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Nintendo Hunts Down Videos Of Fan-Made Pokémon FPS

VulcanRaven

Member

For the past month, Reddit user Dragon_GameDev2 has been working on a side project imagining a PC Pokémon game, built using Unreal Engine, that you played in first-person.

While your thoughts may now be drifting towards something resembling Pokemon Snap, Dragon_GameDev2 had more violent plans for this game. He instead showed off some videos where players were dropped into a Pokémon-filled landscape, given modern firearms, and set free to hunt (and defend themselves from) as many of the pocket monsters as they liked.

While it was a little jarring seeing someone empty a whole clip into an innocent little Pokémon, complete with blood effects, the basic premise of “Pokemon x FPS” was still exciting enough for people that shortly after Dragon_GameDev2 posted some clips of their project on Reddit and YouTube, they blew up.

And as we all know, when something a Nintendo fan does blows up, Nintendo loves to respond with thanks, admiration and respect. Just kidding, they got most of his videos taken down. Even tweets highlighting the clips have had the footage removed. One of the only places you can still see the game in action—at least where Dragon_GameDev2 themselves uploaded it—is on Reddit:



This sucks, just like it always does, because unlike many other major international companies, Nintendo seems utterly unwilling—or even unable—to differentiate between commercial projects that infringe on their copyrights and fan-made playthings that are free and made for fun. This, for example, was just the first in a year-long series Dragon_GameDev2 hopes to complete, where they make a new game every month.


That game looks fun. I wonder why Nintendo wants to take the videos down? They are basically fan art.
 
That game looks fun. I wonder why Nintendo wants to take the videos down? They are basically fan art.
Damage to the brand image, unauthorized use of ripped proprietary content (unless those models are fully original recreations), unauthorized use of copyrighted (or trademarked, I don't remember) designs of pokemon, etc. There's plenty of reasons why, big and small. Most publishers just don't tend to care that much.
 

Con-Z-epT

Live from NeoGAF, it's Friday Night!
99f065957b6af5adb7cb22d3375c646c8a66c3bc_hq.jpg
 

Fbh

Member
Seeing pokemon getting headshotted is weirdly disturbing.

Anyway, this was more than expected. If you are working on any sort of Nintendo based fan game you either wait until it's finished to show/release it, or you show it early, get your 2 minutes of internet fame and get ready for the Nintendo men in black to show up at your door.
 

TheMan

Member
Looks pretty stupid but people should know that Nintendo doesn't like to play ball with shit like this. Keep your mouth shut until the game is ready, release it, and then slink back into the shadows
 

Inviusx

Member
Reminds me of those leaked Rugrats storyboards that showed the characters getting up to all sorts of fucked up shit. It was a way for the writers to clear their heads after writing nothing but kids stories for years on end.

This is like something that Gamefreak designers made in secret to protest having to work on kids games for 20 years.
 

Tams

Gold Member



That game looks fun. I wonder why Nintendo wants to take the videos down? They are basically fan art.
Because people wrongly assume that you can just use other people's intellectual property.

Companies are usually cool with it, as it usually is a fan showing their appreciation for the brand/product. A kid drawing Mickey Mouse is a good thing for Disney. Same for Nintendo, etc.

Nintendo are more strict than many, but people will accuse them (and likely not bother to check their view) if a game like this comes out.

'But I'm a fan!' is a poor and deeply ignorant defence.
 

Hinedorf

Banned
Meanwhile Pokemon Arceus is already out and available on emulators to play right now, I think they got bigger issues than fan made crap.
 

VulcanRaven

Member
Because people wrongly assume that you can just use other people's intellectual property.

Companies are usually cool with it, as it usually is a fan showing their appreciation for the brand/product. A kid drawing Mickey Mouse is a good thing for Disney. Same for Nintendo, etc.

Nintendo are more strict than many, but people will accuse them (and likely not bother to check their view) if a game like this comes out.

'But I'm a fan!' is a poor and deeply ignorant defence.
Its not much different than someone drawing a Pokemon comic and sharing it on the internet for free. I'm pretty sure you can do that.
 
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IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins



I wonder why Nintendo wants to take the videos down?

Have you seen the video? This is Pokémon. A brand aimed at children, but this video has Pokémon brand mascot, Pikachu, getting shot in the face and collapsing dead.

Think it's pretty clear why Nintendo would be trying to get this pulled.
 
I was about to say Nintendo ruins anyone having a bit of fun.... But I can understand why they don't want to see pokemon getting shot in the head with a shotgun
 

H4ze

Member
lol like fun, like meme-style fun, who would not love to shoot a pikachu with an AK47? for shits and giggles ofc (I like Pokemon, plz don't come after me Nintendo fans)
 

MiguelItUp

Member
Yeah, seeing the clip of some of the Pokemon getting blasted made me think it wouldn't be long until Nintendo was seeking it, haha.
 

Tams

Gold Member
Its not much different than someone drawing a Pokemon comic and sharing it on the internet for free. I'm pretty sure you can do that.
And Nintendo can take it down if they want.

Most of the time, such artwork, etc. paints their brands in a positive light and therefore they allow it. But this is about killing Pokémon, which is the anthesis of what they want the brand to be. So of course they went down hard on it.

This really isn't hard to understand. Think next time.
 

Ozriel

M$FT
I'm sure nobody is surprised Nintendo came for him.

They barely tolerate Unreal Engine 'remakes' of their games. Let alone one with you emptying clips into Pikachu, complete with (admittedly mild) blood effects.
 

Sentenza

Member
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nkarafo

Member
Have you seen the video? This is Pokémon. A brand aimed at children, but this video has Pokémon brand mascot, Pikachu, getting shot in the face and collapsing dead.

Think it's pretty clear why Nintendo would be trying to get this pulled.
Um, there are videos of pretty much any character in existence, from any company, that is depicted in violent or "inappropriate" situations.

And that's not limited to fan-made stuff either. South Park, Family Guy, The Simpsons, etc, do the same thing for ages.

It's called parody.
 

Kadve

Member
Annoying but understandable. Unless you have the owners permission to use their IP and its not a parody (which i don't think anyone can argue this is), its copyright infringement and Nintendo has every right in the world to take it down.

Um, there are videos of pretty much any character in existence, from any company, that is depicted in violent or "inappropriate" situations.

And that's not limited to fan-made stuff either. South Park, Family Guy, The Simpsons, etc, do the same thing for ages.

It's called parody.

A parody has to actually parody the source material for it to count. Had you been using Pokémons like attack dogs in this thing it might have counted, but shooting them? Not so much.

What aspect of Pokémon are you parodying by making a shooter where you kill Pokémon?

(and on a side track, are i'm the only one annoyed by the fact that most producers seem unable to understand the difference between parodying, referencing and homaging ? Feels like every piece of media uses them interchangeably nowadays.)
 
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nkarafo

Member
A parody has to actually parody the source material for it to count. Had you been using Pokémons like attack dogs in this thing it might have counted, but shooting them? Not so much.

What aspect of Pokémon are you parodying by making a shooter where you kill Pokémon?

I don't think it's only the content of the video they are worrying about, i think it's also the fact that this is a playable thing that someone could download and play.

Otherwise, there are much worse Pokemon related videos on Youtube in the form of cartoons than this.
 

IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
Um, there are videos of pretty much any character in existence, from any company, that is depicted in violent or "inappropriate" situations.

And that's not limited to fan-made stuff either. South Park, Family Guy, The Simpsons, etc, do the same thing for ages.

It's called parody.

This clearly Isn't a parody.
 

Kadve

Member
I don't think it's only the content of the video they are worrying about, i think it's also the fact that this is a playable thing that someone could download and play.

Otherwise, there are much worse Pokemon related videos on Youtube in the form of cartoons than this.
I'm not sure but the guy might also have a patreon or something similar. In which case he is also making money on their IP even if just indirectly.
 
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