Asset Use Permission for Third-Party Game Mods?
KnightofNeverwinter
Member Posts: 1
What is Beamdog’s stance on using assets from their games for use in not-for-profit mods for third-party games?
I’m asking because I recreated Viconia DeVir as a follower for Skyrim. For now, she is just a generic follower, using lines already included with the base game, and I wanna take her to the next level by making her use her lines from Baldur’s Gate I & II instead. There are already mods for Oblivion that use assets from Baldur’s Gate games, but I thought I should ask them directly just to be safe. If such a thing is allowed, may I edit the assets to suit my mod’s needs?
Thank you for reading, and good fortune to you in your current and future endeavors!
I’m asking because I recreated Viconia DeVir as a follower for Skyrim. For now, she is just a generic follower, using lines already included with the base game, and I wanna take her to the next level by making her use her lines from Baldur’s Gate I & II instead. There are already mods for Oblivion that use assets from Baldur’s Gate games, but I thought I should ask them directly just to be safe. If such a thing is allowed, may I edit the assets to suit my mod’s needs?
Thank you for reading, and good fortune to you in your current and future endeavors!
0
Comments
At present, I can't speak for BeamDog's formal stance on this, nor on another company's, but in practical terms, mods have often been expected to be good faith efforts by fans and not as means of generating profit for mod authors. (This is based on my experience.) Since no one is expected to pay money to mod authors to make mods, they aren't treated as commercial products. You're effectively making interactive fan art or fan films: Unless it's very high-profile such as being very offensive or one of the best mods evar, the people in charge of these intellectual properties won't know and won't care. It's kinda like drawing your version of Spider-Man or Batman or Mario and posting them on your Facebook account or DeviantArt.
If you operate a hosting site where fans upload work where, on a large scale, they're allowed or encouraged to infringe on others' intellectual properties (like Ye Olde Skindex), you're more noticeable and more likely to be formally told to stop or suffer.
You may encounter games that allow or promote paid user mods, in which case understand the terms of service and the culture of that game and company. Most likely, if you're selling something, you're a much more noticeable target, and if you use something you haven't legally accessed, the stakes and results are higher and usually against you.