As far as I'm aware the contract at the time didn't include adaptations and I'm talking to the people behind it. We have to remember this was a time before the transmedia hot trend we have now. Even if it did, why should they be treated differently to authors? Authors are paid upfront by publishers? - ThreadSky

kimmacaskill.bsky.social • 3 days ago

As far as I'm aware the contract at the time didn't include adaptations and I'm talking to the people behind it. We have to remember this was a time before the transmedia hot trend we have now. Even if it did, why should they be treated differently to authors? Authors are paid upfront by publishers?

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kimmacaskill.bsky.social•3 days ago

*some authors are paid upfront.

Established ones. For clarity.

kimmacaskill.bsky.social•3 days ago

But adaptations still honour them

It's the same for tv writers, poets and short stories.

Why should game IP creators who write these stories be different?

caylen.bsky.social•3 days ago

Again, I believe that they should, but in all of this examples you’re listing, those creators either maintain the “rights holder” status or have clauses in the rights management to be honored stipulated to contract. Most games writing employment terms has clear “company owns the rights”

kimmacaskill.bsky.social•3 days ago

Which is what we're trying to change ...

kimmacaskill.bsky.social•3 days ago

And again their contracts don't even mention adaptation. Can you see the concern ?

caylen.bsky.social•3 days ago

I haven’t seen this specific contract, but I have seen most Sony game dev boilerplate at the contract and full time language and it has always been explicitly “we pay you, we own full rights period end of discussion no redlines”

I agree there should be concern! Retroactive is a massive can of worms

caylen.bsky.social•3 days ago

Like if this happens, fantastic, but I really can’t understand how this does not happen in Hollywood ever, let alone the games industry, to have retroactive creative rights/acknowledgements without serious legal money and diligence applied

I sympathize greatly but this is *why* you organize

caylen.bsky.social•3 days ago

So like it would be GREAT if Sony and the WGA had a system in place and motivations to allow for this game writer acknowledgement carve out - but this really seems more like a “games writers/creators need to organize and not sign those rights away in the future” vs a retroactive, right?

kimmacaskill.bsky.social•3 days ago

I'd really like it to be retroactive first. Maybe that's just me.

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