Perspective: How to keep classic video games from getting lost forever
Shoppers walk under the logo of Nintendo and Super Mario characters at an electronics store in Tokyo in 2014. By Beau Brunson Beau Brunson is a senior policy analyst at Consumers’ Research. March 12 at 10:05 AM The copyright protections for more than 50,000 works of literature, music and film expired on Jan. 1. Alas, sometimes the ravages of time ignore U.S. copyright law.
Nintendo’s 2016 throwback to its 1985 console, the NES Classic, has allowed me to share games special to my childhood with my daughter. Unfortunately, the NES Classic plays only a handful of games from the old system. The original game catalogue included more than 700 titles, and I’d love for my daughter to experience some that didn’t make Nintendo’s cut — namely, my childhood favorite, “The Goonies II,” in all its 8-bit synthesized Cyndi Lauper soundtrack glory.
The “House of Mario” has every right to protect its intellectual property, although this litigation raises some questions. In the digital age, how should the preservation of history be balanced with the rights of businesses? Artistic works and games tied to obsolete technology are in a particularly precarious situation. For proof, just peruse the Wikipedia page for “lost films.”
Admittedly, losing “The Goonies II” to the ash heap of history would not be a great tragedy. But it would be a small one, and I would lose the ability to share a small joy of my childhood with my daughter.
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