? Risks of infringing on Franchises?

[ABaaaadIdea]

I'm wondering (as far as anyone knows) how risky it is to create content based on major franchises ...

So, there are at least two games I'd love to make:
One is in the X Mansion, and has tons of stuff (Day/Night, Weather, Sneaking, P&C Adventure) but with our fav characters. Want to get all the XWomen to strip at a T&A club? Sneak and reason your way into Cerebro, after aquiring new powers, and the proper sim routine for the Danger Room ...
The other is a game w Leia in Jabba's Palace, and with similar components. Want to bring Leia down to the Rancor? There's a multi-step quest involving the Emperor, Mara Jade, and eventually Force-controlling the giant meatball ...

I've got more than half the assets, and pretty much all the software I'd need, but I'm also wondering if anyone has any stories? Does the Mouse only come after you if you make such works for profit, or under any Amy Schumer-level circumstances?

 

[Agent HK47]

Well, if you are looking for inspiration, then I would probably look at these games, since they should be close to what you are describing:

https://f95zone.to/threads/orange-trainer-exiscoming.1624/
https://f95zone.to/threads/rogue-like-evolution-v0-982g-oni.14/
https://f95zone.to/threads/something-unlimited-v2-222-gunsmoke-games.326/

As for risks, thats hard (if not impossible) to tell.

Most of the times parodies are fairly safe. Also, it is pretty unlikely that your game will attract the "eye of the mouse" unless it starts making thousands of dollars, or they decide that it could cause damage to their brand name. Either thing is probably fairly unlikely to happen, but in the world of copyright, nothing is ever safe.

In any case, all the games above are still going strong and have not met any kinds of legal issues (to my own knowledge, don't murder me if I am wrong) so I would say its probably fairly safe to go ahead with your project. You can always give the characters different names if you feel unsafe using the real names.

Good luck to you.

 

[ABaaaadIdea]

Well, if you are ...

1. Oh cool! Those are interesting games!
2. I mean, I know no one is going to be able to say with certainty what consequences there might be. But if it turned out that recently, five games were shut down it'd indicate a new mandate etc.
3. On a related note, I've never done crowd-funding, but I wonder what level of progress one should shoot for before considering that route? Also, I wonder what the difference is in patronizing a creator v paying for a particular product ... I assume the former is what Patreon is based on? But I also bet they scrutinize content for infringement too?

Regardless, thanks for your opinions @Agent HK47 - you were one of the best parts of this Meatsack's childhood

 

[Agent HK47]

1. Oh cool! Those are interesting games!
2. I mean, I know no one is going to be able to say with certainty what consequences there might be. But if it turned out that recently, five games were shut down it'd indicate a new mandate etc.
3. On a related note, I've never done crowd-funding, but I wonder what level of progress one should shoot for before considering that route? Also, I wonder what the difference is in patronizing a creator v paying for a particular product ... I assume the former is what Patreon is based on? But I also bet they scrutinize content for infringement too?

Regardless, thanks for your opinions @Agent HK47 - you were one of the best parts of this Meatsack's childhood

Explanation: Well, crowdfunding works in different ways, depending on the site itself. On Kickstarter you fund a specific product/idea. If the creator lies or any other ways don't deliver on his promise, you can ask for your money back, because you didn't get what was promised.
Patreon supports the creator himself, rather than a specific thing. So on patreon, you are basically just donating on a monthly basis, because you enjoy what the creator is doing. The creator can ofc specify on his page exactly what you are helping him fund, but if he changes something and you regret it, it is a bit harder to get your money back, because in terms of how patreon actually describes itself, you never paid the creator for a specific product.

Observation: I might be wrong on a couple of things here and there, but that is basically how crowd funding works, at least to my knowledge. Patreon is probably your best bet, if you are looking to crowdfund, and there isn't really a set marker for when to start doing it. I would advise you to have something to show potential backers though. Have some screenshots/concept art ready, or even better a small demo of your game, so you can show people exactly why they should invest money in you.

Statement: Hopefully this has helped you in your future work, Master. This particular droid is looking forward to all the violence and mutilation, which is sure to be present in your future game.

 

[ABaaaadIdea]

Response: Sorry for the delay. I laughed SO hard when I first read this! Patreon sounds like where I want to go early-on, especially on the trademarked work.

Query: If you're interested, I'd love to kick some ideas around in pms?

Statement: This was most helpful, as well as amusing to me, your companion meat-sack. Unreal Engine has been a slog so far, even with the blueprints, but maaaan ... it could be fun! One of my ideas is to make essentially Lust Man Standing in rpg form =D =D Survival, Zombies, and war-ing factions to court =D

 

[Agent HK47]

Statement: You are welcome to write me in PMs if you want, but I might not have the best answers. I am only a poor, little protocol droid after all. But feel free to write, I won't bite. Well... I might fire a couple of heavy blaster shots into your weak meatsack of a frame if you annoy me, but I promise that I won't bite.

 

[redle]

As was already disclaimed, we aren't lawyers giving you legal advice.

There are 2 different factors though. There is "what is legal" with content related to trademark content and "what is attacked." The first is if you were taken to court over whatever material you produced how likely are you to "win" the trial. The second is how likely it is for someone to start legal proceedings against you (which does not necessarily relate to whether what you are doing is legal or illegal). That second one is based on the whims of whomever owns the rights and varies wildly. Some companies seek out and attack anything that approaches their namespace; some ignore everything that is not causing them problems.

As a for-instance, the "something unlimited" game mentioned in an earlier post did have some legal issues previously (at least that is my understanding). The original game title caused a problem and was thus changed to its current state to settle the matter. Like with this one, the initial legal action is generally a "hey, you can't do that." So long as you take down/remove/change the offending bits then nothing goes further.

Things like using actual names of characters, groups, titles are the most likely sources to cause problems (both increases the likelihood that your project is noticed and that it is pursued). That's why one often sees comic strips or video clips or any parody type with characters like Suke Lkywalker. It is of course obvious to everyone whom that person is supposed to be (or be portraying), but actual trademarked content was never actually used by the developer.

Suke knew the bar was a regular hang-out for the Monarch's Cloudsoldiers. Always a dimwitted lot, the troopers were the fastest way he could think to get the information he needed. And he needed the information fast. He made sure his lightrapier was well hidden by his cloak and then slipped his way inside. His eyes hadn't even adjusted to the dimness of the place when sensed through the Power two likely candidates. They were stepping out into the streets, and a quick mental probe told him they would both be easily controlled. Yes, before he even approached he could see their surface thoughts. They knew where his twin sister Seia was.