Salvaging a dead Game.

[Eshanas]

Hey guys.

 

This is more about on how one, or a group, could get the code/source code of a dead game. In this case, the game was sold or handed over by the parent company who has all but disappeared back in 2009 or 2010, over to a Infrastructure-as-a-service/hosting company. That company then seemingly axed all the games it had, but it still exists.

 

Do you think there's any, any way the video games could be salvaged out from that company? I've heard from a few fellow gamers that they contacted the company but it went nowhere since the guys they talked to didn't know. But could there be a outright legal process or business process to get the games back in some form? Or is it a lost cause?

 

It doesn't help that the game has been down and out since 2014, and was brought in 2011. But who knows? That's only...five years in this ephemeral, ever-changing information age.

[Prinny]

I think it would be great to have art preservation laws requiring companies to release source code publicly in case of game being dead for given amount of time (few months sounds fair to me). Only part that's unavailable should be released. If nothing else, it would motivate them to keep games available.

 

But I realize it's unlikely to happen as companies will protect their products even if they do noting with them and there's not much push from people.

[BTGBullseye]

If there is or isn't a process depends on the company, and the game. Why do you not want to mention the game name?

[Eshanas]

I've come across this thread which sort of talks about the same situation.

 

On 8/2/2019 at 2:26 PM, BTGBullseye said:

If there is or isn't a process depends on the company, and the game. Why do you not want to mention the game name?

Just to make it more general. The game in question was StarQuest Online, a MMORPG where you had multi-crewed spaceships, interactive in game screens, planet-to-space-to-hyperspace connectivity (though I think some people tried to go from Sol to Alpha Centauri in real space and couldn't do it?), and a playing field at 1000x1000 LYs with huge star catalogs and generated systems with multiple alien races to find and play around with. I was notorious for being a genocidal pirate, then I shifted over to cultivating a colony.

 

 

They were brought out by Nexeon Technology or Nexon? or somesuch, which might be a HUGE company with many local offices, or not. I'm just scratching the surface there. 

Edited August 4, 2019 by Eshanas (see edit history)

[BTGBullseye]

Sorry to say, but in this case, I don't think you have much chance of getting anything from them. Ever. Judging by their business model, they basically bought the game to use its servers and licencing for their web hosting service. I doubt they even saved the server code for the game.

 

They might sell the IP for the game, (if you offered a LOT of money) but it's highly unlikely you'll ever get any code.

[Eshanas]

5 hours ago, BTGBullseye said:

Sorry to say, but in this case, I don't think you have much chance of getting anything from them. Ever. Judging by their business model, they basically bought the game to use its servers and licencing for their web hosting service. I doubt they even saved the server code for the game.

 

They might sell the IP for the game, (if you offered a LOT of money) but it's highly unlikely you'll ever get any code.

Aye, that's our worst fear, basically just handing them a lot of cash just for the name. I do wonder If I can just talk to the original developers instead for the code....

[BTGBullseye]

That would be far more likely to get you the code, if you can find them.