Questions tagged [video-games]
40 questions
36
votes
4 answers
Is it legal for Blizzard to completely shut down Overwatch 1 in order to replace it with Overwatch 2?
Overwatch (1) was a multiplayer first-person shooter video game created by Blizzard. It was released in 2016 and cost around 40€.
Earlier this year, Overwatch 1 was shut down:
The servers are down.
The game is not playable from the official…
Itération 122442
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16
votes
3 answers
Can disrupting an online video game be illegal?
Imagine for example, a person makes an online game unplayable by flooding the game with bot accounts, winning games through cheating etc, but the person doesn't steal any data and they aren't violating copyright either since they are just sending…
eternalstudent
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5
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2 answers
Do we know if using computer games to make CGI for history youtubes is fair use?
Many people make youtube history documentaries using recent closed source computer games to make the graphics. This involves playing the game as released, and using the gameplay graphics to explain the history. An example would be using a battle…
User65535
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4
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Would it be legal to avoid Unity (Game Engine) licensing by having the end-user build the project
Is it legal (assuming US) if instead of paying for a proprietary software and accepting their terms and conditions for distribution, to require the user to own this proprietary software and use it as a dependency for your software? e.g. Instead of…
Cedric Martens
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4
votes
2 answers
Is distributing software that makes modifications to video games legal?
Unlike most game mods (which are, to my knowledge, a distribution of a copy of modified game software), I'm writing a small desktop application which allows users to make their own custom changes (modifications/mods) to (their own copy) of the game…
Chris_Drake_146
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4
votes
1 answer
Do I have any legal options if a game is released with the same name as one I already publicly have under development?
I have had a game in development since October 2020. There is an audit trail in the form of public GitHub code commits showing how long I have been using the name. Unfortunately I had not yet done any public marketing for the game so there isn't…
Matt
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4
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0 answers
When does a videogame become a gacha game?
Recently I have been observing a lot of gaming companies pushing contents in their games that to my understanding should meet the definition of gacha. Yet, for some reason those games manage to avoid all the restrictions a gacha game should have, in…
SPArcheon - on strike
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4
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1 answer
How the rights of the DotA map could be transferred to Valve?
Dota (Defense of the Ancients), was a Warcraft 3 custom map that got the rights transferred to Valve in 2010 when two of their developers (Eul and IceFrog) were hired by Valve. However, Warcraft 3's terms of use forbid commercial use of custom maps…
user47165
3
votes
1 answer
What makes you the legal owner of a computer game (copy)?
I bought a lot of used old computer games to create a collection. Some games consist of:
The physical game disc (CD or DVD)
(sometimes) a product key which is printed onto the manual or the disc case
The manual and the disc case
And sometimes…
zomega
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3
votes
1 answer
When does a retail flight simulator, or racing game, need to license aircraft or vehicles from their manufacturers?
Supposing someone (whether an individual, small company like an indie game studio, or large game publisher with an established legal department (EA, Microsoft, etc)) wants to make a flight simulator product - or generic car racing game - featuring…
Dai
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3
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1 answer
What are the legal issues when using copyrighted images to advertise a product that doesn't contain them?
I was on YouTube a couple of days ago watching a video that looked at mobile game advertisements and whether or not they were reflective of the product.
To give an example, one game used online ads of supposed game footage with some of the…
anon
3
votes
1 answer
It is illegal to make a "demake" of a video game?
Let's say about a "demake" of Artifact (Valve's card game).
The new game would be a "generic" Artifact that doesn't use the lore, characters, and other protected things, but uses the same concepts
The new game would have the same exact amount/number…
user47165
3
votes
1 answer
To what extent is it legal for a video game to use assets of another game the user needs to have installed?
What if someone were to make a new game that can only be installed if you own a copy of "another game".
This game itself doesn't modify any files or use any DLL but only textures and models.
The game's dll's and its extra resources would sit in a…
Fadey Anomaly
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3
votes
2 answers
Can you patent a math formula?
Today I saw this video about a video game called No Man's Sky. They say Hello Games - the creator of No Man's Sky - is possibly using a math formula patented by another company.
This really surprised me.
Can you patent a math formula?
If so, how…
Kevin
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2
votes
1 answer
Video games that are no longer commercially available - can we still make videos showcasing them?
So one of my younger friends has this Youtube channel (which luckily hasn't been deleted) where he has showcased this game that hasn't been commercially available for almost 12 years1. He is able to do this only because he has a device which still…
CrSb0001
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