Legal Question in Intellectual Property in Washington

This question involves American, Japanese, and Australian copyright law.

A friend of mine has been working on a free to play online game based off of the Universe of Nintendo's Zelda Franchise. All the graphics sound track and plot are original and only a few terms referring to the franchise such as in the game's name "World of [Hyrule]" are the only exceptions. There is no character model for any of Nintendo's characters as the game is still in development but my friend needs to know where the boundaries of the copyright apply before he makes any decisions on whether or not to further development of his game. Nintendo of America has asked him not to make the game with threats of potential legal action if he allows for a free download of the engine to be available. Because he has put so much effort and personal time into this project he is heart broken at the prospect of ending the project of ruining the original intention of the game by making it 100% original without reference to his favorite video game franchise. He and the other developers of the project live in Australia.


Asked on 6/27/10, 6:08 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Kevin B. Murphy Franchise Foundations, APC

Any attorney will say a review of all facts, documents, etc. is required. After that, a personal consultation is needed. This is not a simple bulletin board type question. Consult with an IP attorney in your area for specifics.

Kevin B. Murphy, B.S., M.B.A., J.D. - Mr. Franchise

Franchise Attorney

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Answered on 6/28/10, 6:56 am


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