Hi! I am currently working on a nearly finished mobile phone game called "Tetroid". It''s a mixture of games like tetris and arkanoid. You can have a look at screenshots at www.bytemaniac.com/game1.html. Now someone has mentioned that i will get problems because of the name of the game (sounds like "tetris" too much) and because of the game elements (blocks like tetris blocks, and building rows). I have heard that all names that end with "tris" are copyrighted, but names that start with "tetr" ? What do you think ? Thanks McMc

Your game appears to be significantly different to either Tetris or Arkanoid so there should be no problem on that front.

As for the name - only a proper search will reveal if that name is already copyright of someone else (for which I would assume you will need a copyright lawyer). There is one other issue regarding the name. If you use that name your game will automatically be viewed as "another tetris rip-off". Might be worth putting some effort into coming up with your own name.

Dan Marchant
Obscure Productions
Game Development & Design consultant

Hi!

I will think about changing the name.

Thanks!
McMc

Check out this link:

http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6,579,177.WKU.&OS=PN/6,579,177&RS=PN/6,579,177

I doubt that it will affect your "invention", but maybe you''ll find it interesting anyway.

Wow!

All the tetris clones and similair games are illegal ?
Is there a patent that describes the movement of objects on computer screens using input devices like buttons, joysticks ?

I can''t believe that it is possible to get such patents. And it''s a relative new patent (17. Juni 2003).

@obscure: the name "tetroid" is registered by a russian company ! I really have to change the name.

Thanks
McMc

I would also very much like to know what it would take to infringe on a patent like this.

Obscure to the rescue please!

Sorry but I am not a patent lawyer and am not qualified to discuss particular patents.

Dan Marchant
Obscure Productions
Game Development & Design consultant

Hi Obscure!

But i am sure you have an opinion. It''s an interesting situation - if someone can get a patent on a game idea, it can be the end of free game development. All games use some game play variation of other games. If you can have the patent on a complete genre like FPS.... only game developers and publishers that can pay lawyers are able to make games ! If you are a small indie developer and someone thinks you copy his patent and goes to court - it''s better to play games than make ones.

McMc

As far as I know, only close tetris clones with close permutations of the name (i.e. something-tris) are illegal. Fair enough. Tetr-something, however, is public domain, because of the root "tetra" used extensively in english. I doubt there is much other copywrite issue with the falling blocks genre (just the name, as far as I know). I don''t know anything about the legal issues of arkenoid. Although, isn''t arkenoid itself a clone of breakout? And -oid is also public domain. So there shouldn''t be a problem.

Hi Anonym!

Look at the patent Odie76 has posted:
http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6,579,177.WKU.&OS=PN/6,579,177&RS=PN/6,579,177

It describes exactly the way tetris is played.

McMc