Copyright Concerns Fuel Fan Firestorm
And you thought the furor over the initial news of Sonic and the Black Knight was bad.
Users of Sony’s LittleBigPlanet are fuming over several reports that community created levels are being not just lifted from download, but completely wiped from existence–solely due to references to any sort of intellectual property. That means homages to anything from Super Mario to even that Green Hill Zone recreation are all toast.
Several users have sounded off that even unpublished levels are being subject to deletion. In two particularly bizarre cases, one level called Failure to Launch was wiped simply for referencing the 2006 film of the same name, with the second case being a claim that a level based on the Playstation 3 was also deleted. That’s right, a level based on the PS3…the system the game is on.
LittleBigPlanet forum moderators promise better transparency in the future as to what’s off limits and what isn’t, but that doesn’t seem to be enough. Many users are offering tips on how to circumvent the apparent system of purging anything that’s part of someone else’s IP. Mass deletions, however, appear to continue, with the game’s EULA cited.
It’s both noteworthy and ironic, then, to relay that Sony and LBP dev Media Molecule plan DLC in the future that includes, among other things, costumes in the style of Metal Gear Solid and God of War…the same type of material that, if in a community level, will be deleted.
Do you play LBP and have you experienced similar problems? What do you think of the apparent double standard? Let us know in the comments box below.
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This is why we can’t have nice things. :’C
I hardly feel that the costumes represent a double standard. Someone is actually paying behind the scenes for the rights to use the costumes.
It’s not their fault, but I believe they could have a better approach in doing this sort of thing.
YouTube, for example, will only moderate items when somebody goes through the effort of bitching. Sometimes, the bitchers only request that the video is credited to them and linked back or something. Perhaps companies like SEGA wouldn’t mind their FANS creating Sonic content in LittleBigPlanet as long as they’re allowed to run ads in them?
Just saying “DELETE FUCKING EVERYTHING” is a dumb idea and just one of many reasons why I own a PS3 and not LBP.