--On August 7, 2007 8:33:57 AM -0400 Christopher Hickman <tophu@xxxxxxx>
wrote:
http://paizo.com/titanicGames/messageboards/general/whatAreTheGroundrulesForCombineIcehouseAndPiecepackWithStonehenge
From the comments on this page, a game designer says: "I'm a huge
Icehouse fan, but the only way I can do a game for Icehouse pieces is if
Andy asks me to."
Why does he think he isn't allowed to make Icehouse games? Are we not
really allowed to make Icehouse games, but Andy just looks the other way?
Even I am mystified by this statement of Mike's.
We welcome and encourage everyone to create new games for Icehouse pieces,
and to post those rules on their websites or otherwise publish them however
they wish.
The only think we don't want is for someone else to be selling Icehouse
pyramids, unless (as in the case of the Crystal Caste stone pyramids) we
are getting a license fee when they do. In this regard, the system is not
in the Public Domain. And while our patent for the original game has
expired, our patent on IceTowers will hopefully give us the legal right to
enforce our policy for another 13 years.
Speaking of patents, here's a highly relevant article I wrote 5 years ago,
which provides a lot of detail on our thoughts and wishes for the pyramids:
http://www.wunderland.com/WTS/Andy/Games/PatentsAndLawsuits.html
Going back to Stonehenge, the problem is with their policy, not ours. They
say that new Stonehenge games "may use other game pieces as long as such
pieces are generic and common and not owned by a third party."
I love the idea of a few Ice-Henge games, but as long as they have this
policy, it seems as those Paizo won't want such things included in their
online game library.
-- Andy