Denial

Hi Folks.
What I am about to state will be heresy for some and I can understand why.
Sword of Fargoal, an iconic game for the Vic-20. Much sought after, but hard to obtain nowadays in original format. (And when it does appear it goes for crazy money)
I have been in contact with Retro Replica. They are willing to make a fascimile of the tape version, but they need at least five orders before they consider it.
So, am wondering, aside from myself, is there anyone else interested in a copy? If so, let me know please! Thanks

Crazey Cavey wrote:...

Who’s Retro Replica?

...and how is this replica supposed to be done (e.g. cassette only, w/manual, complete and boxed)? How much would it cost? Thanks for elaborating.

This would still be covered under copyright, no?

It will probably have as much copyright as the game files that people download illegaly to play on emulators, etc.

orion70 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 23, 2020 5:32 am ...and how is this replica supposed to be done (e.g. cassette only, w/manual, complete and boxed)? How much would it cost? Thanks for elaborating.

Best example I can give you is on this link.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1953888 ... 5977137760

Crazey Cavey wrote:It will probably have as much copyright as the game files that people download illegaly to play on emulators, etc.

That is an opinion you can gladly keep to yourself.

Besides, the issue is not with the first hand buyers of those replicas - they know what they are buying. More problematic is when they re-sell their replicas as 'originals' (i.e. do not tell the second hand buyers that what they will get is not original). That constitutes fraud, irrespective of the copyright status of the material.

People like to hang Monet prints in their home because they like the picture. Generally accepted.

Richer people might have a painting reproduced with just the signature omitted or by the reproduction artist. Grey Area

Criminals might reproduce or make a forgery with fake signature and materials and try to sell it. Definitely Fraud or Forgery.

I see little point in reproducing Giana sisters in the link or indeed Sword of Fargoal unless there is some paperwork that you need to play the game.

If you must reproduce it then I would ensure each piece has a logo or date on it identifying it as a reproduction.

Owning a reproduction game would give me no sense of satisfaction over the functionality of being able to try the gameplay. As I probably could look at the game on an emulator I would probably do that and then save if I really must have the original.

e.g. I bought a Vic Voder as it was a Votrax reproduction of aging hardware but it does not purport to be a real Votrax. I bought it to provide the Votrax functionality with Scott Adams adventures for a more reasonable price than the original US Only? hardware.

I agree. My two cents: there's no point in owning a faithful replica of an old game package w/manual, if all you want is playing it. Manuals are easily found in the internet; and the retro feeling comes only with the original package, IMHO.

I also had the temptation to recreate faithfully older packages in the past, and did at least a couple of them (Microsoft Adventure for the IBM PC and Zork I for the Commodore 64, before buying one original complete copy years ago). But with time I ended up hating them because they were copies, and eventually threw them in the bin.

Vic20-Ian wrote: ↑Mon Aug 24, 2020 5:23 am

If you must reproduce it then I would ensure each piece has a logo or date on it identifying it as a reproduction.

It has got a logo identifying it as a reproduction. Did you look?

Sorry Crazey, I don't have a Facebook account, can you post pictures or links to pictures here? Just for my curiosity . Thanks.

orion70 wrote: ↑Mon Aug 24, 2020 11:22 pm Sorry Crazey, I don't have a Facebook account, can you post pictures or links to pictures here? Just for my curiosity . Thanks.

You don't need an account on Facebook to view the pictures. Just click the link it will take you to the relevant post.

The Giana Sisters repro has a small RR logo on the inlay, which isn't large enough imo to be easily discernable as a reproduction.

Mayhem wrote: ↑Tue Aug 25, 2020 2:23 am The Giana Sisters repro has a small RR logo on the inlay, which isn't large enough imo to be easily discernable as a reproduction.

I agree. It's going to take someone familiar with both the original packaging and the collector's market to spot that RR and know what it signifies. A lot of people could be fooled by this.