Hub Listings

ID:804191
 
Jun 8 2012, 11:35 am
So, I'm going to be getting a BYOND Membership again, and I need to determine when I want to do so. Obviously I would want to do it when I can get the most use out of it, and that means getting it right before releasing something that would benefit from having a hub.

That's where a couple questions come up that I've come here to ask, because I have not had a membership since the big update to the website, hubs, listings, etc.

Anyways. I'm just wondering about the different hub statuses you can be set to, and what determines the one that is chosen for you? More specifically, I'm also wondering what the policy is on someone remaking a game that is no longer being worked on and has become so buggy that it is hard to even be able to host?

That may be a little too vague, so I'll explain. I would say in my case, what I am thinking of would be listed as both a rip and a fan game, because of a little DBZ content, and the fact that a lot of RPG Maker graphics are used. The original is not listed to my knowledge, but it does have a hub and can be viewed by people who google it or are linked to it.

So, if I were to remake and release that game using my own programming with its graphics, a similar name, and gave appropriate credit, would I be able to have a hub for it that is at least as viewable as the old one? I would use the old ones hub, but the owner is rarely able to get online and discuss the game right now.


Quick side note: I do know its better to make more original games, clean out anything that would make a game be considered a rip, etc. I intend to do that and avoid such things with my main projects, it's just that this is for the fans of the game and I, the game has a lot of history, and doing this is faster and gets us by until something more original and permanent can be completed.


Edit: I forgot to mention. This is also purely non-profit.
#1 Jun 8 2012, 12:01 pm
Toddab503 wrote:
Anyways. I'm just wondering about the different hub statuses you can be set to, and what determines the one that is chosen for you? More specifically, I'm also wondering what the policy is on someone remaking a game that is no longer being worked on and has become so buggy that it is hard to even be able to host?

These are the listing statuses:

  • Listed - Reserved for original games. These show up on the front page and will have tags.
  • Fangame - For projects that use an existing franchise as its base. Not visible on the front page, and are limited to being tagged as "anime" or "fangame".
  • Incomplete - Games that are untested, unplayable, or have yet to meet the standards for listing. Can be resubmitted at any time. Games default to this if they're marked as visible but not marked as ready to be reviewed.
  • Pending - The game has been marked as both visible and ready to be reviewed, and is waiting for a volunteer to have a look at it.
  • Hidden - An internal status that we don't set ourselves. Games are marked as this if they're checked to not be visible.
  • Rejected - This status means your game is either using someone else's source code without permission, or it's a huge pile of garbage. Games marked as this are completely hidden away from everything, and can only be found by knowing the exact URL. Submitted games covered by a cease and desist order are also marked as this.


That may be a little too vague, so I'll explain. I would say in my case, what I am thinking of would be listed as both a rip and a fan game, because of a little DBZ content, and the fact that a lot of RPG Maker graphics are used. The original is not listed to my knowledge, but it does have a hub and can be viewed by people who google it or are linked to it.

Featuring content from Dragon Ball Z is grounds for your game to automatically be rejected, as we legally cannot list anything containing that material. You would need to entirely remove any names, references, imagery, etc or modify them in a way that they're not exactly the same.

So, if I were to remake and release that game using my own programming with its graphics, a similar name, and gave appropriate credit, would I be able to have a hub for it that is at least as viewable as the old one? I would use the old ones hub, but the owner is rarely able to get online and discuss the game right now.

This is fine. Recreating the game from scratch with your own programming and giving credit would not make it a "rip". As long as your game isn't an exact carbon copy of the original then I don't see any problem with having it around, as we've been trying to cut down on listing games that play exactly the same as other games.
#2 Jun 8 2012, 12:14 pm
Ah, I see. That's very enlightening. I suppose the original must be under rejected status then, that makes sense. I don't see much point in getting a hub and submitting it to be rejected, so I'll just have to go without or change some things up; which is perfectly reasonable.

Thanks for the response. It was very helpful.