I'm just gonna copy and paste this from a thread regarding remakes on the blitzbasic.com forums:

Hmmm....scary thoughts popping into my head now.

I'm almost done with my tetris remake. I guess I really shouldn't assume anything - but after seeing the countless numbers of tetris clones available I just assumed that it was legit. I'm planning on putting it on my website as a freebie... sort of a goodwill product + added incentive for future customers to visit my site.

After looking at this thread and a quick search on google, I'm a bit fuzzy on whether this is legal, or even a good idea. I just saw a website about the tetris company attacking freeware and shareware versions of tetris( www.abednarz.net/tetris.html -- site doesnt seem to have been updated since 2000 though), and another search for tetris yielded what I had originally assumed; a large amount of clones out there that as far as I can tell, are not officially licensed by the tetris co. ( www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&q=tetris+remakes&btnG=Search -- a number of them are being sold for money as well).

What do you all think?

I'm just gonna copy and paste this from a thread regarding remakes on the blitzbasic.com forums:


After looking at this thread and a quick search on google, I'm a bit fuzzy on whether this is legal, or even a good idea. I just saw a website about the tetris company attacking freeware and shareware versions of tetris( [url]

What do you all think?

I don't think you should have any problems. Whatever they say that its gameplay is copyrighted don't seem to be really truth. If they could they would shut down all the clones. But I don't think they can. We have a tetris like game. Got a letter or something once. So, what else can they do.

I wanted to add that we dont call our game exactly Tetris.

Long story short:

You can rip game mechanics, but not the name.

Just use another one and you are save (shouldn't contain "tris").

This is the sort of thing you need to ask your lawyer, but I don't think it's wise to make a clone (unless perhaps it's just for yourself and your own self-education). At the very least I'd try to innovate the game rather than being a straight clone. I definitely wouldn't try to sell a Tetris clone, and I know of at least one Tetris clone that has disappeared as a result of companies taking action (besides the one already mentioned).

Edit from Tetris Reference Library (http://www.campusprogram.com/reference/en/wikipedia/t/te/tetris.html)

Tetris is a registered trademark of The Tetris Company LLC (TTC). They license the Tetris trademark to companies wishing to market an official, authorized Tetris game.

Any other version is unauthorized, but as of 2002, the legality of unauthorized tetramino games that do not use the Tetris name has not been decided in court.

A game [mechanic] cannot be copyrighted (only patented), which refutes much of TTC's copyright claims on the game, leaving the trademark on "Tetris" as TTC's most significant claim on any government-granted monopoly.

TTC no longer seems to pursue "clones" of the game.

Onyx summed it up: You can clone the Tetris game mechanics, but you can't name it Tetris (or similar).

Edit from Tetris Reference Library (http://www.campusprogram.com/reference/en/wikipedia/t/te/tetris.html)

A game cannot be copyrighted (only patented)...

I thought this was the other way around?? A game can't be patented, but only copyrighted

Dismiss this if you will but I would warn very strongly against doing anything even vaguely like tetris.

There are a bazillion tetris clones on PocketPC etc and the tetris owners have contacted anyone and everyone who even has the word tetris in their game descriptions even if the game itself is nothing like.

I was contacted and told to stop using reference to their name even though mine was a columns/dr mario clone that just said "tetris" as one of the search terms. A lot of people on my mailing list have similar stories.

They are being very aggressive about this even though it probably costs more to chase us down than anything that might save. My guess is we can all look forward to a tetris mega 3D (yawn) remake for desktops or something. Woohoo. Not!

You were using the name Tetris to help sell your game - that's the clanger you dropped & got TTC to look at you. You cannot use Tetris or "ris" etc in the name or description you use AT ALL if you want to escape legal attention from TTC.

You're right dogbert, but my point is really that unlike all the other remake-worthy games out there, TTC are still actively looking at putting the stoppers on people. If I had a tetris rip for sale I'm sure they woulda been a bit more pushy. As it was it was just a polite request for me to stop using their name, which seemed fair enough so I did.

I thought this was the other way around?? A game can't be patented, but only copyrightedI don't know. I just cut and paste the links. Here's another from the US Copyright Office on games (http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl108.html):
The idea for a game is not protected by copyright. The same is true of the name or title given to the game and of the method or methods for playing it.

Copyright protects only the particular manner of an author’s expression in literary, artistic, or musical form. Copyright protection does not extend to any idea, system, method, device, or trademark material involved in the development, merchandising, or playing of a game. Once a game has been made public, nothing in the copyright law prevents others from developing another game based on similar principles.

Some material prepared in connection with a game may be subject to copyright if it contains a sufficient amount of literary or pictorial expression. For example, the text matter describing the rules of the game, or the pictorial matter appearing on the gameboard or container, may be registrable.

A game can be copyrighted, a game idea can be patented.

A game can be copyrighted, a game idea can be patented.

Half right there. An idea cannot be patented. However, a process can. For instance the Amazon 1-Click patent... The idea wasn't patented, but the process was.

From the USPTO website (http://www.uspto.gov/main/faq/):

A patent cannot be obtained on a mere idea or suggestion. Patent applications are examined for both technical and legal merit. Prior to filing a patent application, a search of existing patents can be conducted at the USPTO Patent Search Room or at a Patent and Trademark Depository Library in your area. For additional information on patents, you may visit the USPTO Web site at www.uspto.gov/main/patents.htm.

For more info on Patentability have a look at: http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep_e8r2_2100_508.pdf

You might read up on an old case between Webfoot Technologies and Hasbro:

http://www.gamedev.net/columns/interviews/webfoot.asp

It makes a few points. 1. A game with a vaguely similar name and play mechanics can be a target. 2. The company that takes you to court doesn't necessarily need a winnable case if they are large enough. They can just outspend you.

IANAL and all that.

-Erik

Thanks for everyones input, its appreciated. Seems like this could be too much trouble down the road to be worth it. Right now it looks like I'm just gonna rip out all the tetris guts and replace them with something original....just have to think of a concept now :confused:

Right now it looks like I'm just gonna rip out all the tetris guts and replace them with something original....just have to think of a concept now :confused:
Hey, if you want some ideas, maybe start a brainstorming post setting down the basic guidelines of the game you want to make. I've seen this work really well before. I encourage you to attempt something original. To me it seems tragic when a programmer spends his talent and time on a game idea that's already been done to death. Not to harsh on you for writing a Tetris game, but onward to better things, my friend! :)

-Erik

Amen.

* * * * *

While the legal issues are interesting the question of originality should also be considered. Do you want people to think of you as just another clone merchant? If there are so many Tetris clones out there why would anyone care about yours? Why would they be encouraged to come back to your site when what they found there was just a clonetris.

If you come up with something different you stand out from the crowd and people might be more interested in returning.

Not to drag this thread out, but there were multiple reasons for me doing Tetris.

I started working on a 2d in 3d system in blitz(based off of some things that Anthony Flack revealed about the one Cletus uses). I've put my own spin on it, and I'm still in the process of adding features-- I basically want a library that allows me to focus more on the design side of games, and less on the coding side. I needed to workout kinks, as well as figure out the best ways to use it. I thought it was best to try it out first in a smallish game......hence tetris ;) (I've done tech demos before, but I've changed the lib around a number of times and yada yada yada-- needed to test it real world)

Secondly, I wanted practice and experience with actually creating a complete, polished game. Its easy to dismiss it as "oh another tetris" but the thing is, I'm really trying to put in high production values. I wanted it to not look out of place next to an effort by say, nintendo. For every indie title out there that does look "polished", theres x amount of others that look pretty poor. I don't want be in that category. As it turns out, this is a lot of work, even for a simple game like tetris.

While it still needs more TLC, overall I'm happy with how everything was progressing. I think I've captured some of that SNES essence. (It's also this factor that makes me think I could possibly raise some eyebrows at ttc...so time to come up with something original)

Putting this game up on my website was really an afterthought. I wanted it up not only for buyers of my (future) games, but also as demonstation material for potential clients. I plan on trying to establish good relationships with other indies(you guys :D ), for various kinds of contract work(art, code, webdev, etc.).

I have original titles planned, so I wouldn't be worried about being branded a "clone merchant". As stated above, I think just in overall quality(if not originality), I stand out.

Anyways..........this turned into a much bigger post than I had originally intended. Sorry :)