Re: Copyrighting game ideas

[Laguna Loire <laguna@ourmag.com>]

On Tue, 16 Nov 1999, Neato wrote:

> Correct me if I'm wrong, but you can't write a game based on a story without
> consent from the story's copyright holder.

Okay, let's see...

A "Story" is copyrightable since it has been placed in a form which can be
"copied" physically. You will usually need permission to write a game
based on a story since you will most likely be using their work as
reference material to create that game.

> If you were to write a story based on the game and copyright it, would
> it protect the story from being made into a game?

Yes and no. Your work which you created is protected under the copyright
laws from the moment you created it. However, because you created the
story based on another work which is copyrighted, ie.  the game materials
and data and storyline, your story is copyrighted and your game
data/material is copyrighted. But, your idea still isn't copyrighted.

> I'm not a lawyer or anything, so I could be wrong.  But it's an idea...

Ideas are a good thing to explore. ;)

> Come to think of it, If your game is more content based than visual based,
> you might even be able to write a text version.  There are lots of text
> adventure programming utilities out there that make the development process
> significantly easier than developing a game from scratch.  Copyright that,
> and then make a graphical version once you have all the skills.

Once again, you can copyright the content, but you cannot copyright the
game idea. A storyline is copyrightable. A graphical image is
copyrightable. The text from the game, the sounds used by the game, the
source code itself. All of that can be copyrighted. But the _idea_ behind
the game cannot be copyrighted.

Let's look at another entertainment industry which suffers this
characteristic of the copyright laws: Theatrical Plays/Shows.

These are based on scripts which playrights(playwrites.. I forget which)
have written. They detail the scene, the actions, the people, the
descriptions.. etc. etc. etc. Much like a game.

Now... the manuscript itself is copyrightable. And a video of the play is
copyrightable. Any recording made of the produced play or copied versions
of the manuscript or posters made, etc... all those would be
copyrightable. However.... the idea behind the play isn't.

You could make a play which features a heroine rescuing a young man from
distress. They fall in love and discover that they are blood enemies.
Instead of living the lives of their families, they decide to love one
another, but due to circumstances, they have no other recourse but to kill
themselves. The end. Sound familiar? Some of it should. ;)

Now, what I have written is only marginally copyrightable. This email I
have written is copyrightable, but is shared on the ML with the
understanding that this is a public forum and emails here can be copied
for use with the ML itself, but not on say.. UseNet as that would be a
violation of the understanding of the rights bestowed on the ML by its
members for the use of their posted material. etc. etc.

But the general scene and idea... be it placed in France, Brazil, or
Canada... or features the same heroine and/or hero... so long as the
wording isn't the same, the idea of a girl saving a guy and the two of
them being from opposing families and so on... that isn't copyrightable.
Because it is a general idea which is not impossible or highly improbable
for other people to figure out on their own for their own work. Only
specific elements containing creativity and uniqueness and value which
sets it apart can be copyrighted.

This email I have written is unique and contains value apart from the fact
that it is merely email. It contains the written form of my opinions and
therefore, can be copied from one medium to the next. It is therefore
protected under the copyright laws.

Basic rule of thumb:

- Copyrights protects things which are imprinted into some medium which
  can be copied. This applies to various mediums. Though a seperate type
  of copyright marking is applied to different forms.
  (audio/video/written/etc)

- Ideas cannot be copyrighted. Just as slogans and names cannot be
  copyrighted.

Now...

- Slogans and names can be Trademarked, which is a different form of
  protection.

- Ideas which takes the form of a process can be Patented.


I'm not sure if the above really did much to help. :) I had the links to
the Copyrights agency.. and the patents one.. but lost the link. :| But
it's relatively easy to find on the web. ^_-

Have fun,

Wing.

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