I would really like to call my board game "Majesty", however, There is a video game with the same title. is this a copyright infringment?
Game Names
Fri, 04/02/2010 - 11:22
Fri, 04/02/2010 - 11:56
#1
Majesty
So just spitballin here
Why not call it Majesty the boardgame.
Fri, 04/02/2010 - 13:37
#2
Trisdin wrote:I would really
I would really like to call my board game "Majesty", however, There is a video game with the same title. is this a copyright infringment?
Probably not, since it's a different media... but I'm not sure about the legal details.
If I were you I wouldn't worry about it until or unless you're trying to self publish - a publisher that picks up the game can deal with that issue and change the name if need be.
Sun, 04/04/2010 - 01:52
#3
It's not copyright
It's not copyright infringement. It might, however, be trademark infringement.
Copyright is about a complex creative work, so for instance if your game was an adaptation of the video game, or if it used creative materials, such as screenshots or game text, that would be copyright infringement. But the name is only protected by a trademark (if that). As long as your game was substantially different than theirs, such that nobody could be confused about which they were purchasing, you'd probably be okay. You'd also have to factor in how recent the game is, and how aggressive the company's lawyers are likely to be. Tiny indie game company, unlikely to hassle you. Recent mega-release from EA, might be more trouble than it's worth. I won't be making a board game called "Call of Duty" any time soon!
Note: I am not a lawyer. Your best bet, as has been suggested, is to call it "Majesty: The Boardgame." And Sedj is right about the publisher worrying about this sort of thing. If all they change is the name, consider yourself very fortunate indeed!
