Open-Source, or Closed-Doors

[FuryOfASquirrel]

Hey guys! I've been wondering for quite a while... why do big game companies hide thier amazing code? Wouldn't it be benefitial to young / unexperienced programmers looking for inspiration?

It's not like you can copy the game after it's released....you'd get sued in under a week probably

But... I don't see any harm in games (like.... F.E.A.R. or even wc3) being open-sourced with their code, just so that programmers can see the code and learn from it! Again, even if some low-brain idoit gets a hold of it and changes textures and makes his own game look different, it's not like people are going to buy it if it's just a copy of a game, and again, the sueing problem!

So, what do you think, should game designers should make anything that could benifit less-experienced programmers, or even artists, open to them to get just from the game?

Unless of course there are ways to get stuff you want just from the CD of the game.... but you have to know how... i would suppose... no idea


(wc3, for instance, provides pretty much exactly how the made their whole game with the WE, and with that i've started to learn JASS, which is like a tiny miniature programming language bassed off of C....is it C#?...or C++?..... i have no idea im no programmer!....*cough*)

What's your stand on the Open-Source debate, should companies hide their glorious system of making great games (F.E.A.R..... Overlord.... Company of Heroes.... ect. ect.) or should they make it public, like wc3 did, and Neverwinter Nights did.

 

[Jacek]

in the age of online games, making server/client software open-source leaves it very vulnerable to hackers.

also, open source works only for free games. If you publish sourcecode of commercial game, I can compile it instead of buying it at shop.

 

[Elenai]

I can understand inspiration use. However I would think that this would be very similar to intellectual theft. Codes take a while and its an art form all its own. Just like famous novel concepts (Curse thee Paolini) It would be ok however if those companies sent out something like a "learning code" that was similar to the scource code but not the same.

 

[DesKaladA]

Software that is classafied as Abondware is releaced to the public under the GPL or the CC licienging

at the owners discression

(

 

[Turtles]

save and load codes Can be a risk, too. If you leave a map with one unlocked people can use the code to get all the good stuff.

 

[FuryOfASquirrel]

I see, so there are a buntch of legal licenses that already take care of this, mk, that's coo with me

 

[Hakeem]

Licenses that can never be enforced. Maybe a few will get pointlessly caught.

 

[Jacek]

(wc3, for instance, provides pretty much exactly how the made their whole game with the WE, and with that i've started to learn JASS, which is like a tiny miniature programming language bassed off of C....is it C#?...or C++?..... i have no idea im no programmer!....*cough*)

What's your stand on the Open-Source debate, should companies hide their glorious system of making great games (F.E.A.R..... Overlord.... Company of Heroes.... ect. ect.) or should they make it public, like wc3 did, and Neverwinter Nights did.

wc3 and NWN didn't do anything public... they just released their modding tools, every company does that to bring fans that can prolong the game popularity (Half-life still doing great after ten years because of CS).

also, wc3 editor doesn't give many information on how game is made... we don't know how are data structures laid out etc.