As many expected, Nintendo is likely going after the recently released fanmade Super Mario 64 PC port. After gaining notoriety and popularity throughout the internet, certain YouTube videos and Reddit posts featuring gameplay recordings of the port have been copyright claimed. It appears that Wildwood Law Group LLC, a group that has previously assisted Nintendo in these matters, is responsible for going after the uploads of the game. Not only that, but TorrentFreak is also reporting that they got ahold of a complaint that Nintendo filed with Google, in regards to a Google Drive download link of the game, with the statement, "The copyrighted work is Nintendo's Super Mario 64 video game, including the audio-visual work, software, and fictional character depictions covered by U.S. Copyright Reg No. PA[REDACED]." Links containing a download to an .XCI Nintendo Switch port of the game also appear to have begun making the rounds as well. Seeing that the group behind the Super Mario 64 PC port uploaded the complete game online all at once, many users have probably already backed it up to a variety of sources.

Source

 

[AshuraZro]

Nintendo is totally in their right to pursue action on this project. This isn’t some side fan game, it is the original game ported with all materials included. What would be less actionable is if it was made where the original rom had to be provided by the user for the port to to extract or otherwise load assets from much like other source ports out there.

I still think it is a super cool project and release but no one should kid theirselves over this.

 

[pustal]

Strange... Copyright is like for 20 years?

I think it's for 30 years but thats for music... Dont know if it applies to other stuff

In the US, "The 1998 Act extended these terms to life of the author plus 70 years and for works of corporate authorship to 120 years after creation or 95 years after publication, whichever end is earlier.". You can thank Disney for that. Most other countries is either life + 50 or life + 70 years.


I found in some sailoring website an .exe file with only 24~MB, can anyone confirm that's what this port should look like or if this seems rather a baity malware?

 

[samcambolt270]

If you don't aggressively defend your copyright, it can be held as evidence in court as to why you don't deserve it any more. Seriously, if you become too popular and don't defend it, then you lose it. Ot is a broken system, but watcha gonna do.

This is not true. At all. You have to defend it, but you do not have to defend it "aggresively." Sega is not going to lose the rights to sonic for letting people make fan-games. It's as simple as saying "you can do that" and you're good. The problem with legal abandonment is "never" defending the game. Defend it once, any aspect of it, and you can let as many fan games exist as you want and be legally fine.

 

[Plasmaster09]

View attachment 208205​

The difference is that Nintendo is capable of reliably making quality games without the aid of fans.

 

[MetoMeto]

I honestly don't know why Nintendo botheres... (its a rhetorical question)

 

[tabzer]

Depends on the country. And whatnots. But nowadays it's the full life of the person who created the content + 70 years after their death.

https://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-duration.html

Not sure how it works for companies. Maybe until the company actually dies + 70 years?

It's all because Disney wanted to keep Mickey Mouse IP that they went and lobbied to change the rules.

 

[shango46]

I have looked on Google and DuckDuckGo and I can only find articles about it, but not the actual game... I would love to add this to my collection of "Nintendo doesn't like this!" collection of fan made games, but Nintendo is apparently doing a good job taking it down.

 

[CHEMI6DER]

Technically Ninty's not doing anything wrong here...they're hunting down the binaries (which do contain their IPs), while they can't do anything about the source code of the port (which technically does not have any of their IPs), so nothing's in danger with the port...if only people cared enough to distribute everything only through source code (without assets, obviously, just like the decomp project this is based on) this wouldn't even be a problem.
On the other hand, taking down YT videos is pretty assholistic of them, because the videos do not infringe on their rights.
Heck, DMCA gives companies too much power over what they can do with anything that has any of their IPs mentioned in it. It's basically the same story as with Ninty taking down hacking related vids, which in no way infringe on their IP in any imaginable way...or how Apple files copyright claims on Hackintosh videos (yes, sure, the people who are making the video are breaking the EULA, but that still does not infringe on any copyright).

 

[CTR640]

I think it's for 30 years but thats for music... Dont know if it applies to other stuff

I think music is 10 years, see GTA4. GTA San Andreas also had music cut out.

I'm not surprised Nintendo is going after copyright claims, it's Nintendo we're talking about. Too bad I'm probably too late to download it.

 

[Olmectron]

It's all because Disney wanted to keep Mickey Mouse IP that they went and lobbied to change the rules.

Well, yeah, I know. I watched the same documentary about it some years ago.

Just informing the way it is now. And since 1978.

I was answering what someone said about it lasting only 20 years.

 

[MetoMeto]

View attachment 208205​

That's exactly what i was thinking.

Nintendo is like some old grandpa who is grumpy about everything all the time, and wont let kids have fun.
And SEGA is like a cool uncle, or supporting dad!

 

[Olmectron]

That's exactly what i was thinking.

Nintendo is like some old grandpa who is grumpy about everything and wont let kids have fun.
And sega is like a cool uncle, or supporting dad!

It makes sense. Given Sega is around 60 years old. And Nintendo, 130 years old.

 

[CTR640]

It's all because Disney wanted to keep Mickey Mouse IP that they went and lobbied to change the rules.

Yeah, I've read about. All because of the Micky mouse bs? And what if expired? Extend it?

 

[Ericzander]

Defend it once, any aspect of it, and you can let as many fan games exist as you want and be legally fine.

I'd like to see any case law to back that claim. It's bold to claim that defending any aspect of an IP one time is enough to protect your whole IP as you let anybody else do whatever they want with it.

 

[MetoMeto]

It makes sense. Given Sega is around 60 years old. And Nintendo, 130 years old.

See? It all makes perfect sense.

 

[slimbizzy]

God dammit Nintendo.

Can you just Nintendon't?

 

[raxadian]

This was expected, hope you guys had time to grab it.

 

[slimbizzy]

This was expected, hope you guys had time to grab it.

Mind you, It really isn't that hard to get these things. Even AFTER bullshit like this.

 

[CTR640]

Mind you, It really isn't that hard to get these things. Even AFTER bullshit like this.

MB or GB? I found one but that's 6MB. Not downloaded it.

 

[samcambolt270]

I'd like to see any case law to back that claim.

I'd like to see *you* come up with one for yours! You can't claim some random bullshit is true with no evidence and then when it's pointed out that you're wrong, claim that theres no evidence disproving your bullshit! Find some existing cases where someone lost their ip due to letting a few people have fan games, or else shut your moth. Ip abandonment does not kick in unless you completely and literally do not ever defend your ip. You cannot argue that someone abandoned their ip and therefore you should be allowed to do whatever you want with it just because they said people can make free fan games on the internet. You cannot sell a sonic game on steam and then claim that sega "abandoned" their ip just because they let people make free fan games, regardless of whether they defend themselves from free fangames or not. A copyright violation is copyright violation and they can and will still have the rights to that copyright regardless of whether they let you make fan games.