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Let’s make games open source, so future generations can enjoy them

https://jairajdevadiga.com/2024/06/21/lets-make-games-open-source-so-future-generations-can-enjoy-them/

As platforms evolve, old games become unplayable. Open sourcing them will help us preserve them for future generations.

A lot of old games have become unplayable on modern hardware and operating systems. I wrote an article about how making games open source will keep them playable far into the future.

I also discuss how making games open source could be beneficial to developers and companies.

Feedback and constructive criticism are most welcome, and in keeping with the open source spirit, I will give you credit if I make any edits based on your feedback.

17 comments

vzq

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There is a reason doom runs on everything.

Mammothmothman

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Wishful thinking.

DarkThoughts

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I think a compromise could be that developers would have to open source their games if they drop support, like entire support not just maintenance mode, so that the community can maintain them from then on. They could still have some sort of licensing to ensure the code isn't used for something else or the product used for profit (this would not include something like maintenance cost for online titles so that community ran servers could be paid for).

onlinepersona

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Not only games, this should be for all products. Especially physical ones, because they are actual pollution.

Anti Commercial-AI license

JairajDevadiga

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If you think all products should be open source, you might like this other article I wrote about making aircraft open source.

Maalus

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And then the developer goes out of business or gets bought by 15 other companies, with the rights to the game being so muddy it's not even funny anymore.

It's unfeasible. Not one serious publisher will let their game be open source for fear of reverse engineering, copycat games, using engines that a company has worked on for years, etc.

DarkThoughts

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If users have to agree to every bullshit license terms then I'm sure companies can do so too when it comes to some open source license that would give them legal liabilities over those who breach those terms. This is not unfeasible at all, just has to be done on a legislative level that would enforces it. The EU has done quite a few regulations for the consumer so I don't think it is out of question. But I do think it is unlikely because video games are like an enigma to most politicians and still kinda stigmatized within older generations especially.

Maalus

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Nah, because then the question becomes "what if all software is open source". It's a mad man's dream, nothing more. No publisher would agree to it.

DarkThoughts

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If it were EU law they'd have to, or forsake the entire EU market.

onlinepersona

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Not only do the games need to be opensource, but their toolchains too. It would also be great if everything were stored in content-addressable storage. Then it wouldn't be necessary to track down stuff by follow URL paths to dead domains.

I hope that opensource game engines become more popular. It might just be a matter of time. Blender is now very popular and that's opensource.

Anti Commercial-AI license

JairajDevadiga

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I agree, it is better to be open source all the way. I believe Godot became more popular after Unity tried to charge developers per install.

ILikeBoobies

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I agree with you, that’s why I don’t believe in paying for closed source

There is an issue with letting future generations enjoy content in that they may be less inclined to buy remasters or sequels

Eheran

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Let's not create 4 reposts such that the discussion is at one place and not spread out paper thin?

DarkThoughts

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A lot of people block lemmy.ml.

RightHandOfIkaros

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For good reason.

hellofriend

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New here. Why is that?

RightHandOfIkaros

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Well for me personally it was two reasons. First was a lot of politically charged content. I don't want to see that stuff any more than I already am forced to, so I just block all of it normally, but on the ml servers it was tiring blocking so much so I just blocked the whole instance Second was the ml admin's handling of the anime community that used to be hosted there and is now hosted on ani.social. I honestly don't remember too much other than the admin claiming something along the lines of "all anime characaters are children" or something like that. I don't remember it exactly, but it was some mindless take that communicated "we don't want anything related to anime on our server."