Twisted Pixel claims Splosion Man concept has been stolen
Capcom has been subjected to serious allegations of plagiarism by independent studio Twisted Pixel.
The Street Fighter publisher is accused of ‘outright theft’ of a game concept by Twisted Pixel co-founder Michael Wilford and his colleagues.
The accusations arise from a Capcom game recently released on the App Store, entitled Maxplosion.
It is alleged that the game has taken ideas from Twisted Pixel’s XBLA game Splosion Man.
“Maxplosion gameplay video makes me sad. If you're going to outright steal a game, you should at least understand what makes it fun,” said Twisted Pixel Games programmer Mike Henry.
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Wilford elaborated: “We originally pitched Splosion Man to Capcom and they said no."
Capcom’s US PR office could not be reached for comment.
That's one of the many problems of the industry. If you pitch to a publisher there is NOTHING stopping them from stealing your idea. Sure, you have an NDA, but it's not worth the paper its printed on.
I spoke to the Sony guys and they boasted about how easy it was to steal the Buzz concept from the guys that pitched it to them originally.
I have had at least two ideas I pitched stolen by publishers, but as an indie with no financial reserves, they know you can't take them to court, so what can you do?
Ignore publishers, never pitch to them, it's a waste of money, depressing, and likely to get your idea stolen, and even if they do sign it the deal will screw you and the idea.
Stay indie, its the only way to make a decent game and have a hope of making money from it.
The best way to protect your idea is to get it out there first.
