Can i copyright my game?

[A_Crazy_Town_OFFICIAL]

Hi there,
I want to upload my game to GameJolt, and i have a couple of questions about it.
1. Can i make my game paid? I am creating a game in RM2k3 and i'm using a little of the RTP, but i still have custom sprites and other things.
2. Can i copyright my game(as the title says) because nearly anyone can open my game edit it change some things and then claim the game as their own. So can i do something like this:
-------
<game description goes here>
© <game studio name goes here>
Engine and RTP by KADOKAWA & Enterbrain
Custom sprites by me
-------
So can i do that?
Sincerely
-Anthony

 

[gstv87]

I believe you can *copyright* your characters and plot, but not *trademark* the product video game.
because, *the product video game* is at the same time a jointed product of your creative work, and the technology of Kadokawa, and you can't claim that.

but, better double-check the EULA for the correct wording.

 

[A_Crazy_Town_OFFICIAL]

So i can do something like this:
Story and Custom Sprites by ©A Crazy Town Studios
Engine,Game & RTP by KADOKAWA & Enterbrain
right?
If i understood you correctly i think i could do the thing i just mentioned

 

[dulsi]

Any creative work you create you generally have a copyright to. If the sprites are entirely your design you have the copyright to those creations. If the sprites are based on someone's work like something from RTP, you do not have full rights. You have to abide by the restrictions put in place by the original creator. Even without a specific copyright notice with your game, most sites will remove copies of your game if you show them the person who uploaded the game copied your game.

As for paid games, you will have to look at the license agreement for RM2k3.

 

[Andar]

To answer the question about paid/commercial games:
If you purchased the legal version of RM2K(3), then you can make commercial games under the condition of the extra step of registering your legal copy to the email adress given in the EULA.
This additional step is unique to RM2K(3) because those engines were massively pirated - it is not part of the EULAs of newer RMs.

As to the other question - you automatically have a copyright on anything you create yourself - but copyright does not technically prevent copying, it just makes it illegal to copy without licence. To prevent someone from ripping your resources, you need copy protection.
And an effective copy protection always has limits and costs a lot. For example most big companies pay tens of thousands for a copy protection that they know will be broken within 6 months, they just consider 6 months to be enough to get their money back and don't want to spend even more for just tiny increases in the timespan.

But yes, as long as you're using all resources under correct licence you both copyright and trademark your work. This is only impossible if you break the EULA's and use ripped resources yourself.
The difference between trademark and copyright is that trademarks need to be paid but have more legal protection, while copyright is automatic (and free) but has less legal protections (registered copyright might require a registration fee depending on your country)

 

[Kes]

Tech Support is for when you can't get the engine to run.
[move]General Discussion[/move]

 

[Wavelength]

You automatically get some copyright protection (under US law at least) by being the first to release an original, creative work - this has been true since the 1980s or so. You are allowed to specifically reserve rights (e.g. "All Rights Reserved"), but you don't have to do this in order to automatically get reasonable copyright rights as the author of your work.

You can make it more "official" (and therefore easier to protect in case of actual infringement) by specifically obtaining a copyright document from the appropriate government agency, but it's up to you whether that's worth the time, effort, and expense necessary.

Story and Custom Sprites by ©A Crazy Town Studios

I believe this is incorrect. Your first try was closer - I believe a correct format would be something like:
© 2018 by A Crazy Town Studios
All Rights Reserved

But you should check how existing professional games do it rather than take my word for it.

 

[A_Crazy_Town_OFFICIAL]

Thanks so much everyone!