Exactly, Suhira hit it right on the head. They may own Ciri's character model but the actual original character still belongs to the author of the Witcher books. Secondly, while they may have a lot of freedom in what they can do within the Witcher games, that does not necessarily equate to crossing it over with other franchises. Thus, having her appear in a brief Easter Egg may be fine and dandy, but making a Witcher character actually make an impactful cross-over into CP 2077 is another matter all together.
It really isn't, in terms of character license. If you'd played the games, read the stories, enjoyed the comics, any of that you'd know what I meant, but CDPR messes with the characters all the time - in and out of the game franchises.
In terms of diluting Cyberpunk's feel, sure, but that's a matter of artistic license, not legal control.
Don't know what to tell you to convince you, Tramp, or really why we're trying, but to put it plainly, from me, the long-time Polish mod @Nars who posted and probably anyone who's been following these games: CDPR can do what it likes to Sapkowski's characters in terms of everything but books, movies and I think TV. But they might have TV, too. They have full creative freedom with Witcher-everything. That means T-shirts, mugs, symbols, you name it. The original character, Ciri, does not belong to Sapkowski in terms of video games, comics, any media other than the books. Someone else has the movie rights, iirc. Not Sapkowski.
As for the specs on the deal with CPunk, that's pure speculation, as CDPR hasn't commented or demonstrated the length of their control.
Added fun bold bits. It's a thing.
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Without the actual contract, you're not going to convince me. I'm an illustrator, graphic designer and aspiring cartoonist by trade. No matter what, Sapkowski still owns these characters. The license they have grants them very specific rights (whatever those specific rights are) for whatever period of time specified. Now, yes, that may cover a broad range of merchandizing tied specifically to the Witcher universe and game franchise , and I'm sure it does, no argument there. But that does not necessarily mean that they can take those characters to a completely different franchise unrelated to the Witcher universe in any meaningful way without consulting Sapkowski and the owner of the other franchise (in this case Mike Pondsmith for CP2077) first. Even Nars' own statement said that their rights only cover things within the Witcher-verse itself, not outside of it. Therefore, taking any of these characters to a completely different franchise universe in anything other than an "parody Easter Egg" would most likely be outside of their license, and therefore require Sapkowski's written approval. That is because while CDProject Red has the game (and related tie in merchandizing) rights They don't own the Intellectual Property[/b] rights. The very fact that someone else owns the movie rights bears this out.
Now, if the licensing contract does give them permission to take these characters outside of the Witcher franchise, that's all well and good. My point is that the contract has to specifically give them that right in writing for them to legally do so. If it does not, then they need his approval for anything more than an Easter Egg cameo. They would also need the approval of the owner of the other franchise property as well. This is because you're not dealing with the rights of only one property, you're dealing with different licensed rights for multiple different properties. So, regardless of whatever rights Sapkowski licensed to CD Project Red—however broad or restrictive— there is still the issue of the separate licensing rights from Mike Pondsmith to deal with. And, from my understanding, those licensing rights are significantly more restrictive in order to maintain the integrity of the Cyberpunk canon.
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hell i really wished i shut my mouth about ciri didn't want to start a shit storm with licences etc who has them who doesnt just though as you play through the cyber punk 2077 game you spotted ciri would be a nice touch is all.. being as she gave reference to the cyberpunk world !!
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Your lack of understanding of the Witcher universe is showing. The Witcher Universe is every universe. In the books, well, I don't want to spoil anything, but, yeah, Witcher characters could show up anywhere. Or anywhen. You seem to think that creative rights to the Witcher content means that they can't add to or subtract from that content. They can and have -and no doubt will. That includes other worlds, settings and places than what you see in the books. Which if you'd read them, well, again spoilers.
You're trying to argue on limited information of a universe you don't understand and haven't actually read up on. Let's put it this way - if Geralt showed up in NYC, tomorrow's date, that could be in the Witcher Universe. Also in King Arthur's Court. Or Avalon. Again. Sapkowski plays a biiig field. The Witcher Universe isn't limiting in terms of time and place.
Even if it was, what makes you think that CDPR would be limited, considering they have full creative license to those characters? You know what full creative license means, right? Means you can have Geralt killed off by Santa Claus in Atlantis while being chased by Grendel and Fagan from Oliver Twist. Or Dracula - not sure on the licensing terms for Dracaula, though.
Skipping everything else in your post, what is your understanding of these licensing rights vis a vis Cyberpunk based on? Since CDPR and Mike have said zippo on the subject.
So, yeah, again, an Easter Egg with Ciri - totally possible. C2077 is a video game, Ciri is appearing in a video game context...waht could Sapkowski say? Not that he would, of course. His books just the NYT Bestseller list, based on W3. Thing is a gold mine for him.
Technically, no, they can't show up anywhere or anywhen, And I'm not talking about generic multiversal/time travel. Whether or not that occurs within the canon of Witcher is irrelevant to my point. They can't send the characters to the Star Wars universe or Transformers, or DC, or Marvel, or any other property which is owned by a third party. Not even the original author can. A brief Easter Egg, sure, but nothing more. Once again,it comes down to Intellectual Property rights. So even if, for the sake of argument, that Sapowski did give CD Project Red Carté Blanch to do whatever they wanted with his characters (and I highly doubt that, I know I wouldn't), that does not mean that they can take the characters into other franchise properties without the authorization of the owners of said other properties.
Now, as for the deal between CD Project Red and Mike Pondsmith goes. I only know what they have said in interviews and videos where Mike Pondsmith had stated that they were going to make this game fit within the canon of CP 2020's future, that they were going to maintain the integrity of the Cyberpunk world. This would certainly preclude multidimensional travel through magic spells from some other universe. The chances of Mike Pondsmith allowing them to make the game a full-on crossover with Witcher is nil. A brief Easter Egg, sure, but nothing meaningful or extensive—nothing that would actually tie the two universes together. That is because neither CD Project Red nor Sapowski owns the IP for Cyberpunk. Cyberpunk is a completely unrelated franchise with different licensing terms, regardless the specifics of said terms. Think about it. Even the Easter Egg reference to Cyberpunk in Witcher 3 is vague at best. There is nothing that specifically states that it is Night City in the year 2077 that Ciri travelled to. Is it a nod to CP 2077, sure, most likely, but it isn't an explicit cross-over It never specifically connects the two universes in any meaningful fashion.
Bram Stoker's oeuvre is in the public domain now so Geralt could very well fight dracula
It would also most likely result in something atrocious.
It would also most likely result in something atrocious.
Also atrocious.
Man, are there some bad Dracula cross overs.
Most cross overs would suck, at least in CP2077.
They were funny in Fallout, to a point, but Cyberpunk isn't really...satirical.
I mean, it is to a point: Evil Corporations, Rebels With A Cause, Dogfood As Food, etc.
But given its generally "cool" atmosphere, I think an easter egg would have to be handled pretty carefully.
Deckard, Marshal O'Neil, Frank Murphy, of course Case or Molly, these would all be fine, but I think someone like Ciri or even Geralt, other than in the lightest way possible, would disrupt the atmosphere of the game.
In other words, no character similar to them in anything other than the most passing fashion.
Man, are there some bad Dracula cross overs.
Most cross overs would suck, at least in CP2077.
They were funny in Fallout, to a point, but Cyberpunk isn't really...satirical.
I mean, it is to a point: Evil Corporations, Rebels With A Cause, Dogfood As Food, etc.
But given its generally "cool" atmosphere, I think an easter egg would have to be handled pretty carefully.
Deckard, Marshal O'Neil, Frank Murphy, of course Case or Molly, these would all be fine, but I think someone like Ciri or even Geralt, other than in the lightest way possible, would disrupt the atmosphere of the game.
In other words, no character similar to them in anything other than the most passing fashion.
I picture a cameo to be like this: one quest sees you escorting a familiar ashen-haired character with an amusing lack of awareness about the world and its history to meet a masked and hooded character (the "mysterious elven mage" from Witcher 3, though obviously the elven and mage bits wouldn't ever be mentioned in the cameo). Minor complications happen, but you eventually reunite the pair and move on. Those who aren't familiar with the characters see it as your run-of-the-mill sidequest, and those who are get a little added enjoyment understanding why she's so unfamiliar with the world. Maybe both characters are using legal-friendly pseudonyms, even.
Is anyone really suggesting having her teleport around and cast spells willy-nilly? That would be bad writing. CDPR isn't exactly known for bad writing.
Is anyone really suggesting having her teleport around and cast spells willy-nilly? That would be bad writing. CDPR isn't exactly known for bad writing.
That's not an Easter Egg cameo. That's a major interaction and mission. No. An Easter Egg cameo would be a brief appearance as a background character or a mention. Nothing more.
Maybe not, but it would potentially violate one or both of the licensing agreements.
Even better, she DOES use her powers and everyone just yawns and says, "Oh, you got the blink implant? That's so 2070...."
"And, Avalacky, or whatever your name is, those elven ears look rubbery. You should try my Cosmetic Surgeon, he does a really cool Legolas look"
I laughed.
ALSO ACCURATE:
Chromebook 2 has cosmetic ( and often functional) modification packages for Furries, Elves, Orks, Sharkmen, Dragonmen, you name it.
Elf is eb1500 Humanity Cost 0.5D6.
Elf: "This is "classic" fantasy, as made famous by obscure 60's writers and the time honoured art of role-playing games that now forms the basis for braindance and netgames. Be someone who walked out of a novel, or even the Elflines(TM) series"
is the blurb.
Speaking of licensing, it's always amusing to see how often R.Tal uses real-world gear from companies like Colt, Beretta, BMW and Harley-Davidson. No idea if they have a license or not, but it will be interesting to see if the Glock 30 Machine Pistol makes it into the CRPG.
In what universe is a vague allusion that uses zero of someone's actual work legally actionable? If you're anti-cameo, that's fine. Finding weak excuses to rationalize it is just getting irritating, though.
Duh, she's on the run and using them makes her easier to find. LRN 2 INTERNAL CONSISTENCY N00B.
Random thought: the player character could try to explain her lack of awareness about the world with amnesia, at which point she could say something about it running in the family.
You're right. Relish this moment.
She can blink though. Bet there's superfast movement enhancements in CP. If I'd read background material, I'd know the answer to that.
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I knew that! Are you suggesting I don't usually check against background material before posting?