<<
It's not the entire game system that I want to lock down, just the
setting/adventure material. If I create an original setting, I don't
want others appropriating it as their own and publishing material for
it. As a game designer, I would like access to a public game system;
that is what I gain. People who use that public game system gain
additional material that is compatible with their game system. I think
everyone gains.
I think that is also the intention of the OGL, but because rules and
setting material blend together in any substantial roleplaying work, the
OGL stands in the way of locking down the setting. This will present a
problem to people who want to closely control the setting material for
games they release under the OGL.
>>
I'm in this position where I'm creating a setting that I want work with
D20. The most important reason to lock down the setting, though I'd be
interested in having fan material based on the setting, is to have
creative control. If I define something for my world, and then someone
comes along, and adds something that contradicts (from my perspective),
something in the setting, I wouldn't want to have them use the setting
without atleast making sure the material fits.
If the setting was open, anyone could publish something for the setting,
and I could have little say in the matter. Then when prospective
players take material (even contradicting material) they find the
contradictions, and then blame the setting creator rightly or not for
the contradictions ;-)
Imagine if WotC's Forgotten Realms was made an open setting. You have
WotC releasing material, then you have other small publishers that don't
like what WotC is doing with the setting, then decide to publish
alternate material. Of course, this alternate material isn't quite
marked as separate from WotC stuff (after all it's FR), so when buyers
buy this FR material, they may not even notice a different publishers
logo on the product, rather than the WotC logo (though they may notice a
difference in style, and printing). Then you have people complaining,
because all this FR material contradicts each other, and then somewhere
along the line, things get sorted out, and it is established that there
are really two settings using the Forgotten Realms name.
Okay, this is very unlikely, but illustrates what can happen if IP is
made open. Anyone can use it, and change things if they don't like
pre-existing information.
--
Korath,
http://www.korath.com
"He was already dead, he died a year ago, the moment he touched her.
They're all dead, they just don't know it." --Eric Draven, The Crow
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For more information, please link to www.opengamingfoundation.org
