So i am making a game inspired by the Naruto universe. Naruto is protected by IP ofc. but im a little confused as for how wide that protection is. I don’t intend on using any of the story or characters from the show, though i do intend on using the artstyle and conceps from naruto like genjustu, ninjutsu, hand seals, chakra stuff like that, and make a pretty accurate parallel in that regard. Should that be a problem?
I see it as gameplay ideas taken from the show, like when 2 shooters uses the same weapons, mecanincs and such.
Artstyle can’t be copyrighted. The martial arts styles you mention are real world things that aren’t covered by copy right. Plus they predate the show significantly.
I came to think of something i don’t know if you watched the show but, stuff like sharingang and byakugan that is concepts made by the writer Kishimoto. That could cause problems right? like using lightsaber or some other concept from star wars would be.
There really isnt a black and white answer to this sort of thing, only general guidelines. If you’re looking for someone to tell you your idea is OK from a legal standpoint, only a lawyer can do that and even he/she can be wrong.
You can draw inspirations from other works, but that’s where it should stop at. Inspirations. If you’re already concerned about being too similar, chances are I’d say you are already too similar.
Having said that, just because your game has ‘ninjas’, ‘eye powers’ and ‘villages’ doesn’t necessarily mean it’s grounds for legal action. Even a ‘sword made of light’ isn’t something Disney owns as an idea. It’s not like it’s a patented idea.
According to the Naruto wiki entry on eye techniques it’s likely Kishimoto drew inspiration from a 1959 novel. For that matter the whole concept of eye techniques is not just found in Naruto. You can find it from time to time in other series.
Basically, plugging Naruto characters into your game is almost certainly not allowed, when it comes to small details, it is less certain. It is unclear if “byakugan” is something they trademarked (probably not).
AS long as you don’t use the same visual, but I would say, if you are going to copy, copy from enough sources than the resulting mixed is its own things. The chakra system of Naruto is ispired by Hunter X hunter, it also take some hi concept from all manga happening before him, jojo bizarre adventure has been a huge influence in this type of “power with rules” anime. In fact making a world that is a remix fusion of all these things would be cool. Just be sure to add your own flair, find some inspiration OUTSIDE of the genre to add flavor and people might call you a genius.
I’m not familiar with the subject matter - and I don’t want to look it up. But from your description I’d say (not a lawyer) you are safe - good to go, as long as hand seals, chakra and stuff like that doesn’t involve explicit symbols which might in fact be protected.
At least some of this stuff is not naruto specific. For example, kuji-kiri and nunjutsu are actual things, and I bet naruto (never watched it) uses “Rin Pyou Tou Sha Kai Chin Retsu Zai Zen” somewhere (see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuji-in ), because this stuff pops up anywhere where onmyoji are present . Chakras are from indian culture.
Good luck untangling this mess and figuring out which part of it is copyrighted.
If you don’t want to hire a lawyer to wade through this stuff, then maybe you should try observing a general rule of thumb I’ve come across: If your game can’t be described without referencing the original property, you’re doing something wrong.
Sorry - I can’t follow the triple negative here - is this your rule for games that are inspired by other properties?
It seems if you can describe your creation without needing to reference another property - I’d say you are doing it right.
Right? But that would be a completely original concept - good luck with that one.
If you can say “My game is kind of like this concept, but it’s very different, here are the differences” that to me is a better rule of thumb.
Today I learned that I’m the only forum member (other than old man @theANMATOR2b ) who doesn’t watch or even know the first thing about anime and Japanese martial arts culture.
There are probably few other people as well, but you could always just watch original Ghost in the Shell, Akira, Mononoke Hime, Tonari no Totoro … or just anything made by studio Ghibli.
But from your description I’d say (not a lawyer) you are safe - good to go, as long as hand seals, chakra and stuff like that doesn’t involve explicit symbols which might in fact be protected.
