Copyright is a legal security which rightly exists to protect an individual or company from piracy of his or their idea(s). IT allows the individual or company the exclusive right to publish or sell copies of a work for a certain period of time. With a game, for example, the copyright lasts for 50 years. Individuals or companies are also able to sell the manufacturing rights of a particular product to "licencees" and hence the appearance of all the spin-off lines. Twentieth Century Fox who hold the copyright on Star Wars currently employ a group of heavy-duty lawyers who are quite willing to sue any pirates into oblivion. They certainly have the right to protect their copyright, but whether their motive is purely self-protection is debatable.
Wargamers have an easy time in that obviously no copyright exists, say, on World War II and therefore any battle can be simulated there from and put into game format by any manufacturer without infringing any copyright laws. However. SF/F games and miniature figures lean heavily on SF/F films and literature for ideas and themes. They have to. Now should manufacturers pay for the rights to produce those games and figures based on the well known books and films? Yes, of course they should, but whether or not they would be granted the rights is a different roaster. Twentieth Century Fox are quite happy to allow a mass market Star Wars game or even Garth Vader bubble baths (fact) as they will generate high royalties. The manufacturer who is interested in applying for a licence to make products for the SF/F tan is likely lobe turned down as the market is small.
Therefore those manufacturers have to try to get round the copy-right laws at expense and annoyance to both themselves and their customers. Holders of copyright tolerate some of these goings-on, but now the SF/F games and figure manufacturers are beginning to be squeezed. The game Siege of Minas Tirith has disappeared from the shelves and is soon to be followed by TSR's Battle of the Five Armies (which may reappear at a later date) and who knows how long FGLJ's War of the Ring will last. It is sad to learn also that Miniature Figurines are soon to withdraw their Mythical. Earth range of figures.
It seems evident that nobody will gain from this strict enforcement of copyright laws, but the SF IF hobbyist will definitely lose. Let's hope that such problems can be resolved so that in future the wargame tables will welcome the presence of Garth Vader with a light sabre, rather than a lawsuit, in his hand.
Ian Livingstone
Table of Contents
CHIVALRY & SORCERY - 4
A mammoth game of wizardry and varfare by Lew Pulsipher
FIGURE REVIEW - 6
Der Kriegspielers "Fantastiques" reviewed by John Norris
MONSTERS MILD & MALIGN - 8
More friends of the DM by Don Turnbull
D&D CAMPAIGNS - 10
Part III: Rules Recommendations by Lewis Pulsipher
OPEN BOX - 12
SFIF games reviewed
GAMES DAY III - 15
A report by Ian Livingstone
METAMORPHOSIS ALPHA - 16
Problems of food and water by Richard Edwards
NEWS - 18
What's happening in the SF/F world
KALGAR - 19
Introducing a new Sword & Sorcery hero written and drawn by David Lloyd
TREASURE CHEST - 20
A miscellany of D&D additions
LETTERS, CLASSIFIEDS & HELP! - 22
