Kickass Star Fox fangame: Lessee how long it takes before a C&D(/nerdrage)!

[Donomni]

Seriously, it looks fucking sweet.

Originally Posted by 1UP

In the absence of a new Star Fox game from Nintendo themselves, some super-dedicated fans of the series have taken their stead. In what may end up being the coolest example of trademark infringement ever, a team of hardcore Star Fox lovers are creating a brand-new standalone PC game titled "Shadows of Lylat" using the Freespace Open engine.

Naturally, they don't have Nintendo's permission to do such a thing, which doesn't bode well for the future of Shadows of Lylat. That would be a shame, because as you can see in the trailer above, this game looks pretty damn cool. As the FAQ for the project explains (via Kotaku), Shadows of Lylat "is a fan-made standalone game that runs on the Freespace Open engine. It is not a mod since you do not need Freespace in order to run it." The game will feature both space and ground battles, three different types of Arwings to pilot, both new and classic enemies (check out the return of one of Star Fox 64's bosses in the trailer), and even multiplayer modes.

What it won't feature, though, is an exact recreation of the classic Star Fox gameplay. "Star Fox is more of an arcade shooter, while Freespace is a simulation shooter. While the SCP allows us to do many awesome things, we won't be able to get it just like the original games," the FAQ explains. It also states it'll run on Windows, Macs, and Linux, and the only timeframe for release is "when it's done."

Unfortunately, we just can't imagine this project getting there without arousing Nintendo's legal interests. But really, if Nintendo does rain on this team's parade, the least they could do is make a new Star Fox game themselves, right?

*Goes to see if my PC can run Freespace 2*

Originally Posted by Wikipedia

FreeSpace 2 is a 1999 space combat simulation computer game

Ok, uh, nevermind.

[A Zarkin' Frood]

Looks sweet.
But I'd like some actual gameplay footage instead of a montage which shows all the awesome stuff like explosions. The surfaces of the planets look kinda weird, though

I myself am a huge fan of all Star Fox games that center around flying something that shoots other flying things.

[Kim]

I'm hoping it gets canceled. I really am. I'm tired of fans making fan games using other people's game engines and other people's IP, and how fans are always talking about how it's going to be totally, totally awesome because it's being made by fans, so despite the fact that almost all fan-fiction is utterly terrible it's going to be super awesome because of fans. I'm hoping if this gets C&D'd it'll put a stop to that, or at least make people drastically less inclined to do it.

EDIT: Even though I know all the fans will get all angry and upset about what big meanies Game Company A is for issuing the C&D and I'll have to listen to it for at least a week before people stop caring.

[krogothwolf]

I agree with NonCon just because its made by fans doesn't mean it'll be great and bug free. If they do get a C&D's they could still release it as long as it references nothing to Star Fox. I don't really understand the desire of people to make and release their own games of a franchise they enjoy. It always feels more like they are using a name to help get their work noticed.

CoM,CoL is the only fan fiction thats good!

[Kim]

Originally Posted by krogothwolf

I don't really understand the desire of people to make and release their own games of a franchise they enjoy. It always feels more like they are using a name to help get their work noticed.

For the same reason people write fan-fiction. The using a name to get their worked noticed is why they do it despite the possibility of C&D.

[Pip Boy]

Can it possibly be worse than any of the drivel nintendo has been pumping out lately? I'm looking forward to this more than the real starfox games. Hell, I've read bad fanfiction with plots better than Starfox Adventures.

As for the project being C&D'd, doesn't copyright infringement not mean a damn thing as long as they don't make real monies off of the game?

[Kim]

Yes, because Nintendo has fucked up the games, obviously fans can do better on account of their being fans.

Also, I believe copyright infringement is copyright infringement regardless of any money made.

To make my reasoning a little more clear, it's not that I have anything against fans of anything. It's that fan-fiction usually sucks, and that generally these people have failed to produce anything, let alone anything good, and they decide to make their first game a fan-project based on somebody else's IP and using somebody else's game engine, I am less than inclined to believe that they can. If maybe this game, or Crimson Echoes, or Chrono Resurrection were being made by 'the creators of Awesome Indy Game That Everyone Liked', I would be more inclined to give a damn.

[bluestarultor]

I'm honestly with Noncon on this. People REALLY need to stop feeling like they deserve or are entitled to these things. If they want a game so bad, they can make a parody, which is much safer. Using someone else's IP is just cheap in so many ways:

First off, it's lazy, because you don't have to design your own characters, settings, or anything else, which really isn't all that hard. I mean, I have an entire FOLDER in My Documents filled with ideas, IN THEIR OWN FOLDERS, just to keep things at so much as a BASIC level of organization. If they have the free time to make a game, they sure as heck have the free time to come up with original ideas.

Second, it's attention-whoring. They get fans of the series all excited about their work and then complain when the company notices and calls them out on it.

Third, they have no right to it. Simply put, the original creators have the sole right to their own work. It's the same for everyone, company or not. If I take a picture, I own that picture under automatic copyright. No one has the right to take it and try to pass it off as theirs. The same goes for art, writing, video, and everything else. People bitch when the US government tries to deprive them of the rights to their own work when a corporation wants to use it, but then they don't want to give corporations the same in return. The only stipulation is that if it's for personal use, AND PERSONAL USE ONLY, which means no distribution, it's okay. They're distributing. It's NOT okay.

Finally, it's ultimately the company that gets vilified, when they're fully within their rights to C&D. Never mind they're protecting their own property, it's just MEAN when they deprive the world of a derivative work. You wouldn't let a person break down your door and make off with a painting you made and hung on the wall, so why is it the COMPANY who's bad when some random Internet people are basically doing just that with their IP? Companies don't deserve that, but everything is skewed to make it look like Goliath stomping the little guy, placing the IP thieves as David against the business giants. This isn't some epic battle for right and freedom. This is a battle for the right and freedom to steal someone else's work, and I'm GLAD when it goes to court, because it puts them back in their places. If companies wanted to, they could sue these people and destroy the rest of their lives. They choose not to. They politely request these people stop, and if they don't, simply have the courts make them stop and leave it at that. It's all very civil and professional, with no personal grudge towards the people making the project. The companies are NICE about it, while the people they're dealing with often end up getting nasty, or at least tacitly encouraging others to do so.



Really, when it does get a C&D, I'm just going to sit back and let things cool off. The Internet has a short memory span. I REALLY hope that people just eventually stop doing this, though, because they SHOULD be getting the message that doing it is wrong, and hopefully, it'll eventually be driven into their skulls with repetition.

[Kurosen]

I cannot be the only person to find it ironic to see opinions like this expressed on a sprite comic's forum.

[krogothwolf]

Originally Posted by Kurosen

I cannot be the only person to find it ironic to see opinions like this expressed on a sprite comic's forum.

Not only a sprite comic's forum but one that uses images of a company that always sends out C&D's when people make games based on their IP's!