WesterosCraft Unreal

[Hal9007]

Thanks for tagging them on there - going through them, it looks like most will have a significant "data" component and could see testing in just a shell or custom app, i.e. the Relations Matrix, which already has one. It'll be quicker and more preferable to do so wherever possible, and should help us iron out any issues before taking them into a more complex environment. That being the case, it's likely that I'll need to see a bit more in the way of specific targets and requirements for each topic - I can reference the almanac as much as possible, though most things there are described in a way which give a thorough overview of a concept, but don't give me total confidence that I would be representing the exact desire of whoever drafted it. I'll try to list things that need clarifying on the cards you've provided if I run into them.

 

[Thamus_Knoward]

Awesome! I'll go in and flesh out whatever you deem lacking. I'm happy to cook up some prototypes too (will mostly be python but I could do some javascript for ease of use and distribution too)

 

[AttackOnMars]

Not sure if anyone has suggested this before but

 

[AerioOndos]

Would there be legal complications from a grant?

 

[Hal9007]

Depends on the use case. Grants targeted at WesterosCraft most certainly would be problematic - with it being at the intersection of several different intellectual properties, I'm sure most vendors would steer clear. That being said, grants don't necessarily have to be for games - Epic awards them for a wide variety of things like graphics research, marketplace content, engine modifications, plugins, etc.. For example, as part of making a functional port, I've been dabbling with the physics engine to support the concept of voxel data at a low level. Something like that could be a realistic candidate for a grant, since it's decoupled from both Minecraft and WesterosCraft and could be applied to anything making use of voxels - you'd just have to justify that.

Obviously, this is all still in the realm of experimentation, but it would be cool to consider a grant if it becomes a possibility - thanks for bringing it up!

 

[Margaery_Tyrell]

The game will be funded the traditional way:

Seducing an eldery dowager and making us the heir of her estate.

 

[AttackOnMars]

I had just been talking to some friends at Epic about the expectations of the grants, since my partner thought about applying so their business could spend time on giving YarnSpinner proper Unreal support, and it seems they're super keen particularly on projects that a) have something to show for themselves beyond a concept (we have that in spades) and b) focuses on--or can be adapted for--educational content (which we already have evidence of educators doing with the existing project).

Else, you know, the elderly dowager backup

 

[AttackOnMars]

The grants are non-recoupable and come with no expectation of IP or even project vision ownership, they're just for stimulating the use of Unreal and the creation of tools for it in the community. And I'm honestly not sure they'd be too bothered even by the use of a media franchise property--since the WC project is domiciled in the US and so is Epic it should fall wholly under Fair Use in the law, particularly if argued for on educational grounds.

 

[CashBanks]

Could be worth a shot, but depends how risk averse they're feeling. If they're looking at all the applicants for grant funding and it's down to:
a) Westeroscraft, a great project but one whose potential exploitability as a commercial product has a big fair use dependent asterisk on it, and
b) another project with a wholly original IP;
they might go with option b) just so they can avoid any potential headaches down the track, and so they can have more confidence that their money isn't going to be wasted on a project that gets shut down by a cease and desist from HBO when they give Blizzard the licence to make World of Westeros or something. (I used to work for a film/tv financing agency and this was the kind stuff they thought about).

Epic would probably also want to have publicity and promo rights to projects they give funding to, so they can say "look at all the cool things we're giving money to and supporting, aren't we great". Someone on their legal team might think, "hang on, is it really a good idea for Epic to publicly endorse the (potential) infringement of HBO's intellectual property?"

Should be no harm in reaching out to them and getting their temperature on the idea, but HBO actually just trademarked the name "Westeros" for a whole bunch of products, including video games, so we may need to be careful about getting on their radar with any kind of suspicion that we're commercially exploiting the brand, which a grant funding might suggest.