pouët.net

hi,

i read in the "troll thread" about Star Control 2 (one of theeee games)...

if you want old MS-DOS/Amiga/C64 games 4 free (and legal), just browse there:

http://www.abandonia.com/

Games you should check:

Pinball Dreams/Dreams 2/Fantasies/Illusions,
Star Control 2,
Lotus III,
Future Wars,
Operation Stealth... oh, there are too much good ;]

oldshool rules

http://www.the-underdogs.info

i doubt it's legal, but i guess noone except LucasArts will sue you for playing them...

From wikipedia:
"The term abandonware is used to make copying software appear legitimate, in the case where the software is still under copyright protection. Some companies actively defend their old copyright, such as WordPerfect and LucasArts. Some companies have released their old work into the public domain. Most companies have not made an active statement either way."

Therefore, abandonware is non existant.

Most of games considered as "abandonware" are simply still under copyright laws, so downloading 'em is a piracy... And I wouldn't call Abandoania a 100% legal site.

Go there, if you don't believe me: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abandonware

Also, on the Underdogs, go to "Freeware games" and look for all before 1995 - those are 100% legal.

Believe me, abandonaware still for some developers means piracy.

And btw: this thread isn't a good idea here on pouet... ;)

@Gargaj - you forget to mention Nintendo, Sierra, 3D Realms, GT Interactive...

El Burro banned.

any game that 10+ years old and was developed on a now dead/commercially unviable platform *IS* abandonware in my eyes...whether "they" like it or not.

Sorry but that's just the way it goes. And if they don't stfu I'll be pirating all their new stuffs too

until the day you release your own intellectual property..

Check abandonia reloaded. That site's concept is what I'd seriously call "somewhat abandonware", even tho their archives are super incomplete.
They have some formerly commercial games that were released to the public like BASS and GTA 1 & 2.

It's not strictly legal to distribute such software until whoever holds the copyright explicitly says it is, or the copyright expires (that takes like 80 years or something), but in those cases where the copyright holder makes no effort to enforce the copyright, and provides no legal way for anyone to obtain the software, it's still "safe" to treat it as public domain. And it makes perfect sense to describe those cases as "abandonware".

I believe the Underdogs site makes it clear that much of the software hasn't been actively abandoned.

anes: are you serious? the terms 10+ year old video-game and "intellectual property" in same sentence = lol.

if they want to make MORE profit from an old game idea created on some 8 bit platform 18 years ago then they can bloody-well put some effort into it and at least give it a facelift which takes advantage of current hardware and platforms which are actually purchasable in stores. they can forget it if they think most people are going to be coned into paying for these games running under an emulator on a Wii console.

Just look at the cocksuckers who've been abusing the name Atari (and luckily went bankrupt now) aka Infogrames, who still resisted to release the source code from Blood (which is 11 years old now) til the bastards were wiped off the screen for good.

Battle Droid - Underdogs, which all my respect to this site, have strange poitics in choosing games... For example - I've asked some people form Poland involved in making games which you can find on Underdogs, like Katharsis, Thatre of Pain or Fire Fight, is downloading them as abandonware is legal. Answer? "No, it's a piracy."

Amitari: check 3d Realms (Apogee) and ID Software, plsthxbye

Hey, isn't source code of Quake and Duke3d released as free?

gjn, yes, the source code (and compiled program) is free, but the data files (for doom, quake, quake2, quake3 etc) aren't.

Yup, I know it.

gjn: Well, if they hold the copyright and they don't want you to download it, sure, but if a) they don't really care unless you ask them directly, in which case they'll say "NO!" and then resume not caring anyway, and more importantly b) they lose zero money because they're not selling the software anyway, then I find that really hard to respect.

so is it ok to steal something if it's not on sale?

Droid: yeah, you're 100% right. But it doesn't make state of abandonaware simplier to understand :(

I know what I'm talking about. I'm oldschool-player for about 8 years, and I've seen lotsa abandonware sites. In Poland this is even harder to understand, because law about respecting intelectual property was announced in '94. Before, the only way of getting most of software was buying disks from pirates. Now, after 13 years software piracy is still not treaten as a serious crime. You can download anything from net - if you simply do not distribute this or sell in any way.

There's a popular in Poland saying "co kraj to obyczaj" - "every country has its laws".

anes: it's not ok for a producer, but this steal won't be considered as a crime. Until producer will sue you.

so you can dig my grave and collect my bones in a pack to feed your dog next day, because i can't sue you?

anes: You're a troll :D

anes: quite frankly, YES! If I want to play a game I once purchased (legally) which is no longer available to buy then it morally ok for anyone to download it, imo. They are not making it available to purchase, which is their perogative, but if I have "other" means to aquire it I damn well will. You can live like a scared rabbit and comply to their insane laws if you wish but otthers have more common sense.

did you know that in New York city that it is "illegal" for a father to call his son a "faggot" or "queer" in an effort to curb "girlie behavior."? But i really do not care about that law, if I had a son like you I'd be calling him gay on a DAILY basis im afraid