Recreating gacha games. Worth it?

[DisfantasyProject]

I open this thread to ask for opinions about this matter, nothing more. If this is the wrong forum, please any modertor feel free to move it to the right one.

A little while ago, the Mobile game of Magica Madoka (Global) announced that they will end their service soon, and while I never played it (never watched the anime beyond the first chapter), It make me wonder about the games that I'm currently playing (Fate Grand Order NA and Konosuba JP) and what I will do if they decided to do the same for whatever reason.

I really love the story of FGO, and Konosuba is one of my favorites LN/Anime (Join the Axis Cult, we have cookies ), so the idea of losing all my progress in any of them, all my loved and hard earned characters; and worse of all, the idea of losing the amazing stories I enjoyed in them put me in a melancholic mood.

It was then that I had an idea: "Hey, maybe I can try to recreate them in some way?". So I choose an engine I'm more or less familiar with (RPG Maker) and the game I understood the most (FGO), began to gather the resources (audio, Images, UI, etc), do some test to try and recreate the mechanics and all that as best as I could. I got as far as recreate the intro until a little before the first battle (not the tutorial, the one from the story) and create some Characters (Servants) and Equipment (Craft Escense) in the database...

But after 1 week working in that project,(again) it was then that it ocurred to me: "Was it worth it?". I mean, as a fan, of course it is woth the effort, but being realistic, how high are the odd of this project seeing light even as a simple demo? Also, I would be copying an already existing game and using many if not all of their assests. How high is the chance that, even as a free game, I (or my team if I ever decided to ask the help of more people) got legal repercussions along the way?

I think of cases like Pokemon/Metroid fan games that are forced to end their projects by the owner companies of the copyright, for example.

So, what do you people think? It is worth to try and preserve a game like this? Or there are too many problems that its better to let it be?

Really curious about your opinions!

 

[Synrec]

Without express permission, doing a fan game is very risky, especially commercially. As for making gacha games in general, if you're looking for some quick cash and you have a base of heroes ready, you can go for it. Depending on design you can do one in a few weeks to months.

As for worth it in terms of game design, if you luck out, do back door deals and really try to push it like summoners war, yeah your game can push through. Keep in mind that since you are starting from zero, the effort required will be massive.

 

[DisfantasyProject]

Umm... I'm talking about a completely free game, not commercial. And I'm not asking about if making a gacha game is worth it or not, I'm asking for opinions about the pros and cons of recreating an already existing gacha game.

Edited: Just wanna add that I had already done a semi-gacha, free game. It was really hard to make and in my own opinion the end result was really bad haha. But At least I have the bare minimum idea of how much work that would be.

 

[Synrec]

Umm... I'm talking about a completely free game, not commercial. And I'm not asking about if making a gacha game is worth it or not, I'm asking for opinions about the pros and cons of recreating an already existing gacha game.

Even if free, you still run the risk of having to forcibly shut it down.

As for pros and cons... pros would be, especially since free, that you can cater more towards player's desires and you have an established source to work with.

cons would be the source itself coming down upon you with an iron fist along with the source's permit provider.

 

[Elissiaro]

If it's actually using the games assets, and it ever gets popular enough to get noticed you're definitely getting shut down, and possibly facing legal charges too.

 

[Milennin]

If you're using official assets, I wouldn't risk publishing it, but keeping it as a private project, or only shared amongst a few friends who are not going to further post it online could be fine.

A big part of the appeal of gacha are the ongoing updates, like getting new units and new story events every week/two weeks, and joining the various communities to discuss the game online. They're built around a slow and steady daily grind to keep players hooked for months to years, and I don't see that working out in a static, offline version of that kind of game.

A little while ago, the Mobile game of Magica Madoka (Global) announced that they will end their service soon

I've been playing this since release, and it's the saddest event in 2020 so far. It's been like the only game I've ever played that had me feel connected to the characters.