Is it possible to use Pokemon images, names, elements in a game I would like to make? Are they still copyrighted, patented, would I get sued?  (Maybe their rights have expired by now, is what I am thinking?)
11331
Most games build on other games' successes and many are downright clones. Where is the limit of imitation before legal issues come into play? Is it down to literary or graphic work like characters and storyline that cause legal problems, or can someone actually claim to own gameplay mechanics?  There are so many similar clone games out there that the rules are probably very slack or nonexistent, but I'd like to hear the views of more experienced developers / designers.
19788
Recently I started remaking an old game on Unity. Basically I want to remake an old RPG that was released for Playstation 1. I'm not ripping anything from the old game, all the assets are being created by me. I'm creating everything from the scratch, music, 3D models, gameplay however I will keep the (copyrighted ?) names, I will try to create the characters and maps/levels as they were in the original version of Playstation 1 but with better graphics.  I'm not planning on selling it or adding in on a platform like Steam (for obvious reasons, copyrights etc), just giving it for free. But I wanna know when I will finish the development, can I share the game on public with other people so they can download it?  Can the company that made the original game sue me/fine me because of copyrights reasons even though I'm not planning on selling for money?  tl;dr Remake an non-profit game of PS1 from the scratch, can the company that holds the copyrights of the game sue me/fine me?
39096
I am making my own cards to sell, however, I would like to use some graphics and or backgrounds once in a while without having to make them all the time.   Where is the best place to buy graphics, images and backgrounds for a low cost that I can use in some of my cards that I will be selling?   Sometimes I just need to add one image or graphic and would like to purchase some but not sure where I can get them  so that I can use them in a card that I will sell.
46931
Is there a way to transfer more than one Pokemon at a time to the professor?  Or possibly an addon that gives me this ability?  Vendoring all the trash Pokemon for candies individually is really annoying and time consuming.
20238
I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask this kind of question but here it is.  I'm making a board game where there is a deck of monster cards and I'm interested - is there some tool/script that allows to make images for cards from some text file that contains all the needed information (.txt, .xml or something else)? What i would like is something like:   1) make a .psd with labels for name and defense values (also background and other images that can be anything)  2) have some file that lists all the monsters names and defense values (where i can quicly change them and regenerate images from that)  Also you can add somehing new later both in psd and this file (like I/II/III for monster difficulty). Optionally - not just change text, but also images (that would allow to change icons from the file, ect.) #dreams  Is there some tool that allows for this kind of fast iteration?
19343
I just bought Pokemon Alpha Sapphire for myself and Omega Ruby for my friend. I also played the X/Y games and I have Pokebank. The problem is: I didn't play games of the 5th and 4th generation. I basically skipped the Nintendo DS games and started playing again with the release of Pokemon X/Y.  My question is: Is it possible to complete the Pokedex with only the four 6th Gen games (X, Y, Omega Ruby, Alpha Sapphire)? Or will there be some unobtainable Pokemon?   I'm not talking about the rare legendary ones like Celebi, Arceus etc. I just want to know whether I need to use a 5th gen game or not to "Catch 'Em All".
110851
I want to create a motion trail effect for a sword like known in games look at that example if you have an solution that looks not as fancy as in the picture don't mind to post it. I'll accept anything useful.
100773
I want to make a game derived from an existing game. That game is owned by a live company.  How do I go about contacting the rights owners correctly and negotiating for the rights to the content?
57549
Have you noticed the different responses when catching Pokémon?  Most of the time there is a ring that shoots out. Sometimes however there are fiery wisps that go up from the Pokémon.   Any idea what this means?
40874
Recently I played around with some lighting and macro shooting of some of my (beat-up) Matchbox toy cars from the 1970's. The results were pleasing to my eye and I had visions of making my millions by selling these images.  The Matchbox brand is now owned by Mattel, and my pics are obviously identifiable as being of those toys, even though the style is on the creative side rather than a straight pic.  So:   My assumption is that without a blessing from Mattel that I could not legally sell my images.  Is that valid?   If I need permission, how do you approach multi-nationals such as Mattel? (and are they typically amenable to such things?)   Update 1  Currently I am in the US and had intended selling here, but a website knows no geographical bounds.   Update 2  After reading  I am of the feeling (in the US) that if my pics are considered a  of the original designs, then they would stand alone as separate works.  That raises the (most likely very subjective) question of:       Are different lighting and camera angles sufficient to create a   derivative work of an object?   And by different I mean wildly dissimilar to anything the original designers used to depict their designs.  Finally I am well aware of talk to a lawyer, and I am only asking this question in terms of getting a general idea of the issue.  Update 3  A comment from Chuqui has made me realize I might have been accidentally confusing people with the terms I was using.  When I said commercially I was thinking in terms of selling fine art prints rather than to magazines, stock services etc.  In my mind making money off something is commercial.  It may be that my personal definition is not correct.
39540
I recently made a simulation game like Gamedev Tycoon where you are in charge of a game company and planning to release it on app stores soon.   I have few questions about trademark and copyright laws, as in game there are different companies (competitor) who release games, make sequels to previous games, release consoles etc. I know that under parody law I can change a company name from MICROSOFT to MICROCRAFT or MINORCRAFT etc. But what if I provide users an editor where they can change company names (if they want to) from MICROCRAFT to MICROSOFT?  Do changes made by players with my editor violate any copyright or trademark law? How can I handle that?
4646
What options are there for saving game data in a secure manner? I'm interested in solutions specifically tailored for C++.   I'm looking for something that is fast and easy to use. I'm only concerned about storing simple information such as   Which levels are and are not unlocked The user's score for each level   I'm curious again to know what's out there to use, any good libraries to use that give me nice, secure game data files that the average player can't mess with.   I just found  here which looks very nice, but it would be great to get some opinions on potential other libraries/options out there.
36456
What happens if a user uses a copyright image as a profile image on SO or any other site?  Is it ok to use such images because according to law it is illegal to use anything which has a copyright?  My question is just related with User Profiles on SO not other social media sites.  If a copyright issue is occurred then who is responsible for it?
30034
I want to make game more realistic, for that I need a city. So, I decided to take New York City, as it can be seen through Google Maps with Street View, 3d view and much more and will help me a lot to make realistic game.   So, my simple question is: Can I use the whole New York City in my game and publish it commercially?
110828
If I am creating a board-game type game, does anyone know if it is legal to use others' names in the game?  ie. A playing card with "George Bush" or "Michael Jackson" on it.  Also, is it the same for brand names?
107677
I'm getting more and more interested in the D&amp;D retro-clones. I keep seeing various names thrown around, like Labyrinth Lords, Swords and Wizardry, Lycanthropes &amp;… something else starting with an L. There must be dozens of these floating around the internet.  What I would like is a list of what games exist, along with a few lines explaining what each of them specializes in or sets them apart from the others.  I'm specifically not asking which is "the best one".  Bonus points for providing links to the games.
88586
I can't quite figure this one out. I am not copying a custom piece of work, I am copying something that is available in nature, bones. I am also not tracing it, I am drawing by hand using them as a reference for accuracy. So, is that considered copyright infringement? Does it depend on how similar my drawings are to the ones I visually copied?  So if I look at a medical website or book and see a knee bone, then I draw one on paper or in a graphics editing tool by looking, with my eyes, at the referenced image, is that going to get me in trouble somehow?  I mean, surely I don't have to go find my own skeleton to draw from... right??