Really, where are you taking the info that guns would be outside copyright?
[see the link I posted about ak-47 for example]
If I made a spatula, the design would be under copyright for $DEITY's sake
Covers - yes you absolutely do need permission. Anyone making a cover song is still paying the MAFIAA fees for the original song.
Movie props - yes there's a line. You'd need to consult a lawyer for an interpretation on that though. But in most games the gun is visible practically all the time, which is in stark contrast to a table in a movie scene visible for five minutes. It's also how central it is, do you think Cellular could have been made without permission from Nokia?
Didn't know a gun was a work of authorship Also I'm not going to base anything off of one article on the internet. If you look at the article again you will see that there are comments saying that a gun can not be copyrighted. I'm not going to argue over something that is clearly true. Guns can be patented and trademarked, but NOT copyrighted. If you made a spatula it could only be trademarked and maybe patented(if your design is an improvement on current spatulas). Covers were a bad example. Again, there is a huge difference between a song and a gun. Regarding movies, I've seen plenty that use props for more than a few seconds.
I started this thread to get some facts(no one has posted any), not to have a mindless arguement over facts I found doing hours of research. Please, don't post unless you can point me to a legal document or court case that would discredit my findings.
You have not posted any links to any findings, court cases or legal documents... I'd rather believe the country of Russia over some anonymous internet comments on a news site.
I do not need to prove my findings to you. I was the one who was asking for help. Since I got none I did my own research and found my answer. If you disagree with me show me some evidence or quit trolling. THIS TOPIC IS NOT A DEBATE. Your link was not legal proof of anything. Quit acting like it is a solid fact. I am not saying that those comments were how I came to my conclusion. I looked at court cases and copyright/trademark/patent law. If I were to contact gun companies they would want to see models, demo of the game, etc. This question is mostly hypothetical atm.
Edit: also why would I contact the gun companies on the law. A lawyer would give me a straight answer. The gun companies would just tell me to pay them.
You can't copyright or patent a gun, all guns work the same via combustion (well most guns). They fall under Prior art. The look of a gun cant be patented because it is considered art and visual art cant be patented.
You should be more worried about things like xml, and shaders there are patents on these types of things. For instance IBM own almost all patents on xml.
Have you ever played the game Prince of Persia? Remember how he runs across the walls? Well that technique is patented.
Just about anything related to games is patented by someone, somewheres.
The game Minecraft is violates a crap load of patents.
Most company's will not bother with an indie game because, there isn't enough money to be made by suing an indie company.
I know you can't copyright a gun, but I thought you could patent it if it is an improvement over the current design. Maybe you can only patent the specific parts that make your gun different? Idk, but the legal problems with using guns in video games would be with trademarks, not patents, since I would not be making a physical gun.
Most company's will not bother with an indie game because, there isn't enough money to be made by suing an indie company.
I doubt I will ever be sued, but I just wanted to be sure about the law. Anyway, I think I already have my answer, but if someone has undeniable proof that I am misinterpreting anything please post.
Also I'm not going to base anything off of one article on the internet. If you look at the article again you will see that there are comments saying that a gun can not be copyrighted. I'm not going to argue over something that is clearly true. Guns can be patented and trademarked, but NOT copyrighted. If you made a spatula it could only be trademarked and maybe patented(if your design is an improvement on current spatulas). Covers were a bad example. Again, there is a huge difference between a song and a gun. Regarding movies, I've seen plenty that use props for more than a few seconds.