So level with me, is it legal to run or play on a rogue server? However, the verbiage is written in such a way that running or playing on a rogue server meets the criteria here. It’s important to note again here that nothing in Section 8 explicitly calls out setting up or playing on a rogue server. That means that just by using the software, you are just as much in violation as if you set up the server yourself. Most clauses contain both “Use” and “Provide” verbiage. What if I’m just playing, not actually hosting the server? The whole section can interpreted such that player-run rogue servers violate pretty much all of it. While the EULA doesn’t explicitly “you cannot create a private server,” it does say, “You may not, without signed written consent from a legally authorized representative of NCSoft do” a list of things, including “se any NCsoft IP right except as permitted under this agreement” and “se, or provide others with, any service related to the game.” Section 8 of the EULA, titled “PROHIBITED AND IRREPARABLY HARMFUL ACTIVITIES CONCERNING NCSOFT,” proceeds to list a whole bunch of things that running a private server violates. What does the EULA say about emulators, private servers, and what we’re now calling rogue servers?Įxplicitly? Absolutely nothing. So you aren’t bound by the EULA, but you are in violation of copyright and IP law.
#HOW TO PLAY CITY OF HEROES CCG SOFTWARE#
It’s virtually impossible to legally acquire the client software now the only way to get it without picking up ancient disks on Ebay involves copyright violation of some form. Well, in such a case, you aren’t bound by the EULA, but playing the game would require you to acquire the client software in order to enjoy. OK, but what if I never played City of Heroes when it was running and never agreed to the EULA?
That’s not going to happen any time soon, so NCsoft wins. The only other way that this agreement does not apply is if a judge steps in an explicitly says it doesn’t. The agreement is in effect until NCsoft says otherwise. There’s no provision in here suggesting that “if the game dies,” or “if Cersei is really a bobcat stapled to a gopher in disguise,” the EULA no longer applies. “Duration – Unless modified or amended by NCsoft, this agreement and its provisions shall remain in effect.”įull stop. All references to sections can be found in that document.ĭoes the NCsoft EULA for City of Heroes even still apply if the game is dead?
If you are concerned about the wrath of NCsoft, abstinence actually is the best policy.įor this article, I used the September 2011 version of the EULA found here. And we don’t advocate that you do anything illegal. Nothing here (or anywhere else on this website) should be treated as legal advice.
#HOW TO PLAY CITY OF HEROES CCG SERIES#
Today we are going to explore the NCsoft EULA for City of Heroes as we try to answer the question: Can you play on a City of Heroes private server without getting in trouble? We’ll answer our question in a way the original Superhero, “Rhetoric Man” Socrates, would appreciate: by answering a series of other questions.īefore we start: Lawful Neutral is an opinion column, and my interpretations of the NCsoft EULA are just that, an opinion. What that effectively means is that in a matter of weeks or months, gamers around the global could have a functioning – but rogue – CoH server available to play on.īut should you play on it is an entirely different question from can you play on it. But yes, the source code, more or less, for CoH has been released to the wild. Also exhausting (just ask our Editor-in-Chief, who’s not getting much sleep right about now!). The amount of drama and articles generated over the last 72 hours about this game is pretty damn impressive.
Not bad for a game that’s been shut down for six and a half years. You know what’s the real bee’s knees right now? City of Heroes. Hey gang! Welcome back for another thrilling adventure in Lawful Neutral, the column where I spend my evenings reading EULAs until my eyes bleed so that you don’t have to.