Project Van Buren

One of my friends said that van buren planned to let you choose between real time and turn based combat. Any plans to attempt that?

Will you accept donations at a later stage?

Are you willing to accept help from people at this point? (Voice work, writing, modeling)

 

From a fellow mod and gamedeveloper I suggest to be very careful here. It doesn't matter if you give away the mod/game for free as soon as you make a income with it. One recent example:



The trademarks for "Van Buren" as computer game are interestingly at InXile now. All Fallout related stuff is by Bethesda. Think about Project V13 how Bethesda did react to a game using Fallout imaginary and names. Also did Bethesda sue people who made Kickstarter projects for their mods. It is a income.

But there is a way around it. Don't make crowdfunding for the game keep that all completely free and as fan work. Make the crowdfunding about documenting how this game is made. For example a Patreon for a youtube series about making the game Kickstarter, Indiegogo are to risky in this case. Here people pay/donate for the youtube series not for the game.

In the end still the holder of the rights (InXile or Bethesda) can shut you down anytime. There is no way around it for you as long as you make it a Fallout game with using lore/imaginary/factions/... from Van Buren. It's a sad truth according the copyright laws. Chris sadly has no say at all in that.

Better to think about that now before you are at the end stage and someone shuts you down.

 

Honestly, the only real condition that I have it for you to keep it hex-based. None of that square-grid stuff that doesn't make sense in isometric views.

 

I mentioned V13 because at one time in this pretty long ongoing legal fight Interplay had the right to make a Fallout named MMO but couldn't use any elements of a Fallout game (Vault, Vaultsuites, ...). FOnline and Fallout Ressurection are simply save because they go under the radar and aren't as popular. Pretty much the same with TTW (which I helped on too but there are also other reasons why TTW is safe).

It's a bad situation I know. Not only but also for the same reasons I stopped working on Fallout The Story (FO1 remade in the NV engine) and started to work on my own game and yes I was inspired (but now complety independent in story, background, system, ...) from Van Buren.

 

Nope I am not Arcoolka. I am the second guy who came directly after he started it. I use sesom as nick for all my Fallout related stuff. Reusing the assets from Fallout The Story won't work out for you because most of them are using original NV textures. There are very few which are 100% original made (I should know they are from myself ). Also are many of them also contributions to the mod (Sandcrete architecture in Shady Sands for example is from Trickyvein uses Bethesda textures too) and all of them are not PBR ready.

 

Yeah that was done by me. The building is based on the Paradise Falls architecture from Fallout 3.

Sorry to say you are in a big very big legal minefield here. I can't see any way how you legally can release a game that uses assets from different Bethesda games. You aren't even allowed to use FO3 assets in FO4 or FO3 ones in NV as free mod.

 

Format, material set are completly irrelevant as you know for yourself. Yeah you could try to argue textures and UV mapping but sorry the one with the most money wins this in court and that's not me and propably not you.

 

We already talked about FOnline and Resurrection. Bethesda doesn't care because they don't make any big fuzz (publicity), no money, are old games they didn't make themself and they are also unsure how the legal situation is as Interplay 'lost' any documentation and contracts.

They care about the stuff they made or bought them self for their own games, simply because they have to. They often contracted the work and have to protect it. I am in no way a friend of Bethesda (anymore btw. since FO4 & FO76 this is gone) and also I personally don't trust them enough to release something myself with their stuff in it in a game that it isn't from them.

edit: About moving a few vertices and it's yours. Yes some people thought that too using old COD assets and had to face a lawsuit.

 

Bethesda went to court over a game that used SCROLLS IN THEIR TITLE. You can't expect they won't do the same. Fuck, they straight out rip off mods like Autumn Leaves in Fart Harbour for instance. This is very tricky ground, Van Buren on facebook is using Fallout 1/2 engine and most of it's assets. However, it's low profile anyway. Same thing with TTW. Mods like New California and Frontier use custom assets and those they can't sue the same way. Plus it would only hurt them. Even massive redesings for Oblivion and Skyrim use the same engine. One one you could it is paypal donation system, but it's still not that safe. It's a whole can of worms, full of legal bullcrap ready to be opened. Bugthesda also shut down Fallout 3 in 4 mod, after they asked for permission, so, you know.

 

If you make a mod for any Bugthesda game you agree that they can use it all. TTW is on a dangerous ground but gets away with it because no assets are released with TTW. The player has to have both games FO3 & NV and creates the needed changes for NV himself. New California and Frontier are 100% safe (except that BGS 'borrows' ideas from them as they love todo).

About FO3 in FO4. No Bethesda didn't shut them down. They asked Bugthesda directly if they can use the audio files from FO3 in their mod. They got the only answer that Bugthesda can give: NO! (voice actors especially the famous ones are contracted for one game and one game only). They decided then to end the project (they had other reasons too, which I got told privately so I won't mention these, which had nothing to do with Bugthesda). They could have continued with self made voice acting or going the TTW route (without asking Bugthesda for the best) but decided against it.

Please all don't get me wrong here I want this project to succeed but I don't see a big chance it succeeding with the use of Bugthesda assets.

 

Great to hear that it isn't much to replace.

I talked with one of the team members of the FO3 to FO4 mod and got a different story told. (They asked Bethesda directly if they can use the FO3 voice files). I disagree with you that Bethesda doesn't have the full rights (for FO3 only clearly) for the voice acting in FO3. They wouldn't be allowed to sell FO3 otherwise.

I know as a mod developer Bethesda pretty well. I also was featured on their old Blog one time for a mod I participated to make (FO3 the proposal, I did the quest and audio implementation). I am around for a long time (but not here).

The rule not to use asset from different games (even other Bethesda games) is strict, very strict (and it makes sense as they use contracted work too).

Does Bethesda know what's happening? Sure they know. It's no coincidence that Power Armor as a vehicle showed up in FO4 as the whole concept about it was developed in the TTW forum (Panzer). But they don't interfere directly if they are not directly asked or can get a legal problem for them self. The problem for your project is simply that it needs money and for money you need publicity. That's why it's important that you stay on the safe side imho.

Btw. NV in FO4 doesn't use any NV assets. At least what I have seen and what they say.

 

I agree that you should avoid reusing assets like the plague. I had a few acquaintances ask if you needed help but whether or not they were sincere is unknown.

Do you need writers, artists or animators?