Link to Fat Dragon Games removed by moderator.

wtf? It looks like this guy is ripping off WorldWorks? Those textures and models look a little too similar to the stuff I've purchased here. anyone know anything about this company or this guy?

I got an email newsletter from drivethrurpg advertising this stuff and I was thinking wait a sec... this is a rip off of WWG.

am I out of line? or should someone with law knowledge get involved?

Far be it from me to speak for WWG, but he seems to be one of the reasons we don't get previews as early as we once did. Many of his items are VERY similar to WWGs but copyright laws in this space are kind of an untested thing and this industry is so small that litigation seems more trouble than its worth. The worst part is, he is MUCH BETTER when he is making something original! There are a couple of his sets with some nice innovations.

He seems to copy a lot of the set themes and even the particular items. But obviously his textures are far different, and he even seems to use alternate geometry for them.

But I totally agree that he's one of the examples of the people who check WW for ideas and then rush out a cheaper clone version. So it does cost us the early previews. Which I can deal with, it lessens the wait. But it does mean that there really isn't any chance for us to offer ideas while the project is still in development. Which means any changes have to be done with kitbashes rather than by designers.

Also I don't think that you're supposed to post a link. Its a competitor. Although the link doesn't work for me so perhaps its not a big problem.

I too believe that the link isn't suppose to be there, but the link does indeed have a typo, so it won't work.

I actually came across this site when looking for cardstock modeling...and well we can see where I ended up.

I think I already mentioned this guy when the guys at Craft Games told me they were using his company to put out Spycraft/FantasyCraft terrain.

Now that I've gotten to know the guy a little, he's not intentionally ripping off WWG as much as he doesn't pay attention to what else is out there, so if something seems somewhat close to a WWG thing, he doesn't know about it and doesn't try to avoid it.

Then he's got to be a bit psychic. Because he constantly comes out with sets just like WW. And not just the theme but also in the shapes of the buildings and props, and almost the same items, and the same lack of item. His pubs and inns like WW's both lack dishes, but has an alcohol shelf, hex keg, same stool, round table, and fireplace.

But he does indeed do some stuff that I've never seen other companies make. And a lot of the unique stuff is very cool. Not WW texture quality, but better than the stuff I call clones.

Poking through the forum, looks like his next set is (big surprise) a graveyard. I have a REALLY hard time swallowing that he doesn't keep an eye on whats going on here. I have nothing personally against the guy. Like I said, he has some great original concepts, but its beyond coincidence that stuff like this keeps happening.

I wish he'd at least release some alternate items so there'd be some variety.

Huh.

I also noticed that the Crafty Games guys are scheduling a horror module that involves a graveyard scene. So while there have been other suspicious coincidences with his release schedule, I do believe this is actually timed with a Crafty project. It's uncanny that both WWG and Crafty are proposing the same thing at the same time, granted.

I do agree though that some of his stuff does look like an exact copy of WWGs stuff. Now that I look at the Inn stuff closer, I do see what you are talking about.

However, with the Paizo partnership, I wouldn't be overly concerned unless he flat out copies something from WWG. Chances are, he'll just do small time sets for smaller publishing companies.

his outdoor setting is like a total rip of Hinterland but the quality is the bootleg handycam in the movie theater - WWG is the film.


I too wish he would do an area untouched by WWG. The flip side is that his village sets are going to wipe the floor of the aging VW both in textures and in the fact that it runs internals (not very well mind you).


Lord Abaddon of Wormwood

I really think this guy we're discussing needs to do more to make sure he doesn't look like a plagiarist. That's always your responsibility as the late-comer. Even if it was entirely unintentional that - for instance - some of those dungeon tiles look more than just "inspired" by WWG, it's up to him to go "darn, someone else did it first" and fix his stuff to have a notably different look (not just "less skilfully textured").

Sure, some of these things are tropes that are common to all Fantasy illustrations, but the floor-level half-circle grates (to name just one example)? Come on.

I had been looking for some sets a few days ago and was ... well, shocked when I saw the FD sets that paralleled WWG sets. But that said, you justly cannot copyright an idea, and the market is what it is for every company ... demand and supply.

Lord Abaddon of Wormwood

...so...pretty...