Games made before I was born whose copyright won't expire until long after I'm dead. They ought to be public domain by now. In fact, games should have a shorter copyright term since they're harder to preserve and less valuable over time. I still have a box legally-purchased of Zork games (CDROM editions) and manuals and a copy of Planetfall here, but should I feel any shame about pirating them? I don't think I should…
> Games made before I was born whose copyright won't expire until long after I'm dead. Just like Mickey Mouse or movies from the 1960s? Or the Lord of the Rings books? > In fact, games should have a shorter copyright term since they're harder to preserve and less valuable over time. I don't understand how that's an argument for the length of the copyright either way? If I draw with water-colours on a fallen maple lea…
One argument might be that, compared to other media, video games' continued availability may be particularly dependent on whether or not they become public domain.
If video game hardware quickly becomes out of date and old games lose their economic value quickly, then the copyright holder may not be motivated to put in the effort to keep the game available.
However, an archivist motivated by artistic or historical rather than economic value may still be willing to put the effort into keeping the game available if it is in the public domain.