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Sorry. I don't even HTML. And you should really get off the internet if you don't want spoils. Really. Don't even pony the day before pony if you don't want pony.

@Movie: While the idea of a Pony movie may be interesting, I don't know if you remember Hasbro's last "blockbuster"…

As long it stick only with animation, and no CGI/Live Action crap, it can turn out pretty well.

SO MANY THINGS IN SO LITTLE TIME!

Made for TV movies for a TV series doesn't necessarily spell the end of a series. Hell, Fairly Odd Parents has had quite a few TV movies.

FTFY

@All the stuff

Typing on my phone, so I don't have access to any funny horse pictures with which to bedeck this post in hopes of alleviating some of the crushing sorrow in my heart.

Fighting is Magic got a cease and desist letter. As you can imagine, this is a bit dreadful indeed. Now, of note is the much larger mainstream attention they got than other games, and if I'm not mistaken they were taking donations, but we aren't entirely sure. A few of the members have resigned as well, and all work has been suspened, so the project is not going anywhere fast.

As for Super Smash Ponies, we're blaming it largely on the visibility and cash money from EVO, but obviously things are not all fine and dandy. So, uh, yeah. We don't often swear in the super secret SSP Skype conference.

We're essentially going to cease all promotion of any kind, since EVO seemed to be an issue. That means no EQD submissions, either, and we aren't sure about the YouTube channel. Anyways, I'll be your source of information.

Wow, these are some major updates, I would not put it past you guys to spoil the whole season finale at this point. Well, at this point we might as well continue. Spoilers ho!

Edit: I am sorry to hear that Exudes, I bet the project could have a higher chance of continuing if you are able to convince them Hasbro that this game is a marketing tool, something to attract new viewers and consumers. I wish you and the rest of the developers the best of luck and hopefully you will finish this project.

Kicks the ground


Well..

Fuck.

@Cease and desist letter for FiM

Stuff. Needs. To. Stop. Happening.

The past couple days has had enough pony news for the next half year.

Sigh, all this Hasbro interference has got me worried for Season 4.

@Fighting is magic cease and desist

Wait, so if Fighting Is Magic has ceased "development", does that mean no one will ever see it, or that it won't get any more polished?

If mane6 stopped working on the game, but let it "loose" as-is? Would that be bad?

From what I saw on EqD, yes, it would be bad.

This is what happens when people don't release demos either.

So, since 2013 began, some fan-made youtube videos got taken down, the season 3 spoiler incident, the Bronycon documentary got halted because of piracy, and now a cease and desist notice on the Fighting is Magic game?

Something tells me that we just went past the peak of the brony fandom. All these incidents are going to send a good portion of the fanbase away. Unless Hasbro changes something here, I think it's downhill from here for FIM. I may be wrong, but I wouldn't be too optimistic about it.

@fifths

you know what they say

I'm glad I was already afraid of the FiM cease and desist from a while ago, and my mood is okay to deal with it. I really didn't want it to happen, but I'm afraid it did seem inevitable. I didn't want to look into try to find that leaked prototype from a while ago, as it was unfinished and I wanted to play it when it was ready, but It seems that there will not be another option (assuming that that version was actually playable). I would like for Mapduck to be wrong, but the only real recent good news I've seen was that season 4 has 26 episodes. Some other good news I hope comes in soon, or at the very least, something to soften the bad/ unfavorable stuff we've been seeing.

@cease and desist

I had a lot to say today (documentary, bitching about spoilers), but this news actually makes me sad. Man, I was really looking forward to Fighting is Magic, but I guess I'll never get the chance to play it.

Glad to see that the interenet is still a place one can come to if they wish to voice their uncensored opinion. _

I'M WATCHING YOU RANDOM MAN!

In other news @Cease and Desist:
I won't be supprised if Hasbro finds a flaming bag of horse crap on their doorstep tonight.

First Twilicorn, then Derpy is canned, then the Doco shuts down and now Fighting is magic gets the Disney treatment

Good lord, it's like world actually likes our shitstorms and is doing everything in it's power to make us create more.

I was thinking that Hasbro knew about Fighting is Magic, and that hypothetical threshold of money being made on Hasbro's property without Hasbro's say of where that money went (i.e., donations from EVO) was surpassed.

A game that uses content owned by Hasbro is making money that Hasbro does not have control over. It may not matter that it’s all donations as long as the money is being produced on Hasbro’s content.

It potentially could exceed a certain amount. Some legislation is only enacted at certain amounts of money in the US. For example, some matters go from misdemeanor to felony as soon as it exceeds a certain monetary amount of damage or property/money stolen.

Also note that Hasbro probably doesn’t want to pull the whole C&D thing. They do it to preserve their brand. So as soon as something occurs and it is brought to the attention of the powers that are over copyright and such, then they must defend it. It’s not Hasbro’s decision. I can’t say if this will trigger it, but thousands of dollars from a game using your content seems legally questionable, because you had no control over where that money went.

Alternatively, Hasbro might have just been uncomfortable with how much money Fighting is Magic could generate, copyright protection be damned.

Whatever the reason for the delay, my guess is that the involvement with EVO and the donation is what trigger the order. I knew Hasbro knew about the game well before now. So I'm guessing deh moolah was what made them act.

That's all.

@Verbose
I figured that it was the EVO event too, but for two different possible reasons.

The Money

Within a couple of days, thousands of dollars had been donated to an event that Hasbro would never see the benefit of. Sure, it went to a good cause, but Hasbro wouldn't be able to make tax claims on a single cent of it. When they saw how much it raised, they probably thought that it would be more worthwhile for them if that donation option just plain wasn't there. Bronies could spent that money on more pony merch, and the profits would go straight to them and could be used in whatever way they wanted. If they decided they wanted to do a pony-related donation drive, at least they would get some benefit out of it.


The Representation

After all of that money had been thrown out, maybe someone high-up decided that it would be a good way to get some more free press on pony. Looking at the investor podcast mentioned earlier, they really seemed to enjoy the fact that they got a lot of mostly positive press. Press they didn't have to work for or pay a dime for. With Fighting is Magic, it could bring a whole extra demographic to Hasbro – the more hardcore gamer. Gameloft wasn't really getting the job done. Our somewhat clever demographic figured out how to cheat the system rather quickly, something most little girls couldn't do. The My Little Pony game wasn't bringing in what they expected. With a fighting game that would target mostly teen-to-adult people, that could help get more people interested, and get more people on-board the pony train.

When the Mane6 and EVO decided to stay off the FiM event, that free press quickly dwindled down to near-zero. We might have gotten a good crowd instead of an assurance of a good crowd. With that, if the game wasn't finished in time, it could be an absolute embarrassment for the group. That embarrassment would lower outsiders' opinions on the game, and bleed into their opinions on the show as well. With the sudden publicity beforehand, and less of a pressing timeframe on the Mane6, Hasbro may have decided to just up and cancel the project instead of seeing where it went in order to protect its IP.


Either way, they've made a rather bad mistake. The stress from the Alicorn Twilight, BronyDoc drama, other C&Ds, and just major levels of attack on fanmade materials has put a lot of stress on the community. Poni is still Poni, but I get the feeling this will be the last season for quite a few fans who plan to call it quits. I'm not going to exaggerate it into a doomsday level event like people seem dead-set on doing, but it's definitely a boat-rocker if I've ever seen one.

Brace yourselves

All kinds of crap is coming

Wow, what a week!
Great news: 26 episodes coming for season 4 plus a movie plus Some kind of spin-off thingy.
Awesome!

Bad news: Documentary sabotaged and Fighting is Magic gets C&D'd.
…
…
…

I'm going to agree with Verbs and say that getting in with the EVO charity drive is what sent the game over the top legally.
Hasbro has clearly been aware of the thing for a long time and chose not to act.
The game was even at EVO last year without incident so it isn't even the event itself.
The only significant variable that has changed is the money.
The Mane6 guys did mention that they were aware of the risks but went ahead anyway and it looks like that risk came back to bite them.
They do say that they are making efforts to potentially work with Hasbro's legal department so perhaps all is not quite lost, but certainly a major bow has been dealt.

@Serious Business
If the Mane6 team just and released their current build, yes, that would be bad.
Very bad.
That would be a direct violation of the C&D and would leave the team completely vulnerable to a massive lawsuit for violating a direct court order.
Now, we may see them release a lot of the art assets like the character animations and backgrounds as those would fall under 'fan art' when divorced from an actual, playable game.
But, no.
Unless they work out a deal with Hasbro, any release or 'leak' would be catastrophic for them.

@C&D and legality of release: Releasing any build at this point would be going way beyond the terms of the C&D. Essentially, the C&D says that they must "cease any further use of MY LITTLE PONY property". This includes any art assets, animation, videos (you'll note that all of their videos are removed)… Releasing the current beta version would involve directly violating the C&D as it was mainly used against the game itself, in any build, to not be distributed in any way. Adding any MY LITTLE PONY property is just a failsafe. We may see art, using the fanart excuse like Deadparrot said, but honestly, we might not. Mane6 is going to err on the side of caution here.

On the other hand…

That's completely legal. They've got a working engine, it would just involve putting new art assets and characters in. We may see something from them after all.

@Twilitlord

Slightly ninja'd, but some clarification on that:

Well if Mane6 were taking donations for this game….well you have to defend your trademark/copyright.

It's just business.

I'd be glad to see the engine and stuff get some use, but honestly, it wouldn't be the same, and no, they weren't taking donations for the game, just saying.

I think that all the fan games and the like that have been shut down could probably have had a better approach… Consider this:

Imagine they brought out a working copy of the game early, and it was passed around online before the cease and desist Notice. Then even if they would be cease and desisted, since the cat would be already out of the bag, the game would still be distributed Privately.

From there, a completely different team could come together to complete it without problems. And if the cycle continues, the legal dodging would reach a point that should allow the entire game to be finished.

Unfortunately, Fighting is Magic hasn't done that, so that's… Disappointing.

Edit: Oh, one more thing! Since they can probably still use the engine, all they may have to do is work on that, while other people could add in the Pony Art Materials themselves through modding. That way, Mane 6 Avoids Legal Trouble, and everyone else can still have Pony.,. Maybe.

Why does this sound perfectly plausible.

Why.

Wow, go Faust!
If she's actually offering to provide characters for them, that's pretty amazing!
I'm wondering what she has in mind.
…
Actually, she's been trying to get her Galaxy Girls project out there for quite some time now.
Wouldn't be crazy if teamed up with these guys to do that?
She already has a nice cast of characters and a solid art style, too.
You can even see where she integrated some of her Galaxy Girls ideas straight into MLP.


Just try to tell me that those two aren't Twilight and Dash!
I'm not really sure if she'd be open to having them in a fighting game since it seems like they were designed for more peaceful types of stories, but then again, she was apparently just fine with (maybe even enthusiastic about) the pony version so maybe it is possible.
Yeah, this idea is just wild speculation on my part, but I would love to see that happen!
Galaxy Girls Site

Guys, if I remember correctly, Mane6 explicitly stated on their FAQ page that they wouldn't accept donations due to legal reasons. I'm not sure where all the legal mumbo jumbo comes into play, but I'm fairly confident Mane6 never recieved a dime for development.

Beyond that, though, the post they published on the site says that they're ceasing development until they settle things with Hasbro. So, there's still a chance the project can keep going, since they're talking with lawyers, as long as everyone comes to an agreement.

You're looking at this wrong. At this point, you need to take pony out of the picture and look at them as what they really are: A game development group with a knack for fighting games. Pony is merely what brought them together. It's sad that we won't see Fighting is Magic completed, but they've proven that they can make a tight fighting game, competent and balanced enough to be considered for EVO, the biggest stage for fighting games. They can always make a different IP.

Besides, stating that "it wouldn't be the same" is a little silly, seeing as how every developer makes different games. That's like saying that Valve should only have made Half-Life, or Activision should only make Pitfall. Every developer makes different things, even of the same genre (see: all the Capcom fighters) and same engine (going back to Valve, HL2, TF2, CS:S and GO, and Portal 1 and 2 are all on the Source Engine).

Long story short, if you look at them as game developers instead of bronies, this is a good thing, and besides, actually keeps them employed (or would if they were for profit, at least it would keep them doing what they love).

Still… RIP Fighting is Magic. And to think I only blogged this picture inspired by it a couple days ago…

Sauce

Also, as usual when I post art, an encouragement to follow.

As for donations, Mane6 never received any. But donations were generated off of Hasbro's property during the EVO contest. Hasbro had no say over those generated funds, even though it was made off of their property.

You just said the game wouldn't be the same without ponies, no? That's probably a large part of the reason why Fighting is Magic got the amount of funds it did until they withdrew/were asked to withdraw from the donation drive.

That might have been the legal problem.

Or, you know, how their pastel ponies for a target group of 5-12 year-old girls were beating each other up. Letting that stick around is probably not the "adequate quality control" of the MLP trademark required to keep it.

My post was in response to the donation end of it. Mane6 didn't receive any donation money, but because of Mane6's use of Hasbro's property, donation money was given without Hasbro's discretion.

As for the above, I don't think that's the case. Hasbro likely knew about this game long before now. Which leads me to believe that it's recent donation money that might have been the cause.

Alternatively, you can go with Crazy☾'s explanation. But this feels like a recent decision, and it's one Hasbro can put into action rather quickly. It wouldn't take months to figure it out. Remember they know and watch Equestria Daily. EqD's been amping Fighting is Magic up for a very long time.

If they did make something different, I probably wouldn't be interested. I was interested in Fighting is Magic and now that C&D seems to have quashed that completely, all of my intrest is no longer there.

Yes, I am glad Faust is doing something and that the Mane6 might get to use some of that stuff they've worked on, but it won't be what I was looking forward to.

Also, ponies fighting shouldn't be a problem. Look at the comic and how dark and such that can get at times.

@DeadParrot

Actually I though Lauren might've had something Galaxy Girls related in mind too when I read that statement. And you know what, I think I'd be okay with that.

Of course I don't have much knowledge of the Galaxy Girls, but if the ponies are forced to be thrown out of the window due to law being an asshole, then this might actually be an acceptable solution.

Of course the Galaxy Girls game could never be as popular as Fighting is Magic, but it would be a great homage to the "creator" of Friendship is Magic, and the Mane6 could actually earn money off of it, if they start working with Lauren on a whole new game, since they have the entire working and fixed engine ready and running.


And now if you'll excuse me, I'll just silently fade back into the shadows, and pop back when you least expect it.

Wow…just…wow…

This actually made my eyes water a little. That woman is a beautiful person.

Guys, we need to get the word out. If Lauren and Mane six collaborate to make a game, I'm going to goddamn pay to play it.

@Fighting is magic

Man, I was really looking forward to that. That sucks. At least I still have the leaked demo.

I'd still like to know how Cloudsdale would host the games anyways giving that non-Pegasi wouldn't be able to compete.

Celestia is sitting in her castle alone just thinking "Where the fuck are those damn Friendship reports?!"

1. Magic-up the Earth Ponies and Unicorns with the same spell that the Mane 6 had used on them. Twilight herself said it was an easy spell.

2. Much like on Earth, many events don't occur in the actual city. The host would be Cloudsdale, but many events might be held in nearby cities like Canterlot or Ponyville. All of the opening ceremonies and stuff would probably be held in the host city though.

Good question though.

Wasn't thrilled with the episode, but the ending was pretty fulfilling. I've always wanted to see two episode coincide with each other chronologically, and Polsky incorporated Just for Sidekicks in the ending gag quite well.

So does this mean The actual 'Equestria games' will be a plot point for season 4?!

Here:

@FiM

Damn. Now that's been taken down. :(

Wow. Way to step up, Hasbro. Hilarious episode.
Watching RD hit the window like a bug nearly killed me.

Dont take this as forgiveness for Fighting is Magic, though.

Not willing to place spoilers in your posts is a case of lacking dignity or just being lazy, and various users and mods here have asked others to maintain that dignity for the sake of those that don't want their shit spoiled.

Similarly, I have told before that I would put homoerotic content aimed towards me in the spoiler button if I had to edit a post due to a spoiler being present. It's not a site rule, so I can't really use my mod powers against it, but this works too.

Let's talk about the episode shall we.

Good grief, Pinkie… what have they done to you.

Oh, page get, eh?

Rephrased: I have mixed thoughts on the episode, so instead of that, have some Fluttershy looking bored.