Manhunt 2

lolfighter

<div class="IPBDescription">Can They Really Do This?</div>I'm referring to <a href="http://www.little-gamers.com/index.php?comicID=1630" target="_blank">this</a> (warning, link contains evil satanic words that make baby Jesus cry). Sadly, Little Gamers isn't in the habit of listing sources, so this is hard to verify. But I'm asking, can they do this? Can Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo expressly forbid people from releasing games for their consoles?

Drfuzzy

to sell, yes. to release? no

lolfighter

Well, since Rockstar wants to make money, we can equate release with sell for this thread. How can they prevent Rockstar from selling their game? What is their legal backing for this?

Thansal

this has actualy been covered here <img src="style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tounge.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":p" border="0" alt="tounge.gif" />

BTW, this is Nintendo and Sony (there was no plan to put it on the 360 actualy) refusing to let the game be RELEASED for their system. And they actualy do have the right to do this (As silly as it may sound). It has been chalanged before, and always gets shot down.

Admitedly, even if Nintendo/Sony were to let them release it, most major retailers would refuse to cary it. See what happened when GTA:SA had the raiting changed from M to AO, all of the major retailers pulled it untill the removed the hot coffe files. Also, Gamestop/EB refuse to accept the 1st release for trade ins as they will not resell them.

Yah, sucks, but oh well.

The ESRB is an independent organisation (run by the gaming industry), not a govn't one, so they, and the Sony/Nintendo can do what ever they want in 'censoring' the games.

Orginal <a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/index.php?s=736868487186057216&showtopic=101797" target="_blank">Thread</a>
Comprox's <a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/index.php?s=736868487186057216&showtopic=101797&view=findpost&p=1634945" target="_blank">Post</a> on Nintendo/Sony not releasing AO games.

lolfighter

The previous topic was about the UK and Ireland though, it seems like it's getting broader now.

Still, how can they prevent the game from releasing or selling? What if Rockstar gives them the finger and just prints the discs anyway? Let's assume they find a retailer that'll carry it, what then? A cease and desist will probably be the first reaction, but can Nintendo/Sony go to the courts with this? On what basis? Do they really have complete, totalitarian control over what games people can play on their systems?

puzl

The legal backing for this is in the licensing of the various tools and development kits required to deliver for a platform. The technical backing for this is in the copyright prevention mechanism in these devices. Executables have to be signed by microsoft before they'll run etc. This is why modchops are so popular, so people can run custom firmware ( e.g. to put linux on an xbox you need to bypass the application signing ).

Welcome to the world of closed systems.

Abra

I would be furious if something i had spend a lot of time on as a developer, didn't get a release because of this.

Thansal

Baiscly, if you want to be a licenced 3rd party developer for Nintendo/Sony/MS (MS also will not alow AO games on the XBoxen), you have to go along with their rules about raitings.

I am assuming that if some one wanted to develope and release a non licenced game they could, the only problem is that they would probably have to reverse enginere the development tools (as those are one of the little 'perks' of beign a licenced 3rd party dev).

So yah, Scythe can go and make his DS game, and make it as graphic as he wants it, and sell it if he wants. But he can't put the gold seal that Nintendo uses on his box, and there are probably even limitations about what he can say about his game in terms of compatibility with the DS. This is all assumign he is using legaly obtained development tools.

Oh, and Rockstar are sayign that the game is tabled untill further notice, but I would not be overly suprised to see an M rated version of it some tiem soonish.

lolfighter

Toning it down to conform to an M rating seems to be about the only option left to them short of throwing the project out completely.

BlackMage

<!--quoteo(post=1636292:date=Jun 28 2007, 07:19 AM:name=lolfighter)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(lolfighter @ Jun 28 2007, 07:19 AM) [snapback]1636292[/snapback]</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->
Toning it down to conform to an M rating <b>is</b> the only option left to them short of throwing the project out completely.
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fixed

DiscoZombie

I thought that's exactly what they were going to do, and the speculation is that's what Rockstar wanted all along - to get extra publicity by having the AO version banned, so they can get higher sales on the M version...

or at least that's what I think I read on Kotaku/Joystiq - but I don't have time to dig up articles right now <img src="style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin-fix.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":D" border="0" alt="biggrin-fix.gif" />

SkinnY

I still think all this "No AO-rated games"-policy is silly, i mean, Splinter Cell: Double agent got an 18+ rating from PEGI (<a href="http://www.pegi.info/en/index/global_id/23/?searchString=splinter+cell&agecategories=&genre=&organisations=&platforms=&countries=&submit=Search" target="_blank">link</a>) which is the EU version of AO afaik, and that got released, on the wii..

So yea, all these ratings are making me confused :S

SmoodCroozn

<!--quoteo(post=1636292:date=Jun 28 2007, 06:19 AM:name=lolfighter)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(lolfighter @ Jun 28 2007, 06:19 AM) [snapback]1636292[/snapback]</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->
Releasing the game for free seems to be about the only option left to them short of throwing the project out completely.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->I like.

lolfighter

Write your own damn sentences instead of modifying mine. I'll sue you all for copyright infringement! >_<

Thansal

<!--quoteo(post=1636345:date=Jun 28 2007, 02:56 PM:name=SmoodCroozn)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SmoodCroozn @ Jun 28 2007, 02:56 PM) [snapback]1636345[/snapback]</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->
<!--quoteo(post=1636292:date=Jun 28 2007, 09:19 AM:name=lolfighter)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(lolfighter @ Jun 28 2007, 09:19 AM) [snapback]1636292[/snapback]</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->
Releasing the game for free seems to be about the only option left to them short of throwing the project out completely.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I like.
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I see what you did there.

btw, they more then likely CAN'T release it for free with out breaking the contract with Nintendo/Sony (and thus owign lots of money and never gettign to develope for 2 of the big systems again)

Faskalia

<!--quoteo(post=1636288:date=Jun 28 2007, 03:07 PM:name=puzl)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(puzl @ Jun 28 2007, 03:07 PM) [snapback]1636288[/snapback]</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->
Welcome to the world of closed systems.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

You can beat closed systems, sometimes even by being clever <img src="style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tounge.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":p" border="0" alt="tounge.gif" />

Just have a look at the ONLY snes never to be licensed by nintendo (no golden sticker on this cartridge)

<img src="http://www.vidgame.net/NINTENDO/Nintendo/snes_acc/snes_wisdom.jpg" border="0" alt="IPB Image" />

You need to stack a normal snes game on that cartridge, in order to make the snes think that he has a valid game in the slot.

Edit:

<a href="http://www.vidgame.net/NINTENDO/Nintendo/snes_acc/snes_wisdom.jpg" target="_blank">http://www.vidgame.net/NINTENDO/Nintendo/s...snes_wisdom.jpg</a>

Thansal

<!--quoteo(post=1636366:date=Jun 28 2007, 04:03 PM:name=Faskalia)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Faskalia @ Jun 28 2007, 04:03 PM) [snapback]1636366[/snapback]</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->
You can beat closed systems, sometimes even by being clever <img src="style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tounge.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":p" border="0" alt="tounge.gif" />

Just have a look at the ONLY snes never to be licensed by nintendo (no golden sticker on this cartridge)

<img src="http://www.vidgame.net/NINTENDO/Nintendo/snes_acc/snes_wisdom.jpg" border="0" alt="IPB Image" />

You need to stack a normal snes game on that cartridge, in order to make the snes think that he has a valid game in the slot.
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Yah, closed systems can be beaten rather easily these days (look at the mod chips for just about every system out there that let you run home brew).

The only problem is that these people making home brew either:
A) Don't have all the nifty dev tools and support from the company
OR
B) Have illegaly obtained versions (and thus anything they make using them is also breakign some sorta law that I don't really understand).

0blique

Yeah, Rockstar can't really rely on having people mod their consoles before they buy their games. I agree with DiscoZombie, this is probably just another publicity stunt.