There is no “right”. There is only “legal” and “illegal” here and I’ve given you the ONLY two legal options.
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Yes the only way I think you could get away with doing a game set in an established universe and make it for a profit is if it was in the public domain. So anyone could do a Sherlock Holmes game for example, but they would also have to be careful of it not being too much like other adaptations.
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You can’t advertised but fanfic but it can be judged…and yes the remaining is other option creating a new world.
But I have a question…supposedly I created a new world…new story, new magic , new character…
But if the working of things is somewhat similar to harry potter will it be a problem?
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A study in steampunk is an great example…with same story atmosphere but different time and worls
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It depends how closely you stick to it. Having people choose their wands in a wand shop in a hidden alleyway and then being sorted into four houses is a bit too close.
Being sorted into one of three clans and then having to carve your own wand at your first day of school out of select magical trees is not.
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Well, if Dashingdon allows you to host it, then I would assume any other social media or forum would be acceptable. For example: Tumblr has a huge fanworks community, so I can imagine starting a blog there and link to Dahsingdon would be fine. Twitter, Blogspot, maybe even discord?
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No if it’s indeed a new world instead of just a re-skinned HP universe. That’s assuming you actually sell, if it’s non-profit it would be the same rules as fan-fiction.
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You mean there should be a sorting but it’s procedure must be changed…
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Depends on how similar, but I’m going to blatanty and somewhat rudely assume your view of the word “somewhat”, and if my assumption is correct the answer is yes. It would be a problem.
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A lot of things should be changed. You can’t use the same words like Dementor or expelliarmus, you can’t use the same symbols like badgers and ravens, and you probably shouldn’t have a sorting hat, to boot. But the main bones can be kept the same.
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See guys it is a known fact that first work of budding writer is inspired by the books they read…
So,…I think I am not just the first person who got a the wr9ng idea of placing my work in other universe…
But if I change the world …I bring in elver, others, dwarves, nymphs …change the location…change the mechanism of magic…change the story…then if some element of my work is similar to harry potter story will it be a problem?
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The distinction is that you can be inspired by someone’s IP, but you can’t copy it. My game Voltaic is inspired by Oxenfree and Until Dawn, but it’s not a direct copy of either.
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Yeah sure, go ahead. I’m sure you can ask for feedback if your game is too obvious in inspiration.
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Being inspired by others is awesome and even something that can be encouraged; you still need to design and execute your own work.
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Yes…after reading all your advices I understood the right thing to do.
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Look, since you have stated from the very start that your whole goal is to write a game set in the wizarding world, and not just some random wizard school game that’s somewhat inspired by HP but still majorly based on a fully original idea, I would advice against going this way. Starting from the very beginning with the premise and the goal of making a HP like game, even if you change everything the best way you can, the premise of the idea itself will very likely pose a problem for you. I’m not here to dicourage you from writing, but rather to encourage you to make smart decisions.
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@laguz
Okay…the idea that you’re actively encouraging him to base a story off of the bones of HP and advising him on what he can get away with is disturbing.
Every author has each one of their works inspired by several other works before it. Hell, Trial of the Demon Hunter was inspired by The Wardstone Chronicles so much that a few people noticed it.
But inspiration is all you should have. You should make up your own plot, your own lore, and your own characters, with only atmospheres and general ideas gleaned from another work. Going into a story using another novel as a guidebook is a very poor idea from an ethical and creative standpoint.
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Well, it’s really hard to tell you yes or no without any solid plans.
That’s like if someone asked you though of their shirt, but they don’t send you a picture of your shirt, and can only describe what the shirt might look like.
It would just be a lot easier if you had a more solid idea for us to judge. Namely the plot and any devices from Harry Potter you would plan on using.
And again, just be clear (and I know you’re getting frustrated by I’m getting confused again) are you planning on submitting this to Hosted Games, or is this just going to be a fanwork? Because again, if it’s a fanwork, you wouldn’t have to change anything about the Harry Potter universe because you wouldn’t plan on making money off of it.
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Look, just try your best. Once you have a demo out I’m sure we can offer feedback and support in making your game more distinct. Just focus on getting something out first.
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You right mate…building my story foundation on HP will bind me to following the jk Rowling way of writing and working of HP universe…
The game must be autonomous
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