So I submitted the Allegro 5 demo game, a5teroids, to the Mac App Store (as a free game), and the game was rejected. The following line from the notice is important:

I was under the impression that gameplay couldn't be copyrighted. Am I wrong? If that's the case then every game from the past 20 years is infringing on some other game... anybody know more about this?

I think gameplay falls under "ideas", which can't be copyrighted. In other words, the guy who decided that is an asshat.

Certain aspects can be, like the title, the graphics, the level design, etc.

Assuming I were to change the title, what would remain that infringes on Atari copyrights? The graphics aren't the same... level design, well, what can I do about that? There really isn't really much to the level design. Mine has a moon and there's doesn't IIRC.

I looked and there are asteroids clones on the App Store, although they are more advanced. Changing the name is definitely going to be required.

I don't think level design can be copyrighted. I can't remember the game but there was a espionage spoof type game where it used the Tanker level from Metal Gear Solid 2 in a level but gave it different textures. As far as I know they didn't get any flack from Konami (who had the MGS license at the time because it was before Kojima Productions was created).

That or Konami didn't know about the game.

Wow, I wonder if they have some kind of "automated" system to detect similarities in the title or game description.

Your game title matches almost perfectly the name Asteroids, so I think that triggered the alarm.

Asteroids
A5teroids

Maybe other matches in the descriptions and you put your game on the spotlight. Just change the name and check out the description, and there will be no problem.............. Trust me... I have tons of games in the appstore

The other day I ran into this thread from a long time ago. It's basically the same question.

Ok, well doing a little research and reading this, it seems that gameplay cannot be copyrighted, but you may nevertheless get #$(*@ed over royally by the original studio.

Anyway, we've decided to do something almost completely different with the game, and I already started coding it. It's better than Asteroids anyway...

I wonder how did you get into a eight years old thread...

Good question. I was actually wondering what Richard Phipps was up to since we haven't seen him in a long time . I thought that by perusing through old threads I could find something.

[edit] He was part of the crew that, from what I remember, wanted to make a more serious venture out of making games... so I was looking into that storyline to see what transpired for him.

There's this wonderful new thing called Google...

Hmmmm... Do you know who haven't been here for a while neither?... Roy... Neil Roy... Agent nº2,229.

Name: Neil Roy
Member since: 04/17/2002 4:27 AM
Country: Canada
Status: Missing

Not a lot going on there... a few inconsequential tweets and links to threads from 2006.

I didn't check. I just now tried advanced search to limit results to the past year and found a thread from 2007. RIP google. I'll miss you. Too bad DuckDuckGo is so limited.

I think the guy who rejected it didn't understand the word "gameplay" and he was actually referring to the level design of the game. BTW the game itself is very simple so not making something like asteroids is very hard to do. It would be like remaking chess. Copyrighting that is impossible but its probably because your game is a clone of it and usually copyrights only protect ideas in the context of what they are in not something that goes beyond the original idea. I could copyright a circle for 30 dollars and get a piece of paper showing the US copyright office has approved my submission (No kidding). But is that idea original... no and as soon as I tried to sue people for using a circle I would lose to every book publisher on geometry and even Euclid would roll in his grave.

Now if you're SNK you can do this
Guerilla war:

Iron tank:

Cookies

wow i would have flagged Guerilla war as copyright infringement the game play and level is identical to a 2 player game from Nintendo days.

Nobody has mentioned patents...?^[1] Copyright only covers things like specific combinations of words, and specific images and things. Trademarks cover names of things and branding, so you can't pass off a fake as a legit piece (legally). Patents are supposed to be about inventions, but software patents exist, so in theory the game of Asteroids could have been "patented". It's possible the n00b assigned to review your game just got his terminology wrong, but more than likely the people reviewing apps for Apple just don't know what they're talking about and took a guess, siding against the app. Check Wikipedia for an introduction to the differences between and scopes of copyright, trademark, and patent law; then consult a lawyer if you care to.

Strangely Apple has approved the game on iOS. I guess due to the tilt based controls, they feel it's different enough that it doesn't infringe on Atari copyrights. Either that or the reviewer had a different opinion. It was in review for a long time, so I think it might have been discussed but that's just a guess.

Apple will approve anything.

I think you'll be fine, but changing the name is a must. Atari will go after anything with even a passing resemblance to Asteroids.

Welp, I guess they'll have to make Pluto a planet again.

I just got a copyright infringement notice from scribd for Randal Hydes art of assembler. I did it to exchange for another file.

Then scientists should have the grounds to sue Atari as they were using the term asteroids way before Atari made the game.

Can we include computer scientists?

Found another example of Apple approving anything, even if it crashes after the title screen and is a blatant theft of another's work.

They don't approve anything. I've had apps rejected countless times for minor issues. Some slip through though...