Is playing a video game a form of creativity?

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Goosss

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#1 Goosss
Member since 2015 • 25 Posts

Hi,

I am a Computer and Communication Law LLM student at the Queen Mary University of London. I choose to do my final dissertation in the field of Video game law. In order to have an original approach on the subject, I decided to do a survey regarding players’ impact on the game. The question I ask myself is the following: Is playing a video game a form of creativity protectable by copyright?

It would be really kind of you to take the time to complete this survey. This won’t take more than 10 minutes.

Thank you for your time

Gaëtan Goossens

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/18lP8VOnjCUYpLnknPRrtEcdVeaBAoNh8xq9tYZ4DN58/viewform?c=0&w=1

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danygo1996

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#2  Edited By danygo1996
Member since 2009 • 377 Posts

Why not.

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PimpHand_Gamer

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#3 PimpHand_Gamer
Member since 2014 • 3048 Posts

Is playing a video game a form of creativity protectable by copyright?

The act of playing a game? You are not really creating anything nor could you copyright that....which makes no sense to me. Copyright your act of playing it?. The developers are the creative ones. Video games are just a form of interactive entertainment. How about we play dodgeball and we'll say we're being creative and then copyright it.?

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Minishdriveby

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#4 Minishdriveby
Member since 2006 • 10519 Posts

I'm assuming you're trying to determine the legality of Let's Plays?

Sure, I think playing a video game can be a creative endeavor, but it's a sliding scale like most things.

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torenojohn7

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#5 torenojohn7
Member since 2012 • 551 Posts

Not really.. but playing games does increase your creativity :D

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MirkoS77

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#6 MirkoS77
Member since 2011 • 17961 Posts

Hitting different keys on a piano is creating unique sound everyone would do differently. That the piano is already built doesn't negate the creative expression of the one playing it.

Yea, while to a lesser extent, people absolutely display creativity in their play styles. Whether that can argue against copyright though....have fun, TC! :)

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MrGeezer

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#7 MrGeezer
Member since 2002 • 59765 Posts

@MirkoS77 said:

Hitting different keys on a piano is creating unique sound everyone would do differently. That the piano is already built doesn't negate the creative expression of the one playing it.

Yea, while to a lesser extent, people absolutely display creativity in their play styles. Whether that can argue against copyright though....have fun, TC! :)

This, sort of. While I can SORT OF understand the argument that playing video games can involve creativity, I would also agree with the whole "have fun arguing against copyright law" sentiment.

Still though, I think there's something to consider. While playing videogames can be argued to be "a form of creativity", I'd argue that it's pointless to pursue that stance without there actually being an audience (other than the player).

For comparison, let's consider a piano player. I think that most people would argue that creating music is a form of creativity (whether that's writing original works or just playing covers). That's fine. But the thing is, between the hours of work that you put on display for an audience, there are countless hours just practicing by yourself. And if the creator is the only one who gets to hear it, then how much weight does the word "creative" have in that context? Sure, he ALLEGEDLY created something, but it had ****-all influence on anyone else since no one else got to hear it.

It's sort of like when someone claims to have independently invented cold fusion, and then can't replicate it. Sure, MAYBE it worked that one time. But if you can't replicate it, then it's essentially gone down the toilet for all that anyone can give a shit. So what exactly have you CREATED? Or it's like a painter who is incredibly prolific and talented at painting, but then burns up all of his paintings before anyone gets to see them. Sure, he "created" paintings, but that's a pointless word if it immediately gets destroyed before anyone gets the chance to see them.

Similarly, I could potentially argue that playing games is at least potentially "creative". It gives me satisfaction, there are often multiple ways to play, and I am in a sense directing my game-playing in order to create a unique experience which personally suits me. One could absolutely argue that that is "creative". But if that's ALL that I'm doing, use of the word "creative" is kind of pointless. Best case scenario, it's the equivalent of making a painting alone and then immediately setting it on fire. "Creativity" is kind of a worthless word if there's no evidence that you actually did something. At least the people making video game reviews/walkthroughs and posting them on Youtube are showing evidence that they "created something". They technically "created something" just by making the video. It's also likely that they did at least some kind of editing. And by posting the video on Youtube, there's an audience to confirm that something was "created".

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bulby_g

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#8  Edited By bulby_g
Member since 2005 • 1861 Posts

Not really... I guess certain games like Minecraft and even the likes of Rollercoaster Tycoon etc. are perhaps on the edge of a creative activity.