Levi
Member
You may have all seen it, but it really never gets old.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joNwYPdEBTc
If only the general American populace had seen Segata Sanshiro in action, the Sega Saturn would have sold more systems then anything ever. Also I apologize for being off topic.
Grave
Member
Levi, Segata Sanshiro is never offtopic. You've done a good thing!
Kalean, I'd like to believe you but I was pretty heavy into importing at the time and a lot of 32 bit games still pass through my hands. Even if it was a very late release like SFZ3 or FF Revenge I like to think I would have heard about it. Nothing at the time led me to believe that there was such a thing and there's no info out there on the internet suggesting it exists today. I'd have little trouble believing that work on a Saturn version was under way, perhaps builds made their way out into the world somehow, but it was definitely released in Japan or the US. If you can prove me wrong, I will gladly be dumbfounded and amazed!
Agreed, Segata Sanshiro is never off-topic.
I recall playing Fighters Megamix at a group get-together after the Saturn scene had mostly died out in the states, and one of the other televisions was running a copy of Marvel vs. Capcom with players tagging out, and Saturn controllers were being used. If it wasn't released, then someone did a smashing job convincing me it was.
utilityname
Member
I'm a big fan of the BlazBlue series and I'd like to congratulate Arc/Aksys on the development/delivery of a great product. I also have a particular interest in US copyright law, so news of this leak ecouraged me to learn more. It appears that a lot of different theories are swimming around about the degree of illegality of copying this game. I did a little research and came up with as many questions as I did answers: (DISCLAIMER: I am NOT an expert or credible resource with regard to copyright infringement or any other area of law)
This page is a great resource for both individuals and companies curious or concerned about their rights and responsibilities with regard to copyright infringement:
http://www.justice.gov/criminal/cybercrime/ipmanual/02ipma.html
While every case is different, the rules are fairly straightforward. Generally people will be interested in the sections on what constitutes infringement, copying, distribution, and the difference between felony and misdemeanor infringment.
At anyrate, I'll let others read this at their leisure. However I will point out a few interesting aspects of this case relative to the current law spelled out above:
1. Whether or not distribution of this game counts as "pre-release"? It appears people are, technically, downloading an arcade version of the game that is, without question, released. However the more difficult question is whether the core game is the copywritten product in question, as this may imply that such distribution is in fact of a "pre-release" nature.
2. The rules for felony infrigement require a $2500 threshold. I'm not sure what the official costs are for the game, but I've heard $2500 from a few places. But I'm wondering if the $2500 threshold applies to the cabinet and other materials included in a purchase price, or just to the board itself. I'm also interested to know whether this threshold has anything to do with the arcade boards generally being very expensive.
3. Once the game is ported to home consoles I'm assuming the company will no longer be in a position to generate any revenue from the initial arcade boards, rendering them more or less "out of production". In this case, what happens to the companies standing with regard to copies of the original arcade software?
While I'm no attorney or judge, it is clear that the copying and distribution of the arcade software is illegal. However questions remain about when, and how severely, punishment can be administered.
Hope it's OK that I post this info. If any of the Aksys mods want to take it down I understand. Although I think information often stands as the most effective deterrent. I just don't want to come across sounding like Im speaking for Aksys in any way.
Thanks, and good luck with the console release!
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