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Legal issues of similar games?

etranman1etranman1 Posts: 1New Users
edited August 2012 in iPhone SDK Game Development
I want to get into app development and I have a couple ideas. I'm researching if there are any other similar games to mine, but let's say I don't find any but there does happen to be very similar apps. Are there any legal issues with such things like that?
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Replies

  • LevyMastLevyMast Posts: 97Registered Users
    etranman1 said:

    I want to get into app development and I have a couple ideas.

    You can't copyright an idea.

    Don't use the same names, graphics, or sounds, and you should be ok for the most part.
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  • mer10mer10 Posts: 255Registered Users
    Well maybe... EA and Zynga are in court right now in a case dealing with copyright infringement/cloning right now. Both parties had different names, graphics, sounds, but their games appeared to be very similar(which is where the lawsuit is stemming from). I don't believe it has much significance for the average developer though, as this is going on in court where both parties are spending thousands on legal fees.

    Use your own stuff and make your game unique or better.
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  • LevyMastLevyMast Posts: 97Registered Users
    edited August 2012
    mer10 said:

    copyright infringement/cloning

    cloning != copyright infringement.
    Zynga wouldn't be a million dollar business if they couldn't clone games. They do it all the time.

    EA and Zynga are two rich cry babies, trying to protect an "idea", rather than a real copyright.
    Who thought of the idea first? Me!Me! Who cares.

    People with money tend to abuse the court systems a lot. That case will most likely be
    settled out-of-court with some undisclosed settlement. It is a winless case.
    Post edited by LevyMast on
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  • HemiMGHemiMG Posts: 350Registered Users
    Zynga did a bit more than just "clone" The Sims. Every pose, every proportion, every animation is a near exact copy of the The Sims Social. If apps were movies, The Ville would be a shot by shot remake of The Sims Social. You can bet that is going to cause problems.
    If you are making a game that is similar to another game, you are fine. Just make it similar in that way that Vice Versa is similar to Freaky Friday. Those movies are near identical in concept, but aren't shot by shot identical the way The Sims and The Ville are.
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  • LevyMastLevyMast Posts: 97Registered Users
    HemiMG said:

    Zynga did a bit more than just "clone" The Sims. Every pose, every proportion, every animation is a near exact copy of the The Sims Social. If apps were movies, The Ville would be a shot by shot remake of The Sims Social. You can bet that is going to cause problems.
    If you are making a game that is similar to another game, you are fine. Just make it similar in that way that Vice Versa is similar to Freaky Friday. Those movies are near identical in concept, but aren't shot by shot identical the way The Sims and The Ville are.

    I still believe this is a winless case, and EA knows it.

    It'll be settled out of court with some agreement that says they won't sue again, so
    here's a couple million to go away quietly and keep your paws off our game.
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