Question: Legality questions

[Astrasia]

Hi all,
This question is essentially the reason I made this account. I am about halfway through development of my own fangame made with RPGXP and Pokemon Essentials. I only started for my own entertainment, but the more I complete the more I toy with the idea of releasing it.

I'm a stickler for rules, and terrified of the law. I've heard awful stories about Nintendo's legal team ($4000 in legal fees for an unofficial cosplay party, several cease and desists such as Pokemon Uranium), and I guess I'm asking what the instances of these actions are?

 

[Klippy]

We're a fansite and we have no real idea of what Nintendo does or doesn't look for. It's clear they do not appreciate third parties using their entities for profit though, but someone else may have a more definitive idea on what is or isn't allowed.

I'd imagine if you release it for entertainment purposes only and check out some of the games over in our ROM area, you could see what types of things are shared here for enjoyment. :)

 

[Mab]

Most (I think all actually, but not 100% sure) of the takedowns occurred when the developer was a) doing some major advertising for their project, including a twitter page, a web site, and several popular youtube trailers, or b) profiting off ad revenue from their posts on social media, which is a pretty obvious no-go from Nintendo's point of view.

So yeah, ultra-popular games that do one or both of those are likely to get pulled, but if you're just planning on making a decently popular game and not advertising the hell out of it / making money off of it, it's near-certain you'll never have any issues with Nintendo. I think you're good to release whatever you're working on.

 

[Takoujan]

Most (I think all actually, but not 100% sure) of the takedowns occurred when the developer was a) doing some major advertising for their project, including a twitter page, a web site, and several popular youtube trailers, or b) profiting off ad revenue from their posts on social media, which is a pretty obvious no-go from Nintendo's point of view.

Another thing to note is if the fan-game gains popularity. Too much popularity, like getting the attention of certain websites will probably attract Nintendo's attention as well. Take Pokemon Uranium for example. It gathered the attention of CNET, geek, etc. Nintendo probably saw that it was too "big" of a fan-game and so had to take it down.

 

[bobandbill]

And for added reference, Pokemon Prism's level of popularity was a million + views for a trailer on YouTube, plus a Twitch partnership. Nearly every other project doesn't go to such lengths, and as such has not had a C&D given to them. So if you avoid that sort of thing, then you're most likely safe from that sort of threat - just look at all the Pokemon romhacks and fan games we have here for a general idea of how rare such an event happens.

 

[Astrasia]

We're a fansite and we have no real idea of what Nintendo does or doesn't look for. It's clear they do not appreciate third parties using their entities for profit though, but someone else may have a more definitive idea on what is or isn't allowed.

I'd imagine if you release it for entertainment purposes only and check out some of the games over in our ROM area, you could see what types of things are shared here for enjoyment. :)

Most (I think all actually, but not 100% sure) of the takedowns occurred when the developer was a) doing some major advertising for their project, including a twitter page, a web site, and several popular youtube trailers, or b) profiting off ad revenue from their posts on social media, which is a pretty obvious no-go from Nintendo's point of view.

So yeah, ultra-popular games that do one or both of those are likely to get pulled, but if you're just planning on making a decently popular game and not advertising the hell out of it / making money off of it, it's near-certain you'll never have any issues with Nintendo. I think you're good to release whatever you're working on.

Another thing to note is if the fan-game gains popularity. Too much popularity, like getting the attention of certain websites will probably attract Nintendo's attention as well. Take Pokemon Uranium for example. It gathered the attention of CNET, geek, etc. Nintendo probably saw that it was too "big" of a fan-game and so had to take it down.

And for added reference, Pokemon Prism's level of popularity was a million + views for a trailer on YouTube, plus a Twitch partnership. Nearly every other project doesn't go to such lengths, and as such has not had a C&D given to them. So if you avoid that sort of thing, then you're most likely safe from that sort of threat - just look at all the Pokemon romhacks and fan games we have here for a general idea of how rare such an event happens.

Thanks a million for your answers! They helped me sort through the pros and cons for sure, I somehow doubt whatever I release by myself will be as high profile as those projects. I'll continue working away anyway, I'm definitely less nervous of it than I was!