I'm not one to rush into a lawsuit
 

After much thinking I've decided I'm old enough to know better than to blatantly breach international copyright laws. I don't want to do anything that will cause me to be fined or anything. So, with a flick of a mouse pointer, Ta Da! It isn't a Jazz Jackrabbit game anymore, and I am no longer in any danger of being taken to court.

Sorry about getting you excited just to let you down. I'm continuing the project with an original character, and different storyline.

Here's some art of the new character. I dont' think this would really be Jazz related anymore now, but I want Jazzer X to have kind of a Jazz Jackrabbit feel to it.

http://groups.msn.com/purrhead/scree...to&PhotoID=156


... oh, and yes... the jazz jackrabbit face in the redwater.jpg picture is... *cough* buggy. Look! A three headed monkey!

The story behind the collar JX wears, is that I got this idea that it might be interesting if he was someone's pet.

Please make it Jazz please!
 

WHat are you talking about? Its just a fan game! Heaps and heaps of fangames have been made and absoultly no court or anything! I beg please change it back to Jazz please you won't get in trouble as long as you don't sell it! Please, please, please please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please,

Huh?
 

So you are saying you hate my skunk? *cries* j/k

Hmm.... yeah.... fangames... no action taken...

I'm just afraid that if I make a fangame that actually looks good, it might get Epic's attention....

I'm taking into consideration that the worst case I've heard of in this situation is the company making the person to stop their work... but... hmm... I really don't want to get into a legal battle. Have you ever read the liscensing agreements they make you agree to when you buy a game? That is why I didn't use any original graphics from Jazz Jackrabbit 2.... I'll leave it to this: I'm going to write to epic for permission to make a fangame. Their response is the final say in the argument.

A pet skunk... yipee, always wanted one of those.

So you think I'll go ask Epic and Sega can I make JVS? Look, were only making fangames. As long as their freeware, big companies don't really care, because we don't use their engine and only a bit (and maybe you don't use any) of their graphics. Besides, this may also be in their interest, as the people who like our games haven't seen Jazz before and they'll buy it.

I don't think it really matters unless you make more money on this than the original Jazz.:D

Yo Hare check my PM I sent you. I could help you with the hole game :-) and supply you with the Pro connections.

I think he'd rather get help bye someone hoo can spell "whole".

didnt spell it wrong the keyboard just didnt register the W key

Ok, I got the reply...
--------------------------------------------------------------

Not sure I understand the question.

1. Are you going to make a mod to the JJ2 game that includes the JJ
character?

2. Do you want to make a new game that uses the JJ character for your
personal enjoyment only?

3. Do you want to make a new game that uses the JJ character for
distribution (free or otherwise)?


1 & 2 are no problem. Have at it and enjoy.

3. Is a big problem. The minute you release something that makes use of
our trademarked and/or copyrighted material (even if it is free) you are
infringing on our rights. We, by law, are forced to take action. It
just gets plain nasty at that point.



Regards,


Jay Wilbur
Epic Games
---------------------------------------------------------

So, I'm just going to continue the project with the new character, and storyline. Sorry that I spoke too soon about making a Jazz Jackrabbit game. I made a bit of art before I got the answer, I know just a bit of fan art won't get Epic's goat ;). Makes a nice desktop wallpaper.

http://purrhead.tripod.com/jazz3d/jazzcontinue.jpg

New High Concept
 

I'm already at work writing up the design document of the new material.

The high concept goes like this: A humorous Sci-Fi furry fantasy with classical gameplay. A little skunk takes on an evil organization.

The Genre will be a 3D/Platform/Shooter. first person or third person are optional.

Character design
 

I think it would be interesting for the Jazzer X character to have bad luck all the time, could make for some interesting gameplay. Not the kind of bad luck where a player ends up finding themselves getting hit by falling trees, or slpping from a ledge, without warning... that would just be annoying as teletubbies. I mean, perhaps climbing halfway up a hill and all the sudden there is some sort of rock slide that makes them have to run like mad, then take a new alternate path to the end. Or dropping down a chute into a nest of sleeping enemies. That kind of stuff.

I'm pretty sure you can make a game using a character if it's free, but I'm too lazy to go look up copyright laws. Actually, when you think about it, using a character in a game is just as ilegal as fanart. I mean, what's the difference between drawing a picture of Jazz and putting Jazz in a free game?

So what this is saying is that fangames are completely illegal, right?

I have this JJ fangame that says it was made by VioletCLM. I guess you can kiss your soul goodbye now.

Fangames
 

I believe this game will be good, it just won't be a Jazz Jackrabbit game. I'm not about to get into a legal battle.

Me, Violet, and Et have all made Jazz fangames, and Epic didn't care. Refering back to my example using fanart, what's the difference between drawing a character and putting it in a game?

That's just because they didn't know.

Even in the War Tavern, people write stories using Jazz. It's just as legal as making a game!

I've already decided for myself that I believe it is not the right thing to do for me to distribute a fangame, you may choose to believe as you will, I'm just saying that you won't be changing my mind.

As a side note, if this dosn't have to do with Jazz anymore it should probably be moved to Misc.

Yeah, I'll make a new thread in the MISC. forum later, when I get online again. Perhaps I can have the design of the new game more detailed out by that time.

I am even worse, because I make a fangame of 2 games! I am cursed from now!!!

You dont understand epic will not care about these little underground games that are really not very big right now. But if PHS releases a Full 3D Jazz game everyone will want it, this will get the attention of epic and bad things will happen :-)

Thanks :)
 

Finally, someone understands. That is true, that is why I am so concerned about this. The thing is, that I'm trying to make the game as good as something you'd buy in stores. I expect the quality to end up as good as something you'd pay for about five years ago, like a N64 game. It would have stood out among the other freeware games like a sore thumb. In this case, that is not a good thing. Definately something I don't want Epic to take notice of.

Heh, I just noticed that if I spell Jazz "Jaz" in my fangame, it's perfectly legal.


*Yay for loopholes in laws!*

heh ^_^