Featured BYOND Games - Query

ID:132414
 
Jan 18 2011, 7:10 am (Edited on Jan 18 2011, 7:30 am)
After seeing that Sunday the 19th is listed as a BYOND favourite, I have a question to ask.

Are BYOND favourites permitted to every game genre except Anime, or fan games as a whole? Because Sunday the 19th has characters from Batman and Saw in the game. I'm not sure if this is a mistake on the staff's part or whether fan games, if non-Anime, may be featured.

I would love to know and I thank any replies from official staff members in advance. :)
Jan 18 2011, 7:33 am
I'm just a moderator, but fan games in general shouldn't be featured. Just expect a few hiccups from the initial sort. =)
Jan 18 2011, 8:08 am
In response to ACWraith
Right, but Tom never did answer my original question, he kind of just dodged it.

If I'm creating a Pokemon FireRed / LeafGreen port to BYOND, and am using the original graphics from the GBA game, will my game still appear on the game listings? It's not a "rip" in the sense that I'm using someone elses programming...
Jan 18 2011, 8:19 am
In response to Flame Sage
I don't know how all of the distinctions are made, but fan games that are not rips can still be listed. They just won't be featured.
Jan 18 2011, 9:00 am
In response to ACWraith
ACWraith wrote:
I don't know how all of the distinctions are made, but fan games that are not rips can still be listed. They just won't be featured.

This.
Jan 18 2011, 9:08 am
In response to Tom
So what about Sunday the 19th, what does that game fall under?

I ask because it IS a featured game.
Jan 18 2011, 9:43 am
In response to Pmitch
Pmitch wrote:
So what about Sunday the 19th, what does that game fall under?

I ask because it IS a featured game.

That is difficult because (AFAIK) it is not really a fangame but uses a few(?) fan-based elements. I consider fangames more to be based on a general theme or heavily using that kind of IP. We'll have to iron out a policy and make that public.
Jan 18 2011, 9:44 am
In response to Pmitch
Pmitch wrote:
So what about Sunday the 19th, what does that game fall under?
I ask because it IS a featured game.

I'm not sure what Tom has decided the officially policy is, but in my opinion the rule should be based upon what is and isn't a violation of copyright.

If there are copyrighted characters in the game like Batman, then it shouldn't be featured on BYOND. That said, if the creators of that game rename him "Hat Man" or "Bat Guy" and alter the sprite to remove the official logo, it is not a violation of copyright because it is protected as parody.

Proelium II's "Zee Warrior" is an example of this. Everyone knows who that character represents, but because it's done as a parody there are no legal conflicts.
Jan 18 2011, 10:29 am
In response to SilkWizard
SilkWizard wrote:
I'm not sure what Tom has decided the officially policy is, but in my opinion the rule should be based upon what is and isn't a violation of copyright.

If there are copyrighted characters in the game like Batman, then it shouldn't be featured on BYOND. That said, if the creators of that game rename him "Hat Man" or "Bat Guy" and alter the sprite to remove the official logo, it is not a violation of copyright because it is protected as parody.

That's a pretty sound proposal.
Jan 18 2011, 10:30 am
In response to SilkWizard
I agree.
Fangames that are loosely based off of concepts (like NEStalgia, Sunday the 19th, etc.) should be allowed to be featured.

I think having featured games that are ports (Pokemon) would do a great job of getting traffic into BYOND so that they can play their favorite game, but it does present the legal side of things.

I think they should be allowed to be listed, but not featured.
Jan 18 2011, 10:32 am
In response to Tom
Tom wrote:
SilkWizard wrote:
I'm not sure what Tom has decided the officially policy is, but in my opinion the rule should be based upon what is and isn't a violation of copyright.

If there are copyrighted characters in the game like Batman, then it shouldn't be featured on BYOND. That said, if the creators of that game rename him "Hat Man" or "Bat Guy" and alter the sprite to remove the official logo, it is not a violation of copyright because it is protected as parody.

That's a pretty sound proposal.

In the current way games are listed, do all of the Featured games take priority, or is it a mixture that's presented to the user?
Jan 18 2011, 10:34 am
In response to Flame Sage
Flame Sage wrote:
In the current way games are listed, do all of the Featured games take priority, or is it a mixture that's presented to the user?

Featured games are always listed first in the "popularity" sort and in search results. They also get banners and can use our automated subscription system.

The other sort modes highlight the featured games, but at the moment they are not prioritized in the listings (we did it this way in the first iteration but it proved confusing).
Jan 18 2011, 10:38 am
In response to Flame Sage
Flame Sage wrote:
Fangames that are loosely based off of concepts (like NEStalgia, Sunday the 19th, etc.) should be allowed to be featured.

NEStalgia isn't a fan game. From what I've seen of it, Sunday the 19th isn't a fan game either.

There is a very clear distinction: a game with an original IP that is merely inspired by other games in the genre isn't a fan game. Professional examples: Torchlight, Castle Crashers, Super Meat Boy, etc.
Jan 18 2011, 10:43 am
In response to Flame Sage
Flame Sage wrote:
I think having featured games that are ports (Pokemon) would do a great job of getting traffic into BYOND so that they can play their favorite game, but it does present the legal side of things.

I disagree. No matter the quality of the port, a fangame is still a fangame. The update is designed to promote original, fresh creations, not rehashes of old Gameboy games.
Jan 18 2011, 10:43 am
In response to SilkWizard
I probably should rewrite that sentence to clarify:
Games that are loosely based off of concepts of other games (like NEStalgia, Sunday the 19th, etc.) should be allowed to be featured.

One thing that's not clear is that when you look under [Popularity] games that aren't even being hosted nor have players take priority over games that are being hosted, but aren't "featured."

Perhaps under [Popularity] the first 2 columns should be dedicated to featured, while the rest of the columns contained other games? There needs to be some balance, because I was scrolling through and after page [1] there appears to be no games that are "Live." but then once you get to Page [5] the 'non-featured' games show up..

This might confuse people into thinking that the only games actually being hosted are only up to Page [1].

Essentially, when showing [Popular] games, perhaps only show ones that are being hosted?
Jan 18 2011, 11:09 am
In response to Flame Sage
Or you could make a game that's not a fan-game, and reap all the benefits of improved listing and promotion.
Jan 18 2011, 12:14 pm
In response to Flame Sage
Flame Sage wrote:
Perhaps under [Popularity] the first 2 columns should be dedicated to featured, while the rest of the columns contained other games? There needs to be some balance, because I was scrolling through and after page [1] there appears to be no games that are "Live." but then once you get to Page [5] the 'non-featured' games show up..

Hmm, I kind of like the idea of the "popular" sort showing live games on one side and downloadables on the other.
Jan 18 2011, 2:35 pm
In response to Stephen001
Except fan-games usually are funner.
See: Megaman Files (2) compared to any future Megaman games, with the main person behind Megaman gone, they'll suck.
Jan 19 2011, 1:53 pm
In response to Moonlight Memento
Nothing is keeping anyone from playing fangames, they just aren't featured.