Created by noleafclover613 on Jan 26, 2011
Last updated: 01/26/11 at 07:26 AM
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? Germany's USK decided not to rate the Xbox 360 title Crackdown in their country. Although this did not mean an entire ban on the game, Crackdown was unable to be purchased by minors. On top of this, the game could not be advertised by stores, or even put up on selves. The game had to be sold from under the counter, were it was asked for by name. This was not the first game that the USK refused to rate. Gears of War and Dead Rising was also refused a rating. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? From the industry's perspective, this is a big event. When a game is unable to advertise, the profit margins become so much thinner, due to the fact that not as many people are familiar with your title. This can be a major issue in the company, and if enough money is lost, it would ensure that no sequel was made. Dietrich, Dale. (2007, January). Germany Restricts Crackdown Sales. Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.daledietrich.com/gaming/category/cases-2/violent-game-law-cases/
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? William Crawford, a screenwriter from Los Angeles, filed suit against Midway for infringing upon his character and plot designs of his 1998 screenplay also named Psi-Ops. The US Copyright Office list Psi-ops as property of William Crawford, filed March 26, 1998. It also list PSI-OPS as property of Midway, July 9, 2004. Crawford's suit asked for accounting of revenue and a share of the profit. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? This could be a major suit in the eyes of a designer. If you was one of the designers who helped create Psi-Ops, and this individual tries to claim rights to this title, it could mean less work for you. If a sequel was in production, work would be stopped immediately because Midway would not want to spend more money on a venture that might not belong to them. Sinclair, Brendan. (2007, March). Midway sued over Psi-Ops. Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.gamespot.com/news/6167348.html
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? Three executives that worked for Red Octane resigned to start their own company, The Ant Commodos (TAC). Activision was worried that these executives would take secrets and plans from Red Octane to create new games and accessories at TAC. Activision forced the executives to sign agreements, restricting them from creating new guitars, games that involved instruments, and sharing Red Octane's secrets. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? This event is very important to the industry because it protects a companies work. If employees could leave one company and take product plans with them to create somewhere else, many companies would not be able to survive. Laws like this does help with some job security. Dietrich, Dale. (2007, April). Activision Settles with Two Former Guitar Hero Executives. Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.daledietrich.com/gaming/category/cases-2/copyright-cases/
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? The FBI shut down the L2Extreme.com server for providing fraudulent service to Lineage II for more than 50,000 customers. This caused NCSoft to lose a great deal of money, forcing them to file a lawsuit against L2Extreme.com. Fortunately, NCSoft did not file suit against the individuals that used the service. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? This a an important event because another company was literally stealing revenue. When you are a game company like NCSoft, the more people that stay on your server, the more money you make. When another company makes a way to access your server without authorized clearance, that company is stealing money from out of your paycheck. Dietrich, Dale.(2006, November). FBI Shuts Down L2Extreme.com’s Unauthorized Lineage II Servers. Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.daledietrich.com/gaming/category/legal-issues/
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? Michael Donnelly, a programmer who created the WoWGlider, was counter-sued by Blizzard for for the WowGlider. MDY, Donnelly's company, filed suit first after Blizzard asked them to stop distributing the WoWGlider. The WoWGlider is a program that allowed gamer's characters to continue playing, even while the individual is not online. This allowed players to level-up much easier, which is considered cheating. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? From a designer's perspective, this is a major case. Whenever a designer puts a massive amount of hours into creating a difficult, entertaining game, it really stings when someone creates a way around your design. It also defeats the purpose of spending hours creating a level-up system that is fair, yet challenging. Dietrich, Dale. (2007, February). Blizzard/Vivendi Countersue WowGlider ‘bot Creator. Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.daledietrich.com/gaming/category/cases-2/copyright-cases/
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? The Wrongful Death suit was filed after Cody Posey murdered his father, stepmother, and stepsister. Jack Thompson, a well-known lawyer in gaming lawsuits, represented the remaining Posey family, arguing that Grand Theft Auto IV turned Cody Posey into an effective killer. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? This game is very important to the game industry because the violence supposedly came from a video game. If the courts ever do rule that a video game is entirely at fault in a murder or wrongful death trial, it could set new restrictions on games that would affect many designs. Dietrich, Dale. (2006, September). Another GTA Wrongful-Death Suit Launched (Cody Posey). Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.daledietrich.com/gaming/another-gta-wrongful-death-suit-launched/
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? This is more of a comical event in the history of gaming. For years, Jack Thompson had brutalized the gaming world, especially Midway games in particular. Many of his claims and lawsuits had cost the gaming industry millions of dollars, pertaining to violence in video games. When Gaming Target created formulas for gamers to create famous individuals in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, Jack Thompson was one of the names on the list. When Mr. Thompson saw this, he thought it was a creation of Midway for the game and an attack on him. He sent a Cease and Desist letter, demanding Midway to pull his character from the game. After understanding the mix-up, Mr. Thompson did not follow up on his letter. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? I believe this event would have no affect on me as a game designer. I believe this is just a time in the industry when developers get to laugh at the individual who has ridiculed their beautiful work. Dietrich, Dale. (2006, October). Jack Thompson Misfires with Mortal Kombat Cease & Desist Letter. Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.daledietrich.com/gaming/category/cases-2/copyright-cases/
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? This event started when former deputy manager of Shanghai-based Shanda Network Development, Wang Yihui, and two other individuals changed the underlying game database of Legends of Mir. This allowed them to recreated two of the most powerful weapons in the game, allowing gamers to advance at a much faster rate. Mr. Yihui is said to have made $250,000 selling these weapons for a profit. It was the Chinese government that brought up charges for illegal virtual weapons trade. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? This is another big event in the game industry, from both sides of the perspective. From the game designer's perspective, this is like a blow to the stomach. It is highly offensive and the main definition of theft. If I am the designer that created these weapons, I would be offended that another person was making money from my creation. Dietrich, Dale, (2006, September). Group Prosecuted in China for ‘Arms Dealing’ in Legends of Mir. Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.daledietrich.com/gaming/category/cases-2/virtual-crime-cases/
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? The B.C. Human Rights Tribunal awarded close to $150,000 in a decision in favor of Janie Toivanen against Electronic Arts Canada. The suit was file after Janie was dismissed after a breakdown. She was given a note from the doctor, for an indefinite leave, due to medical reasons. EA Canada responded by dismissing the employee with nearly $20,000 in severance. The employee filed suit and won the wrongful termination suit. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? I believe this is an important event to designers and developers. This case showed that if you are dismissed under medical reasons, you will be rightfully awarded. No one should lose their job because of a medical leave and this acts as a building block for any other wrongful termination suits in the industry. Dietrich, Dale. (2006, August). EA Canada Employee is Awarded Almost $150,000 in Human Rights Case. Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.daledietrich.com/gaming/category/cases-2/employment-law-cases/
# Question 1: What were the details of the event? A lawsuit was filed by Blizzard and the FBI shut down the illegal game operation that was reverse engineering Blizzard software. The lawsuit was filed because of three software programmers who were to have violated the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. # Question 2: Why was the event important to the industry? How would the event affect you as a Game Designer or Developer? Working in the game industry, the would be an important event. If you were one of the people working on BnetD, this would have meant the end of your current employment. For the rest of the industry, this is a good reminder of knowing your boundaries of what to create. Blizzard v. BNETD. (n.d.). Retrieved January 22, 2011, from http://www.eff.org/cases/blizzard-v-bnetd
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