Stealing or General Technical Jargon?
by Kevin Mitchell · in General Discussion · 09/06/2007 (10:48 am) · 8 replies
If i use certain terms is it stealing or illegal or is it just common gaming jargon. Here are some example
1:) Use of the terms ----- HP, MP, Revive, Elixir, Focus
2:) Certain Magic names like FFXI uses a magic like Areo
3:) Naming a ship that can fly an "Airship"
This is comming from some legel things i heard the CTG company of yu-gi-oh getting sued for calling their spell cards magic cards. Can a company own a technical jargon? If so where is a list of allowed technical terms that can't get me sued.
1:) Use of the terms ----- HP, MP, Revive, Elixir, Focus
2:) Certain Magic names like FFXI uses a magic like Areo
3:) Naming a ship that can fly an "Airship"
This is comming from some legel things i heard the CTG company of yu-gi-oh getting sued for calling their spell cards magic cards. Can a company own a technical jargon? If so where is a list of allowed technical terms that can't get me sued.
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#2
ship is big boat.. air ship were the zeppelins because they said they were like flying ships and aircraft to smaller more fast airplanes.. then sci fi used it to name spaceships to big vehicles which cruise in the space.. and spacecraft to more small and speedy space vehicles..
and for fantasy games.. well all that names come commonly from fantasy literature and ancient mythology.. so its not very gaming specific.. it is used in games but it wasnt invented for games and the same goes for futuristic games.. all that comes from sci fi literature that was later used in movies and later on games...
without mythology we would live in a world without magicians and dragons so common on movies and games today
so as long it is not the same object with same name and the same behavior.. i mean exact same or obvious reference to it... i think its valid to use...
"spell" would be a good example.. it has been used in tons of rpg's and before that in movies .. but really all that comes from mythology thousands of years ago
get inspired by .. but not copy
just be creative..
cheers!
David Montes de oca Segovia
09/06/2007 (11:12 am)
Spaceship,spacecraft and airship,aircraft,airplane are valid names more than gaming i could say sci fi jargonship is big boat.. air ship were the zeppelins because they said they were like flying ships and aircraft to smaller more fast airplanes.. then sci fi used it to name spaceships to big vehicles which cruise in the space.. and spacecraft to more small and speedy space vehicles..
and for fantasy games.. well all that names come commonly from fantasy literature and ancient mythology.. so its not very gaming specific.. it is used in games but it wasnt invented for games and the same goes for futuristic games.. all that comes from sci fi literature that was later used in movies and later on games...
without mythology we would live in a world without magicians and dragons so common on movies and games today
so as long it is not the same object with same name and the same behavior.. i mean exact same or obvious reference to it... i think its valid to use...
"spell" would be a good example.. it has been used in tons of rpg's and before that in movies .. but really all that comes from mythology thousands of years ago
get inspired by .. but not copy
just be creative..
cheers!
David Montes de oca Segovia
#3
Example:
Day and Night Systems in game vary some systems:
FFXI = 24-30 min
Diablo = 20-35 min
My game = an average of the two games I've experienced and see that it is a great average time for a delay.
If I can look at something and tell that the programming for this works like this, and this games AI seems like a slight down grade of this ones. How do i know its not stealing right from the coders fingers.
I've seen some varying programming for algorithms for battle damage calculations but if its a simple and logic system to do it and i understand it. But then i can't use that knowledge?
Like i know how to drive a car, if no one ever drove a car before and a person drives the only car in the world and it appears that they drive just like the other person then did that person learn to drive like the other or did they steal the ability by observation?
Kind of long winded but I think that's what I'm asking.
09/06/2007 (11:24 am)
Thanks I just know I can't really afford being sued. I see alot game that have great ideas and are missing this element or this element and would make the game a whole lot more enjoyable. But wheres the line between stealing or knowing concepts and bring them to life. Example:
Day and Night Systems in game vary some systems:
FFXI = 24-30 min
Diablo = 20-35 min
My game = an average of the two games I've experienced and see that it is a great average time for a delay.
If I can look at something and tell that the programming for this works like this, and this games AI seems like a slight down grade of this ones. How do i know its not stealing right from the coders fingers.
I've seen some varying programming for algorithms for battle damage calculations but if its a simple and logic system to do it and i understand it. But then i can't use that knowledge?
Like i know how to drive a car, if no one ever drove a car before and a person drives the only car in the world and it appears that they drive just like the other person then did that person learn to drive like the other or did they steal the ability by observation?
Kind of long winded but I think that's what I'm asking.
#4
Observing and recreating is completely different than downloading the Half-Life 2 code leak and adding the code into your game.
EDIT:
And a note on day/night time cycles. Don't plan exactly how it fits your game in such terms. That is the kind of thing that once you have your game in a prototype situation and can see how long the quests are taking/balancing enemies at night versus day/etc that you will tweak anyway. Your game may seem like it fits somewhere between, but it may end up being an hour for a full cycle once you play it. Changing the time necessary to tailor it to your game, even if it is the same variable number that some other company uses, is not going to net a lawsuit.
Naming your world Ivalice and calling your game Phinal Fantasy Tactics would get you a cease and desist order.
09/06/2007 (11:40 am)
Algorithms are fine as long as they have not been patented. And the ones you're talking about have not. It is like game worlds can be copyrighted but the rules cannot. Names can be trademarked but that is to a specific extent.Observing and recreating is completely different than downloading the Half-Life 2 code leak and adding the code into your game.
EDIT:
And a note on day/night time cycles. Don't plan exactly how it fits your game in such terms. That is the kind of thing that once you have your game in a prototype situation and can see how long the quests are taking/balancing enemies at night versus day/etc that you will tweak anyway. Your game may seem like it fits somewhere between, but it may end up being an hour for a full cycle once you play it. Changing the time necessary to tailor it to your game, even if it is the same variable number that some other company uses, is not going to net a lawsuit.
Naming your world Ivalice and calling your game Phinal Fantasy Tactics would get you a cease and desist order.
#5
09/06/2007 (11:43 am)
Ok ... that takes away my anxiety.... Thank you.
#6
no.. observation and base and inspire your work in other persons previous work.. is the base of the evolution..
for example i said about mythology ... dragons and magicians..are tales from the medieval era.. then some people wrote fantasy stories about that elements some years laters.. and then some more.. then movies were based based on the book... then games are based on the movie that was based on the book that was based on the ancient tale...if that were stealing you would be paying royalties to some ancient barbarian that invented that history thousands of years ago..
if the humanity would start everyhing from scratch everytime.. there would be no evolution and we would be still like apes living in caves trying to discover fire
and you mention the night systems... well they are just based on reality ..in real world there is day and night..
" But wheres the line between stealing or knowing concepts and bring them to life "..
the line exists when you are doing a shameless copy without any changes or improvements over the other persons work
if the world were like you said with the car example... then the act of speaking would be a felony because someone has spoken before me...
as i said.. get inspired by it..but be creative
take it easy
cheers!
09/06/2007 (11:44 am)
That sounds more like paranoia lol hahahno.. observation and base and inspire your work in other persons previous work.. is the base of the evolution..
for example i said about mythology ... dragons and magicians..are tales from the medieval era.. then some people wrote fantasy stories about that elements some years laters.. and then some more.. then movies were based based on the book... then games are based on the movie that was based on the book that was based on the ancient tale...if that were stealing you would be paying royalties to some ancient barbarian that invented that history thousands of years ago..
if the humanity would start everyhing from scratch everytime.. there would be no evolution and we would be still like apes living in caves trying to discover fire
and you mention the night systems... well they are just based on reality ..in real world there is day and night..
" But wheres the line between stealing or knowing concepts and bring them to life "..
the line exists when you are doing a shameless copy without any changes or improvements over the other persons work
if the world were like you said with the car example... then the act of speaking would be a felony because someone has spoken before me...
as i said.. get inspired by it..but be creative
take it easy
cheers!
#7
"The best thing you have to offer the world is yourself. You don't have to copy anyone else. If you do, you're second best. To achieve success is to be first, and that's being yourself." - John Denver
Now, on the matter of copying jargon/concepts vs. stealing: a lot of it depends on how sharklike the other guy's lawyers are. But the Internet is your friend. If a lawyer does come after you for stealing somebody's idea, you can almost always find an example of prior art, a use of the jargon or concept that predates that of your accuser -- seriously. For example, how many fantasy/adventure books and games feature a quest involving a team made of some combination of human, elf, dwarf, and wizard?
09/07/2007 (9:40 am)
Apropos of DodongoXP's closing line:Quote:as i said.. get inspired by it..but be creative
"The best thing you have to offer the world is yourself. You don't have to copy anyone else. If you do, you're second best. To achieve success is to be first, and that's being yourself." - John Denver
Now, on the matter of copying jargon/concepts vs. stealing: a lot of it depends on how sharklike the other guy's lawyers are. But the Internet is your friend. If a lawyer does come after you for stealing somebody's idea, you can almost always find an example of prior art, a use of the jargon or concept that predates that of your accuser -- seriously. For example, how many fantasy/adventure books and games feature a quest involving a team made of some combination of human, elf, dwarf, and wizard?
#8
If anyone tried to sue me over "magic cards" I would tell the judge "Sorry your honor I am gonna copyright the word docket so you'll need to use another word please".
To make a point.
09/07/2007 (6:19 pm)
Yea like Trump trying to copyright "your fired". Legal overkill. Hence the large collection of bad lawyer jokes.If anyone tried to sue me over "magic cards" I would tell the judge "Sorry your honor I am gonna copyright the word docket so you'll need to use another word please".
To make a point.
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