Similar Art Themes

[Ricardo Vladimiro]

Hi everyone

While thinking about a theme for the game I'm working on, I steped on a problem. It's nothing much really, but I want to hear other opinions.

I've got this toon I drawn a long time ago. I draw it on birthday cards, notepads, everywhere, to annoy instructors on microsoft courses drawing it all over the boards. It's a cute, furry (sp?) and quite expressive little demon.

So while I was thinking of a theme I thought of using the cute thing. Problem is, it resembles to some toons of some games I've seen with other cute furry... creatures...

It won't be used in this game, as other themes appeared, but I like it and could use it on a future project. Even if it's mine and even if I know for sure I didn't take it from anyone, couldn't it be considered plagiarism? I'm not worried about legal problems, I'm more worried about a mess that could occur for such a small thing.

Any thoughts?

[princec]

Very unlikely to be a problem with anyone (great example of this here (Fluffies from Alien Flux) (http://www.puppygames.net/alien-flux/index.php?screenshot=2) and here (Chuzzles from Raptisoft) (http://www.raptisoft.com/chuzzle.shtml) :D It's not like we were the first to think of a ball of fluff with eyes after all. Where the characters actually are named and trademarked you may have a problem, that's all. If your toon looked remarkably like Mickey Mouse for example Disney might trouble you if you appeared on your radar.

Cas :)

[Ricardo Vladimiro]

The resemblence is exactly with those two. To be similar to one seemed odd, when I noticed there were two I decided to post it and ask for your opinions. :)

Looking at Chuzzles for instance, with the exception that it has got a body, small horns, an arrow-ending tail and a fork, thus a demon, a cute one, still a demon like fluffy creature, it's almost the exact same thing.

[Greg Squire]

Here's another game with furballs, Iggle Pop (http://www.sproutgames.com/igglePop.php). There are so many things out there that use furballs with eyes, that it's hard for me to see how just that similarity would get you in trouble. Now if you used the same names as well (as mentioned above) like Chuzzles, Iggles, or Fluffies, that might get you in trouble.

[GBGames]

Current copyright law is ok with independent inventions. Basically, if you created a character that looked like Mickey Mouse, named it Mickey Mouse, and didn't have any influence from Disney, you would also own a copyright to Mickey Mouse.

Proving it is, of course, the hard part.

So while your artwork might look somewhat similar to another, you do own the rights to your own creation. On the other hand, you are right to be concerned. It isn't just the legal issues, either. Customers might think your work is derivative, even if it isn't.

Then again, some people think that Puzzle Bobble is a Snood clone...

EDIT: Corrected the terminology.

[Gilzu]

Very unlikely to be a problem with anyone (great example of this here (Fluffies from Alien Flux) (http://www.puppygames.net/alien-flux/index.php?screenshot=2) and here (Chuzzles from Raptisoft) (http://www.raptisoft.com/chuzzle.shtml) :D It's not like we were the first to think of a ball of fluff with eyes after all. Where the characters actually are named and trademarked you may have a problem, that's all. If your toon looked remarkably like Mickey Mouse for example Disney might trouble you if you appeared on your radar.

Cas :)

what? huh? who? did i hear anyone say Dweep (http://www.dexterity.com/dweep/)?

[Fry Crayola]

what? huh? who? did i hear anyone say Dweep (http://www.dexterity.com/dweep/)?

Pfft. Fluff (http://www.cpczone.net/media/screens/f/fluff-3.png) predates that...

There's loads of furballs with eyes everywhere.

[Ricardo Vladimiro]

Mine isn't a furball :) I guess I'll have to sketch it and put it here later on.

Thank you for your help mates. Much appreciated.

V

[mahlzeit]

And Fury of the Furries (http://www.abandonia.com/games/en/279/FuryofFurries.htm)!

[whisperstorm]

And tribbles (http://www.70disco.com/images/tribble3.jpg)! (Sorry, had to add it)