How far are the video game patent laws going to go?

As mentioned in a previous article, video games are coming under heavy fire from patent holders, who announced that they own the writes to gameplay mechanics or hardware. The most recent victim? Guitar Hero.

In 1999, Gibson filed a patent to protect a "System and method for generating and controlling a simulated musical concert", which by definition is what Guitar Hero is, kind of. Looking deeper into the patent, you'll see that the actual technical device it looks to control is a head-mounted 3d display, in a addition to a virtual musical instrument. But as we all know, it's not necessarily the device that it is protected... it's the method of technology that is outlined in the list of points made in the patent filing.

So Guitar Hero is under fire from Gibson, a popular guitar and instrument company. They already tried to break down Activision, who in turn is trying to kill off the patent in a US court. But now Gibson is becoming SERIOUS BUSINESS, launching lawsuits on big box retailers who are selling Guitar Hero products: Wal-Mart, Gamestop, K-mart, and Amazon to name a few. Why? They are selling products that infringe on copyright.

But wait, wasn't Guitar Hero made over three years ago? This begs to ask why Gibson wasn't making the claim then. It's no secret that Guitar Hero exists in the world, especially since it has made over a billion USD since launch. But maybe that was why Gibson waited... if they win this patent lawsuit, Gibson is entitled to a huge load of cash for each sale that is made on the Guitar Hero game franchise.

So who's next? Are rhythm games with any sort of simulated music/gameplay experience up for lawsuit? Poor Coolio-Natio :(.

The patent for Gibson is 9 years old and who knows what they actually did with it themselves, but I feel the who ordeal is painfully unnecessary.

Read the Patent
Activision Calling Foul
Earlier Yahoo Article

http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/15/har monesica-is-exactly-that/

Anyone who makes an NES cartridge into a harmonica is my hero.

Will you be my Smash Bros friend?

3995-6182-7242

On February 17, 1998, a patent by Namco Ltd was approved by the United States Trademark and Patent Office (#5718632) . This patent was a page 12 document outlining the technological process of a smaller game being loaded and played while the larger game was being loaded... otherwise known as the preloader game. This helps prevent "wastage of time", on the behalf of the user and the system.

What this means is that if you put a game in your preloader, Namco reserves the right to seek monetary compensation in the court of law. Seems silly right?

A patent allows a technological process to be protected from other's monetary or personal gain. In return, a public record of the technological process is made which can help stem new ideas, technologies, etc. So basically, if you discover a process or technology that is unique, you can patent it so that if anyone else wants to use the process, they have to get permission from you... you basically own the right to let people use your work legally.

I'm not saying that Namco is going to sue you... granted, a lot of indie game developers are really under the radar of such an attack, especially one of this nature... but it is always interesting to see how protective people can get over processes, even ones that are so simple and occur often in games.

But given that they are specific processes... doesn't this mean you can patent specific gameplay elements as well? By US Patent standards, yes you can, and it has been done before. We'll just have to see how this all plays out in the future... especially because most of these patents last 20 years.

Read the Patent
Gamasutra Patent Article
Kotaku Article

I love Super Mario Bros 2. I am in the process of mastering this game, by achieving (hopefully) some sort of record in the game, either by a speed run with/without warps or whatever I can achieve. Currently I can get to 7-2 in 12 minutes, 30 seconds... which is pretty fast but not yet fast enough to be awesome. The world record for completion is sub 9 minutes, 15 seconds... but I am getting closer each day. I practice for about 30 minutes a day, but I might bump the regiment as I make the final push to beat the game faster and faster.

I have been practicing worlds 1-1 to 4-2 for the past 2 months. While I have very modest practice in 6-1 and above, I can still beat the game in a pretty good time. Hopefully once I master world 6 and 7, we'll see some sub 10 minutes going through.

I have never sat down and made a list of the most influential games on my life. Seeing that Newgrounds had a "Favorite Games" section now on user's profiles, I decided to finally make that list. Here are my picks... am I missing anything? Mind you, this is my personal opinion and nothing official :).

Super Mario Bros 2
Final Fantasy VII
Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Tempest
Tetris
Crono Trigger
Portal
Lemmings
Starcraft
Missle Command
Bioshock
Earthbound
Katamari Damacy
Donkey Kong
Super Mario Bros 3
Super Mario World
Megaman 2
Super Mario 64
Final Fantasy III
Smash Bros Melee
Zelda: Windwaker
Super Mario Galaxy
Doom
Goldeneye
Guitar Hero 2
Simcity 2000
Zelda: Link to the Past
Illusion of Gaia
Warcraft 2
Rez HD
Halo
Zelda: Majoras Mask
Secret of Mana
Worms
Myst
Sam and Max hit the Road
Super Mario RPG
Descent
Battletoads
Megaman
Harvest Moon
Streets of Rage 2
Prince of Persia
Uniracers
Kirby's Adventure
Pokemon Red/Blue
Kingdom Hearts
Wario Warez, Megaparty Games
The Sims
Halo 3

Look good, or totally off?

Jennifer Ann's group is holding a game design contest to help educate everyone about Teen Violence. The top prize is a $1,000 with some runner-up prizes, but I hope that you'll sincerely think about entering for the good of it.

The contest goes until April 15th (tax day here in the US), so if you have the heart to make an awesome game for a great cause, then you should think about making something for it :). The chairman of the Independent Games Festival and the editor from Kotaku will be there, so it will be a plus for you to get some exposure to industry professionals.

http://jenniferann.org/2008_game_conte st.htm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacifi c/7224871.stm

Apparently the mainstream news has completely failed to talk about any of the 1.4 million Chinese troops that have been deployed to help keep China stable during a freak snowstorm that has locked hundreds of thousands of people out of electricity, a ride home on the train, or basic necessities and goods.

Right now there are hundreds of thousands of people sitting at train stations on the streets, waiting to get on trains. Every time a train comes to the station, its a stampede to get on causing numerous injuries and even death. People have been waiting on the streets upwards of 3-4 days to get on.

100 million people are affected by the winter storms. But where is the news on all of this?

Apparently the he-said/she-said of the political race has been drowning out this humanitarian crisis. But afterall, everyone is more interested in Super Tuesday around here in the United States. I respect the elections, but something that effects 100 million people and has caused 200,000 people to become sick should cut a bit into the air time of candidates.

Ziff Davis Media apparently loves me this month... Games for Windows Magazine ran an article called "The Top 52 Free Games to Play Now" in their February issue, and Dark Cut 2 was featured on page 52 in the simulation section! They link to Newgrounds in that article, which is great. Also in the magazine is a really nice article about getting into casual game design.

Also, 1UP.com recently ran an article for the top 101 free games of 2007, and I managed to get 4 games into that list! That list includes Ball Revamped 5, Dark Cut 2, Luminara, and Four Second Frenzy.

I also wanted to post a link to the new game I am working on. Production name "Elements", this game focuses on manipulating the level to make progress instead of the player. Take a look at the YouTube Video. It should have 30 levels of funnnnnn! The video quality sucks, so bare with it.

Okay, that's all... have a really lovely day!

I'M GOING TO GET YOU PENGUINNNNN