Ludo Kressh's Music Mod

[Chimaera717]

I am aware that Eville believes that copyrighted material (AKA SW songs) cannot be used in this mod without infringing upon US Copyright Law - I would like to set the record straight on this matter, for the benefit of all modders.

 

According to American copyright law, when copyrighted material is used for noncommercial purposes the copyrighter must prove that such use is severely damaging its market. Since VERY, very few things are noncommercial in today's world, this is, for all extents and purposes, a useless clause that is always ignored. Noncommercial uses of copyrighted material are never prosecuted and most certainly are not stringently enforced - how many Youtube videos have a background music piece in them, or how many other mods for countless games use their themes' songs in them?

 

Disallowing any SW music to be placed in the beta is a needless precaution against impossible and illegal prosecution, and in doing so it damages the overall aura of the mod itself.

 

On these grounds, I think we should add Ludo Kressh's rather fantastic music mod to the beta for download. For those of you who haven't rolled over an Alliance Fleet with thirty Star Destroyers as the Imperial March plays in the background, you're missing out.

[Lavo]

I'd love to add this in, and the OP's logic checks out... As, in reality, SoGE already falls under this copyright law due to it's usage of Star Wars ships and other elements from it's universe. *Waits for Evaders' response*

[Chimaera717]

Yeah, if this was illegal we'd already be in deep crap - X-wings and Star Destroyers and TIE Fighters are, for a fact, copyrighted material.

 

So get over your worries.

[Snowba11]

That would sound so sweet

[Evaders99]

You are right - we are using the copyright terms and images from the Star Wars without having necessary permissions. Though I do consider Eville's original models and other work much differently than just ripping the original soundtrack from John Williams.

 

I don't necessarily believe that there's a hard line on copyright laws that would prevent this mod from happening. But, the fact is: we are not lawyers. With Stratus and my name on the server, even the threat of legal action could be used to disconnect us. I'm not necessarily going to have the resources to justify going to court, even if we're right.

 

Many a mod project have been shut down, though not necessarily by LucasFilms and company.

 

I'm not opposed to it being added to the beta. But it's easy to say "take the risk" when you're not the one paying the bills

 

Go ahead and add it, under the assumption that if asked - we would remove it from our server. It's not to say, that it can't just be put on any other file sharing site anyway.

[Chimaera717]

No, you're not lawyers. But I'm about to be, and I'm fairly certain that there's no circumstances under which they could actually bring legal action against you.

 

Now, they could threaten - big companies can do that, and it does almost always scare people into submission. But that's not a huge deal. (oh, and what's the chance that a LucasFilm rep happens to be one of our beta testers?)

[MrPhildevil]

It would be nice to have a tutorial on how to add the music we want in our game, without having to release copyrighted music...

[Ludo Kressh]

It would be nice to have a tutorial on how to add the music we want in our game, without having to release copyrighted music...

 

[gravedig] Actually, that could be just as bad. But Chim is right - the chances of being "found out", for now at least, are slim. The player base of this mod is quite small, and the beta testing filter helps keep the tester pool to a minimum. This originally was a personal mod to be shared with friends only (namely Chim and Lavo), but since the cat is out of the bag, so be it.

 

Oh, by the way, hai. I'm Ludo Kressh, and I'm a lurker. And Lavo, Chim and I go way back.

 

Now, for the real reason for posting: I've created an update for the music mod, and if anyone is interested, I can upload it. Be warned, however, as I have a slower-than-average connection, so the process could take a while.[/gravedig]

[Snowba11]

Thanks fpr implementing the music it sounds sweet

[Ludo Kressh]

You're very welcome!

 

In my opinion, no Star Wars mod is complete without the epic music. It's such an elementary principle in the whole experience. To be without the proper score is really shortchanging yourself in regards to immersion. And Chim is right - NOTHING beats rolling an enemy fleet with ISDs while the Imperial March is blaring. Though, the CIS theme is pretty close in that regards...reminds me of a series of scenes in the second season of the Star Wars: Clone Wars animated series (circa 2004-5) where the CIS is rolling Republic worlds in build-up to the Ep3 Battle of Coruscant, and the exact theme is going. Ah, memories. John Williams definitely deserves all the credit in the world for his efforts...and I suppose George Lucas as well.

 

The new update will be up Sunday-Monday PST, as I have obligations this weekend. R&Rs (Rates and Reviews) are always welcome.

[Evaders99]

Hey great work! More updates are definitely welcome

(ha I see... the Ludo Kressh-Chim-Lavo conspiracy nice )

[Lavo]

Hey great work! More updates are definitely welcome

(ha I see... the Ludo Kressh-Chim-Lavo conspiracy nice )

To be fair, I did tell you that this was integrated in my pre-staff updates... If you go back to when I first became staff you'll see mention of this. Though this topic was entirely Chim's doing, not mine.

[magnus64]

Absolutely excellent addition! My only nitpicks are the remaining midi files which really don't blend at all with the full orchestral John Williams score, and the removal of the KOTOR II pieces which while not immediately recognizable to those who haven't played KOTOR II, would fit perfectly. Other than that, I'd say it's a VAST improvement over the previous midipalooza. Feels like Star Wars.