Hello all,

Haven't been on in a while. Still working on my game. I'm not sure if my team would be protected by fair use if we parodied things. If you think about it, Family Guy and numerous movies have made fun of Hulk, Iron man etc. We've heard of parody protection laws look here. We might profit off of it. So if we were to make money off the game, to what extent would we be protected? Give example of what we can and can't do so we can get a better idea. We wanted to add Pewdiepie into the game to make fun of him. (I'm a fan. Just for laughs..) , and a character in our game, which pokes fun at Sonic. The game will reference numerous companies and characters which we will parody.

Without a lawyer on retainer, the extent to which you're protected is zero - regardless of the legality. You're correct that parody is protected as fair use, but in the unlikely event that someone wants to take you to task, what do you plan to do?

Without a lawyer on retainer, the extent to which you're protected is zero - regardless of the legality. You're correct that parody is protected as fair use, but in the unlikely event that someone wants to take you to task, what do you plan to do?

This is just an example. We wanted to make a Youtuber named Sammyclassicsonicfan be a boss. Keep in mind, this game is nothing but stupidity and jokes. A giant joke. Hopefully, if that event occurs, we can work it out and try to find a way. We aren't actually adding Hulk and Iron man. It was just an example.

Fair use is what's called an affirmative defence - you're admitting that you've infringed upon someone's property but are claiming your usage should be allowed because it falls under fair use.

Only a judge can rule whether or not fair use actually applies to your particular usage, which means you can't be certain unless you're actually taken to court. A lawyer who knows the specifics of your usage could however give you a better idea of the risk.


Claiming fair use is a legal risk, and it's up to you to decide whether that risk is worthwhile or not. The best general advice we can give you is to talk to a lawyer if you're not sure.


In this particular case however you do have another simple option at your disposal to reduce the risk: why not simply contact the YouTuber and ask their permission?


Hope that helps! :)

Keep in mind, this game is nothing but stupidity and jokes. A giant joke.

That is not a parody.

While parody often uses humor, humor is not parody.

Parody is imitation of a thing, with exaggerated effect, that makes a statement about the thing itself. The law requires you to keep the use down to a minimum, using only enough to convey the message.

Several web sites to a great job of this.

As an example, one video clip used Mario and other characters. Instead of the mushroom kingdom being invaded (as the original SMB games portray events) they are reinterpreted: The scene of SMB level 1.1 is the same, with Mario initially stomping on one goomba, then aggressively stomping on two goombas, but we discover it is not the mushroom kingdom, it is actually Bowser's kingdom! Soon the game progresses with actual scenes, Mario is destroying the kingdom in a rage. Meanwhile Bowser has not kidnapped Princess Peach, but the two of them are together in his castle working out peace accords between their kingdoms. The are using the characters, but doing it to make a statement about the product itself.

The video clips for How It Should Have Ended (HISHE) usually do a good job of this, but have been bitten legally.

Generally in HISHE they use just enough of the characters and script to show you a scene, but then throw in a twist that would dramatically end the movie. That is very much a parody because they are making statements about the movie, or sometimes making statements about the actors or directors or writers. Often the clips show what would have been intelligent decisions that would have avoided most of the conflict. However, they were bit hard in a few of their clips when they went beyond parody. One of the biggest was their "Frozen" clip since they wanted to include a single verse of the "Let it Go" song. The song was NOT a parody since it was not necessary to make a point about the movie. They were contacted by legal teams, told it constituted a performance of the song and was not fair use. They took down that version of the clip, wrote a new song that did make a statement about the characters, and re-issued the revised version.

The "Honest Trailers" group similarly uses parody, taking clips from the movies but overlaid with a different speaker in order to make various statements about the movie itself. That is a standard use of parody.

Not all parody is comedy. There have been many parodies that are quite serious, parodies that are dramatic, and parodies of serious situations that make statements showing how terrible the problems really are but how most of society misses the details.

If you are just using the things because they are funny, that is NOT parody. It routinely gets shut down. Since you say you want to use "numerous companies and characters" you are basically opening yourself up wide for every one of them to take legal action. And based on your description, they will quite likely win against you.

And as written above, fair use is an affirmative defense. If it actually goes before a judge, you are effectively telling a judge "I know this would normally violate the law, but I believe it is exempt. I have made sure to only use the minimum amount possible, the entire use makes a statement about the item itself, and I don't use the materials for other reasons." If the judge disagrees with the fair use assessment, you have fully admitted to using the product and will need to make whatever reparations the court sees fit.

Without a lawyer on retainer, the extent to which you're protected is zero - regardless of the legality. You're correct that parody is protected as fair use, but in the unlikely event that someone wants to take you to task, what do you plan to do?

This is just an example. We wanted to make a Youtuber named Sammyclassicsonicfan be a boss. Keep in mind, this game is nothing but stupidity and jokes. A giant joke. Hopefully, if that event occurs, we can work it out and try to find a way. We aren't actually adding Hulk and Iron man. It was just an example.

That sounds more like making fun of someone than parody to me. It's a person not a character in a game or TV or movie so that kind of borders on online bullying - tread VERY carefully.

I'd also be careful if it's not a "digitally created character". Have you thought of just sending him an email and ask?

Have you thought of just sending him an email and ask?

Weird Al Yankovic always did just that, even though all his songs were genuinely parodies. He never released a song without first having squared it with the original song's owner. That's why he never released a Prince parody (Prince would never grant permission).

Have you thought of just sending him an email and ask?

Weird Al Yankovic always did just that, even though all his songs were genuinely parodies. He never released a song without first having squared it with the original song's owner. That's why he never released a Prince parody (Prince would never grant permission).

If you want an example of the opposite end of that scale where someone not only didn't ask, but just mixed songs and didn't even parody, look up "jive bunny". That did not end well.

We wanted to make a Youtuber named Sammyclassicsonicfan be a boss. Keep in mind, this game is nothing but stupidity and jokes. A giant joke.

Is your legal strategy also a huge joke? Because it sounds like you're baiting a harassment lawsuit. Keep in mind you're going to be using the image and likeness of a 12(?) year old with autism. If he self-harms (And any part of his depression was caused by your game), you'll be found to have a criminal responsibility. Not just civil.