A recent Kickstarter campaign funding a new Metroid fan film has been shut down by Nintendo on the basis of copyright infringement. As we recently reported, Metroid: Enemies Within was thriving on Kickstarter and set to become a moody, 10-minute Metroid film produced by Hollywood bred talent. Donors were offered Metroid t-shirts and other collectibles. However, Nintendo has issued a DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) notice ordering Kickstarter to terminate the project. The former page for the film now contains a disclaimer informing fans that the project is unavailable due to the dispute. Part of Nintendo’s statement appear below.
“The ‘Metroid: Enemies Within’ film, story boards, and related materials are unauthorized derivative works that infringe Nintendo’s copyrights in its Metroid property.”
First
Me and Gamer told you so…
:””””)
> Implying a grand total of TWO people expected this.
Yeah, it was a real shot in the dark, wasn’t it? They use the Metroid franchise without Nintendo’s consent, who saw this coming.
Because some people in this site lacks basic logical thinking and so must be told obvious things…
Obviously you are not one of these I hope…
Indeed we did Nintendo commander.
what a bunch of dopes, what were they possibly expecting
What if they cease and desist Mother 4? ):
It’s been going for a long time, kiddo no need to worry. This just started around a few months ago.
Just change the name of the game and references to past entries in the Mother series.
From what it looks like so far, the game doesn’t really have any connections to other Mother games other than the title and gameplay and art style.
I hope they do. They’re just disguising an unoriginal game with trappings from somebody else’s work. The nerve of them actually calling it Mother 4 too… insinuating themselves into a legendary series. They deserve a wake-up call.
It’s a fan game, bro. They’re not making money off of it. Everything about it looks Mother to me, so I have no idea why you’re so outraged about the fact that people are making an addition to a discontinued franchise. For free…
Maybe because Itoi understands what makes Mother tick better than the fans. Just because it looks like it doesn’t mean it is.
And if it really is a fan game, then it’s not really an “addition to a discontinued franchise” now, is it?
Itoi literally said he no longer wanted to make games, but was very interested in playing Mother 4 if someone were to make it. I’m pretty sure fans of a franchise could make a decent enough game. Especially given the amount of time the Mother 4 project has been in development (since around 2009) and they’re still giving themselves another 16 months of development time. 5 years is more time than most real developers put into games these days. Mother 2 is my favorite game of all time, and i’m more than excited for this fan game. Even if it takes a bit of a turn from the original series. Mother 3 was VERY different from Mother 2 and was still an amazing game. So who’s to say a fan couldn’t know what makes Mother “tick?”
I mean, seriously. There’s literally no reason to complain about the production of a 100% free 100% fan made game. No profit is being made. No slander is being made to Nintendo, Itoi, or other figures related to Nintendo. It’s simply people showing their passion for a game. I personally think it’s incredible that people are putting this much effort into making something out of their love for a franchise. Complaining about that is about as dumb as complaining about fan art.
Very well said! I was afraid I’d have to explain it. If i were to do so It wouldn’t have been explained as well.
Not making money off it is (or should be) a given. Next time you attempt debate you might wanna press points that were relevant to the post in question.
I don’t think they’ll do that to Mother 4, as it’s essentially a rom hack, and there are tons of rom hacks all over the internet. At worst, it would probably be finished in secret or hidden instead of completely deleted.
It isn’t a rom hack…
just read this on ign..
How much did it even get funded?
i guess they thought nintendo would support the project, how wrong they were…
Maybe if they asked to begin with they would have a somewhat better chance to get supported…
Knew this was going to happen. Nintendo’s lawyers are notorious.
Start collecting money for a fan film for a God of War or what ever the shit Microsoft has, or just about any major third party publishers IP’s, result will be the same.
Could have just asked first?
This is why it is better to make original content so you do not have to deal with copyrights. It is always best to get permission before using someone else’s work, so Nintendo is in the right here. If you can’t get permission, then it is best to not do the project.
That was entirely predictable. These projects always get shut down on copyright grounds, that they tried at all was a bit odd, it was inevitable this would come up.
Omega
Colder than sub-zero’s slide kick in mortal kombat.
Getting money on Kickstarter for a fan movie doesn’t make much sense to me, but doing a cease and desist on a non profit fan film is just dickish.
Well, yeah, if Nintendo only cared about others infringing on their money, they wouldn’t care if somebody was making their IPs for free. Remember, this is infringement upon INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, not the money itself. It’s not always about the damn money.
I disagree. The dick move was the makers of the fan film trying to raise money to make their movie. If you want to make a non-profit “fan film”, then pony up your own money.
Nintendo is publicly traded company. They are beholden to their shareholders. As a publicly traded company they MUST protect their assets for the benefit of the shareholders. They must protect their copyrights.
Exactly. Also, the mere fact that they claim the film was “non-profit” but tried to raise money is stupid. If you need to raise ANY type of money, it’s “for-profit”, not non-profit. Nintendo don’t give a shit when you do it for free, just look at CTGP and NewerTeam.
Your “dickish” for even thinking this is Nintendo’s fault. If Nintendo followed your way of thinking then they’d throw shit to the wind and let Microsoft make Donkey Kong games on Xbox1 and they’d let Sony make Pokémon games on the Vita… 💋
anything ten minutes is not a film.
You know what? I’m going to make a bet here.
I’m betting that one reason behind the project even being started, was to make Nintendo look like assholes when the inevitable shut-down happened.
I would not be even the slightest bit surprised if people are already villainizing Nintendo for this move, and the people behind the funding project are probably secretly smiling at the knowledge that they’ve done something to make Nintendo look like a bunch of bad guys.
Or they just wanted to do something for Metroid fans, because Nintendo certainly isn’t. They need to do something for Wii U, I want it!
how do you know they aren’t? are you somehow involved behind the scenes at nintendo to know something we don’t? Oo
also this move is understandable.. they may have said that this was non profit but they could have monetized it after its completion (and the fact that they actually created metroid merchandize to hand out to backers is definitely a no-no)
and apparently they never asked for permission in the first place
i wonder how they could have been so naive.. most likely any IP holder would react in the same way
You know as well as everyone else with a brain does that a Metroid for Wii U is inevitable.
Impatience leads to half-assed projects, and Nintendo will eventually do something to satisfy them.
Guess the 8 Metroid games they’ve made in the last 11 years don’t count, then?
It’s Nintendo’s choice to make a Metroid game/film/book/etc. If Nintendo wanted to end the Metroid franchise altogether then they could and no one could do a single thing. You don’t see Star Wars fan film sequels yet a new Star Wars film hasn’t been release in almost a decade. That’s because George Lucas doesn’t want just “anyone” getting their sticky fingers on his product that he’s worked hard on. Nintendo did the right thing. Now I know why Nintendo sticks to their policies even when everyone (even the fans) seem to be against them. Because, sometimes a company has the right idea and everyone else is in the wrong. 💋
WHy would they start somthing like this without getting approval from Nintendo first? Bunch of idiots… now they are making nintendo look bad!
Nintendo is making Nintendo look bad
No, Nintendo is taking the logical path, and people are villainizing them for it.
I have no dout it would of been a terrible film. Almost all game movies are.
Did you see the concept images? It looked pretty damn good visually, but in terms of acting it would have been awful (seriously, i watch these fan movies and say to myself “how the hell can you act that bad?”)
I never understood this, how is Nintendo “looking bad” here. These people are not some poor innocent victims here, they were fully aware that they were infringing on copyright and they continued on with it anyway, not only that, they tried to run a Kickstarter to raise funds for it. Nintendo are simply protecting their intellectual property, just like any good company would.
And all this is coming out of the mouth of someone who once ran a fairly popular fan-game, but I didn’t need a C&D to shut me down, I did it because I realised it was a stupid idea to begin with. Create your own ideas, don’t rip off other people, if you’re so desperate pitch your idea to them and MAYBE they’ll let you do it.
There are two scenarios – They didn’t ask Nintendo’s permission. They didn’t get Nintendo’s permission. Either way, they’re the fools for thinking this would go unnoticed.
Least surprising plot twist ever. You’re not gonna be able to piggyback off someone else’s IP, nor should you be able to. Way too many people making fame off other people’s work these days… and yes, I’m referring to Let’s Players here. Not a creative bone in they bodies.
Good, that film sounded like crap anyways. “Dark and stylish”? Is that even Metroid? Were they trying to go for Halo live action film type crap?
Oh my god Nintendo. IT’S NOT CANON. Its fan made. Quit being so fucking uptight. Once my games get made, I give full permission for fans to do whatever the flying fuck they want with it.
That’s because your games arn’t worth even one flying fucking penny.
Dragonsilths, that’s your goddamn choice. Just because you will allow absolutely any crazy person to mess with your work (possibly soiling it) doesn’t mean Nintendo has to. Anyone who thinks Nintendo should have allowed these people to make this movie need to reevaluate their way of thinking, because that is completely selfish of you. 💋
I had heard SOPA has returned. Now it makes sense. Nintendo IS SOPA. They are to identical with the copywrite crap.
^^^^^^^
you sir have solved the mystery.
http://youtu.be/e-JHfXVlkik?t=38s
this song makes me want to start a bar fight.
YAY I LOVE U NINTY
isnt the metroid film a sony game??
ASK YA MUM
No issue with this. I’m fed up of Nintendo getting slated for not letting lazy people with no ideas of their own capitalise off their property. Even if this was not-for-profit, you’re asking for money on kickstarter so I’m not happy with it. Then as for those Let’s Players, Youtube videos were so much better when people weren’t doing them for money, so let ’em die I say.
No one is mad at Nintendo for not letting these guys make a Metroid movie. Everyone knows these people were stupid for even trying. 💋
guys i know this is off-topic but have you seen the wind waker wii u bundle
you can see it in a new trailer showing off hero mode in the game its black and the game pad has symbols in the corners and the triforce on
Meh, I already have a Wii U. It doesn’t look too special. Wish it would have been another colour. They are probably just using black Wii Us that didn’t get sold and sprayed symbols onto them.
lol what Rin said… If it had the Wind Waker boat spray painted on the side of the Wii U with intricate wave art and the Wii U Controller/console was a different color altogether then it would be a different story. 💋
These fans were trying to get fame with the name of Metroid so yes Nintendo did the right decision because its Nintendos property.
THEN MAKE A FUCKING METROID GAME NINTENDO
Who says they aren’t?…
A Metroid movie made by someone other than Nintendo would not have made up for the lack of a Metroid game… 💋
Nintendo, what the Hell?! This was free publicity.
That’s completely not the point.
The fans are the ones who should be enjoying the games, not the ones who are freaking making the games. In case everyone forgot, the ones who are legally allowed to work on the games have gone through a legitimate process called “working for Nintendo.” Besides, there are much better ways of giving free publicity for a game other than taking the developer’s work on it. You cannot just use the excuse of free publicity to do whatever you want with someone else’s work.
Happiness, there is “free publicity” and then there is “stealing.” By your logic Nintendo should let Microsoft and Sony make Mario games, because it’s “Free Publicity..” 💋
I knew it was coming so I didn’t pledge. It surprises me they even tried.
i hate kickstarter.
I don’t, I just hate how people abuse it. A fan video on Youtube is okay, just for shit and giggles. Even as cool as it would be with a full length movie, you can’t just borrow somebodies brand without legal permission.
It was expected. Just let Nintendo make the movie when they are ready
Jerks. Let them do what they want. It isn’t hurting anything.
Yes they do, they make money out of something they don’t own. All the money would go to the production and Nintendo wont be seeing a single penny.
His name says he’s a troll… so he’s bing a dipshit on purpose. 💋
No I’m not. That name is just a joke.
The money is to fund the project. They aren’t spending it. They put multiple disclaimers over it saying that it is owned by Nintendo and they just want to make a cool short film. It isn’t for profit. Probably would have even paid Nintendo if asked. They probably collected everybody’s donations, too without the people’s consent. It’s like when they tried to shut down the Melee stream. They just blindy shut down anything if it violates any policy. It’s free advertising, and for god’s sake, if you don’t want people to do this, start paying more attention to Metroid instead of moping about how people “hate” Metroid because Other M didn’t sell well.
I don’t know why these people even tried to go through with this? You can’t just take Nintendo’s property (or anyone’s property) and make a movie with it! That’s like me going on kickstarter and saying “I have a great Harry Potter spinoff and I’m just going to ignore the fact that J.K Rowling owns the stuff and I’m just going to go ahead and make it.” -__- 💋
It’s a fanfic, and they aren’t going to start selling it. Then, they would be in trouble. If they are “taking money from Nintendo”, if they ASKED they would probably just GIVE THEM their fair share. Jeez.
It would be a complete reimagined Metroid story done by someone other than Nintendo.. Nintendo doesn’t want that, ESPECIALLY if it actually turned out good, because then people would criticise Nintendo for not being as good story writers for their own franchise. Plus they are getting funds BECAUSE the movie is about “Metroid.” If it was an original concept they wouldn’t have nearly as much money as they did before they were shut down. They were using the name for fame. It all just screams bad news. Best to shut it down.💋
It is a 10 minute long short film in the style of Metroid games. There is no problem with that.
Fuck you Nintendo…just go die, all of you, you don’t give the fans what they want, and when they do it themselves, you get mad.
Ok, I’m over reacting, but I stil don’t forgive them, Its like if MS said no to Red vs Blue. This Metroid Movie actually interested me too…
Ummm.. If Nintendo doesn’t want the fans to have a Metroid game/movie than the fans have no right to “take it into their own hands…” Nintendo can end the Metroid franchise altogether and Metroid fans would just have to suck it up. It isn’t their right. 💋
If Nintendo announced the end of Metroid, theyd probably go out of business because almost all Nintendo fans are Metroid fans (thats over reacting, but they would surely lose most of their gamer support)
That pic of Samus couldn’t be more of a perfect fit for this post. Cease and desist indeed, lol.
Nothing new here then.
Infringe on IP, you’re going to take the bullet. Be original and use your own stuff. If Metroid is the inspiration, that’s a pretty damn good series to draw inspiration from.
I honestly thought that the movie thing was a joke. A big lol @ the idiots that actually donated money to these tards.
I’m not sure what the difference is with people making cosplay costumes of IP’s and selling them to people versus this? I also see other projects right now on kickstarter that are doing the exact same thing, like “living legeng – a super mario brothers fan film” and a more famous “Fallout:Nuka Break” season 2. They raised $130,000 off of an IP. So this isn’t the first and won’t be the last. This was really just a fund raiser for the fans to produce content they want to watch. As long as they are not charging people to watch it once it’s produced then I don’t see the problem. In terms of hurting the brand well that is why it clearly states Nintendo is not affiliated with this. But I doubt a ten minute fan film funded by fans for fans would have done more damage then “The Other M” has. Hopefully the reason they took this down is because they would like to do one on their own.
There is little difference, as profit is involved in both activities, the main problem is that Nintendo can sue a certain studio making a certain movie, but suing thousands of seamstresses is kinda hard.
By the way there is a big difference between a cease and desist and a DMCA, might want to change the headline of this story
LOL, but it’s FANMADE!!!!
You don’t really get how this business works, do you?
The moment they started asking for third party money it stopped being a fanmade, fair-use based project and became a lucrative project, just like LP, that’s why Nintendo has all the legal and moral right to put a stop to it.
I don’t think this would have caused a problem had they not made a kickstarter, but then again, we’re in the moment in history in which scumbags like ZackScottGames Anita Sarkeesian abuse internet fundraising and their perceived status as martyrs of a nonexistent cause to scam people of money, and companies have to become increasingly protective of their products.
To put it simply, had the people behind this project not begun to ask for money, Nintendo would have no case against them, it’s their own fault for tainting their “fanmade” project by seeking to profit from it.
This is what happens when you start a lucrative project without telling all the involved parties.
I’m not quite happy with this, that’s why I am hating on copyright’s law lately. If they were making money out of a copyrighted character or thing, I won’t said anything.
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Man, you gotta love all these fanboys sucking Nintendo’s dick about this, but if Sony did this to a Sly Cooper Movie, or Microsoft doing it to a Halo Movie, they’d be talking about how shitty those companies are.
If this site is full of fanboys what does say about you being here manrangan? are you sucking Nintendo dick as well or just having an anal threesome with Sony and Microsoft? so what if Nintendo fans are loyal, at least they are not angry raging gamer assholes like Playstation/Xbox drones
Personally Nintendo need to make sure their creations are not tampered with I can safely assume we all remember the Zelda CD-I incident, I still shudder about what they did to Link….
Nintendo must maintain their fan base and an unofficially implemented Metroid film could end up embarrassing Nintendo, and then we all have to listen to PlayStation and Xbox drones ranting about it
Basically, here’s where the entire thing was a mistake to begin with: fans forgetting if they want to embark on such a project, get PERMISSION FIRST, then if it’s greenlighted by the owners of said property, raise funds for it.
Nintendo was in the right for the fact they were not notified about this project until they saw it on Kickstarter, or perhaps someone from that group contacted them, thinking the Big ‘N’ permitted this project to happen.
Whether or not the proposed Metroid film could embarrass Nintendo isn’t the point. The point is these guys went ahead without getting the company’s permission–or procuring the rights–in order to use the property in the first place.
They were fortunate all Nintendo did was give them a C&D letter. I recall once when a couple of fans attempted to do a film project based on one of Sony’s properties without their permission, and the company actually took them to court and sued the crap out of them for $2 million in ‘copyright infringement’ damages. Whereas Microsoft attempted to legally shut down a fan’s film studio permanently when they embarked on a film project based on one of their properties.
Just goes to show what can happen when you jump the shark instead of doing your homework.
I understand this may “infringe” on Copyrights.
But this doesn’t make Nintendo look good, they could of let them continue honestly. Even if the movie sucked so bad. As much as it is Hasbro’s fault for shutting down people’s expression, and yes, it’s there fault as they could of let them continue, it’s kind of sad to see Nintendo do this. Any form of prevention of Freedom of Expression isn’t “a good step for a company” or any other bull crap. Especially if they maybe were making a movie for free, (This is kind of donating though).
While Nintendo still had a free choice to let them continue and Nintendo would still be able to keep copyright, Copyright Laws these days still suck and really do need to change, or be gone.
The worse thing about this is that this looks like the same thing as they did to that Zelda movie, kind of thought Nintendo was more nicer but, I guess that just isn’t the case.
I believe that even if their is such thing as freedom of expression, their is limits to how one can take it, if this film was maybe a fan made, low budget, parody or something similar, I think Nintendo would be perfect with it, but trying to get money from a Kickstarter campaign, make a film about copyrighted property and perhaps even selling merchandise about it, will make anybody pissed that their stuff was stolen, so Nintendo isn’t the bad guy/s, these “Film people” went about their business in the wrong way without any permit from Nintendo, they are just lucky Nintendo didn’t press any legal actions against them unlike the Sony case, Nintendo just want to make sure they aren’t ripped off but they aren’t jerks about it at all
Getting real sick and tired of people abusing Kickstarter.
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