RPG fighting - Is this one taken?

How sure footing would one have if one decided to make the fights in his/her RPG similar to that of Final Fantasy?



I know you can't copyright game rules, but I don't really know if Square Enix pays much attention..
could someone give me a few examples of other games/companies that have used this kind of system withouth reprecussions?

The core ideas I wanna take is the "Attack, Magic, Item" menus and the submenus, targeting and how the attacks play out.

That system has been used by numerous people for a very long time, I wouldn't worry about it.

Could you give me any examples so that I could look it up please? :)

Just go look at old RPGs.

I suppose its sorta like the pokemon battles.

look up old SNes and genesis RPG's all the anime-japanese ones use it

The problem with rehashing the FF engine today, is that everyone will know you are rehashing the engine. YOu are better off making minor changes to the fomula. Keep the ATB, but don't only have hp and mp, have only hp and mp, but don't use the ATB. Add more function to the system. Or simplify it. Don't copy it right off. That won't earn you respect. What that says to game players is.

"Look at me, I wasn't talented enough to write a book or make a movie or anime, So I slaped my own story onto an RPG shell and hoped no one would notice!"

It doesn't matter if the underlying mechanics are the same, so long as it looks different. Think about, say, Dragon Warrior; essentially the same battle mechanics, but the battles feel different because the battle screen looks different. Or Shining in the Darkness; again, essentially the same mechanics, but it seems really distinct.

That all said, yeah Japanese RPGs rip each other off all the time. Or more to the point they all rip off FF. Like, Xenosaga was an awesome game no doubt, but it was just like playing FFX set in space.

Apart from various users here shooting at each other for ripping off ideas or being secretive to prevent it, find a single example anywhere in computer game or movie history where a court case has arisen from anything remotely similar to mimmicking a game or plot idea.

Also you might want to try out Buck Rogers on the Megadrive, it's the same kind of thing only some thought went into it. FF is a cheap dirty slap it together hack by comparison. I think you can get a PC version of Buck Rogers from the-underdogs.org, although I found the Megadrive version more charming.

double post

Capcom sues Data East for cloning their smash-hit Street Fighter 2:
http://www.patentarcade.com/2005/08/case-capcom-v-data-east-nd-cal-1994-c.html

They lost though, so if Capcom with all their legal muscle can't pull it off even in an obvious case such as this, I wouldn't worry too much.

That menu system is one aspect of the RPG genre so use it if your developing one.

They actually had a right to sue because in this case many of the characters were almost identical in purpose and theme. Someone not familiar with both games would have thought the data east game had the same characters in it.

It wasn't the fighting or the systems they were suing over, but the blatant rip off. Even then, they were unable to succeed.

You cannot copyright gameplay but you can copyright user interfaces provided they are unique enough to the game.

Which in turn was a blatant ripoff of Dragon Quest.


I'm confused. Are you saying Xenosaga ripped off FFX? =]

I'm saying who can tell. It's all such incestuous design that nobody cares.

Isn't the Chrono series more or less the same thing too?

Made by squaresoft of course!

But theres Dragon Quest games, Breath of Fire,and prolly quite a few more Here: http://alexandria.rpgclassics.com/system.php?system=NES
The site doesnt have any Snes listings *Shudders*

Thanks alot everyone :)
Im looking into several variations on the system right now.

Like someone said up there, you can almost call these types of games a genre by now :)

Im halfway through making a game inspired by buck rogers on the megadrive

It's interesting Square merged with Enix - probably the two largest and well known makers of exactly the same type of game...