, and copying models poly for poly.
At any rate, I hope that answers the question once and for all.
242 on 22/7/2007 at 09:48
Quote Posted by New Horizon
I beg your pardon?
This would be enough.
Why to waste time and write such hyperverbal answer to that hit? No one here cares about that copyright bullshit, I mean it was discussed to death :bored: As if there weren't more interesting and vital things about the mod.
ToolFan2007 on 22/7/2007 at 10:51
Quote Posted by 242
No one here cares about that copyright bullshit.
No, you don't. You and other people will only care about it when you're in trouble over it.
Again, the obnoxious and arrogant comment is in these people that post about how they are so sure they are above the law, and that's not always the case. My advice is go speak to someone who knows the law and has studied it.
ToolFan2007 on 22/7/2007 at 11:22
Quote Posted by OrbWeaver
Care to cite an example? You realise that 16th-century oil paintings are not actually copyrighted, don't you?
It sounds to me from the sources posted here, it's a grey area. And besides, why not make your own textures?
