🔒 Locked

Co-op ... now what?

Started by Theonekiller Jan 5, 2010 at 4:23 PM 7 replies 1.3k views

Original Post

Jan 5, 2010 at 4:23 PM

Hello everyone so im in High School and i was given the chance to do co-op with a game development company. Later on i was given a project which basically consisted of me making a GDD for a game i would have to think of. I took this with a really open mind and i wrote all my ideas/concepts down and presented it on close to the final day of my co-op. I put a lot of hard work into starting the GDD and i really don't know what to do now. For everything that i had in my presentation everyone loved my concepts and ideas that i did. But when my co-op ended i had only one question to myself, what can i do from here? I really don't want to abandon my GDD cause i really like the work i put into it. If anyone has any ideas or thoughts that would be helpful. Thanks And yes im hoping to become a game designer in the future

jpetrie

Jan 5, 2010 at 4:43 PM

Quote:

I really don't want to abandon my GDD cause i really like the work i put into it.

The company you worked with probably owns that GDD anyhow, so there's likely nothing you can do with it.

If you want to see a game made -- either that one (if it turns out you have the legal rights to it) or a new one -- then you need to learn either to program, or to use a game creation tool like Game Maker (or something like Unity, etc) to make that game.

I'd consult a lawyer regarding the ownership of that GDD before I tried to use it though.

Theonekiller

Jan 5, 2010 at 5:21 PM

How does it own the GDD? i started from scratch, i just followed the template.

"
If you want to see a game made -- either that one (if it turns out you have the legal rights to it) or a new one -- then you need to learn either to program, or to use a game creation tool like Game Maker (or something like Unity, etc) to make that game."

Haha i was thinking of that. But from what they told me when i was presenting this would be a really high budget game. Company's like Bioware,Bethesda etc.... would make.

I also have another question, how does a pitcher present his ideas to a company? in the Gaming Industry.

Rycross

Jan 5, 2010 at 5:29 PM

Quote:
Original post by Theonekiller
How does it own the GDD? i started from scratch, i just followed the template.

Your GDD can probably be considered a work for hire. This basically means that since the GDD was produced as part of your duties for your employer, your employer owns the document. This is why you'd want to talk to a lawyer: he can tell you whether or not your GDD actually is a work for hire.

Quote:
Original post by Theonekiller
I also have another question, how does a pitcher present his ideas to a company? in the Gaming Industry.

You typically don't pitch ideas. You pitch an idea+team+prototype+completion roadmap. The idea is the least valuable part of that combination. That's not saying that the idea is bad or unnecessary, but that it isn't valuable in the economic sense (supply of game ideas dramatically outstrips demand) or business sense (they have plenty of ideas internally, and thus have no need to deal with the legal/financial issues that looking externally brings up).

Theonekiller

Jan 5, 2010 at 5:51 PM

Quote:
Original post by Rycross[/i
You typically don't pitch ideas. You pitch an idea+team+prototype+completion roadmap. The idea is the least valuable part of that combination. That's not saying that the idea is bad or unnecessary, but that it isn't valuable in the economic sense (supply of game ideas dramatically outstrips demand) or business sense (they have plenty of ideas internally, and thus have no need to deal with the legal/financial issues that looking externally brings up).

Oh... thanks for telling me. So basically i have to wait till i finish High school, Uni/College and then ill be able to be participate in that " idea+team+prototype+completion roadmap operation. Right?

Rycross

Jan 5, 2010 at 6:14 PM

Quote:
Original post by Theonekiller
Oh... thanks for telling me. So basically i have to wait till i finish High school, Uni/College and then ill be able to be participate in that " idea+team+prototype+completion roadmap operation. Right?

I'll refer you to Tom Sloper's site to answer that.

Edit: Another. Mr. Sloper is an industry vet, and his site has a lot of good information about this sort of thing. I'd recommend you take a good look at it, as it can give you an idea about where to go from here.

Theonekiller

Jan 5, 2010 at 6:33 PM

Quote:
Original post by Rycross
Quote:
Original post by Theonekiller
Oh... thanks for telling me. So basically i have to wait till i finish High school, Uni/College and then ill be able to be participate in that " idea+team+prototype+completion roadmap operation. Right?

I'll refer you to Tom Sloper's site to answer that.

Edit: Another. Mr. Sloper is an industry vet, and his site has a lot of good information about this sort of thing. I'd recommend you take a good look at it, as it can give you an idea about where to go from here.

thanks alot

ItsDan

Jan 6, 2010 at 9:39 AM

You could also, if you didn't want to consult a lawyer yet, ask them what they intend to do with it. If they have no intention of using it themselves or trying to sell it, they may very well tell you you can do what you want with it.

But as was explained, your co-op experience wasn't just to benefit you, but them as well. The fact that they asked someone inexperienced in the field to create a whole GDD does suggest they were taking more of a teaching approach than trying to get real work out of you, but nonetheless work done on their time at their request could very easily fall into the work-for-hire category, giving them all the IP rights.

Theonekiller

Jan 11, 2010 at 5:10 PM

Quote:
Original post by ItsDan
You could also, if you didn't want to consult a lawyer yet, ask them what they intend to do with it. If they have no intention of using it themselves or trying to sell it, they may very well tell you you can do what you want with it.

But as was explained, your co-op experience wasn't just to benefit you, but them as well. The fact that they asked someone inexperienced in the field to create a whole GDD does suggest they were taking more of a teaching approach than trying to get real work out of you, but nonetheless work done on their time at their request could very easily fall into the work-for-hire category, giving them all the IP rights.

Yea , i think ill just ask

Topic Locked

This topic has been locked by a moderator. New replies are not allowed.