Use of Real-Life Organizations and People in Game

I’m writing a game about the world of MMA, and was wondering if I was allowed to use organizations in the game. For example Bellator, and UFC. I was also wondering if I am allowed to take the likeness of people and use them within the game like Jon Jones, and other MMA Fighters.

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I don’t have any oversight or special insight into Hosted Games’s acceptance policy or procedures. However, I would think that there are many, many ways to use real-life organizations and people in a game, some of which would be acceptable, and some of which would not be. There are certainly some published games that use real-life organizations. At the same time, some organizations zealously protect their name’s use. This is something Choice of Games has to determine if and when you get to publication. You can certainly spare yourself some uncertainty by making up a similar sounding name.

If your intention is to submit to Hosted Games, I think it could only really be evaluated in the context of the game, when it is finished. Even a “yeah, that sounds ok” when you are just starting out would have to be evaluated in the game as a whole.

As for people’s likenesses, I would guess that you’d need to have the rights to reproduce the image in question. That seems less likely than merely using a public figure or organization, particularly if your intention is publication for Hosted.

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@Don_Martono, check out this thread: the OP asks a very similar question to yours!

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