Gamedev

There are accusations that a necessary part of the the Homebrew Channel uses code stolen from Nintendo. It uses libogc, which is the C Library for Wii and Gamecube homebrew. The allegations say libogc uses either code from the Nintendo SDK, or code decompiled from games using it. However, some people are claiming this isn't true. However as of right now this message remains on The Homebrew Channel's GitHub page:

This repository is archived and will not accept any further contributions.

Like most Wii homebrew software, this software depends on libogc. After development of The Homebrew Channel had already started, we discovered that large portions of libogc were stolen directly from the Nintendo SDK or games using the Nintendo SDK (decompiled and cleaned up). We thought that at least significant parts of libogc, such as its threading implementation, were original, and reluctantly continued to use the project while distancing ourselves from it.

It has recently been revealed that the threading/OS implementation in libogc is, in fact, stolen from RTEMS. The authors of libogc didn't just steal proprietary Nintendo code, but also saw it fit to steal an open source RTOS and remove all attribution and copyright information. This goes far beyond ignorance about the copyright implications of reverse engineering Nintendo binaries, and goes straight into outright deliberate, malicious code theft and copyright infringement.

The current developers of libogc are not interested in tracking this issue, finding a solution, nor informing the community of the problematic copyright status of the project. When we filed an issue about it, they immediately closed it, replied with verbal abuse, and then completely deleted it from public view.

For this reason, we consider it impossible to legally and legitimately compile this software at this point, and cannot encourage any further development.

The Wii homebrew community was all built on top of a pile of lies and copyright infringement, and it's all thanks to shagkur (who did the stealing) and the rest of the team (who enabled it and did nothing when it was discovered). Together, the developers deceived everyone into believing their work was original.

Please demand that the leaders and major contributors to console or other proprietary device SDKs and toolkits that you use and work with do things legally, and do not tolerate this kind of behavior.

If you wish to check for yourself, for example, you can compare this function in libogc to this function in a really old version of RTEMS. While the code has been simplified and many identifiers renamed, it is clear that the libogc version is a direct descendant of the RTEMS version. It is not possible for two code implementations to end up this similar purely by chance.

This is a news article about their program. If you've got a game on the way, here's a direct link to their submission form: https://withvendetta.com/featured/settlethescore/

I don't imagine a lot of this crowd is into Roblox, but better to know than not I figure. Not like I'm drowning this place in posts lately.

Members of the Steam Business Team answer developers' questions about registering for and getting the most out of Steam Next Fest.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/27833985

Game Rant is offering to answer questions, and I figure hobbyists/indie devs who may want to try to get their games on the Switch 2 may have questions!

Ask any questions in their comments section on the linked story!

The article provides more context, but their press release says they're joining a CWA union that Microsoft already recognizes: https://cwa-union.org/news/releases/activision-user-research-workers-overwhelmingly-vote-form-union-cwa

That should give them negotiating power, despite not seeing how many people are unionizing here.

“That [trailer] was done by our marketing department,” lead game designer Matt Kohl told Aftermath. “They took our assets and then ran them through an AI to animate them. That was marketing. Development team did not do that, and there has been no AI use in development of Aquatica.”

It appears to be a brand for Dring to do a Substack, them to do a podcast, and an annual industry-focused live event.

https://www.thegamebusiness.com/

But hey, I like them both, so I'm signing up.

Full stream:
https://www.youtube.com/live/kEXe913VjSs

IGF 2025 Winners Roundup:
https://youtu.be/qNQnW7cbYsw

2025 Independent Games Festival Winners

GDCA 2025 Winners Roundup:
https://youtu.be/BLzWLIk0_e8

2025 Game Developers Choice Awards Winners

Congratulations to the winners and finalists!
(Now with better formatting as I'm not on my phone writing from YouTube videos!)

Apparently the UVW-CWA is passing out pamphlets at GDC: https://uvw-cwa.org/news/read-uvw-cwa-gdc-2025-zine

At a Glance

Today Unity is rolling out its roadmap for Unity 6.1 and beyond, beginning a new era for the engine maker.

The company is still recovering from massive backlash to a proposed 'runtime fee' in 2023.

CEO Matthew Bromberg and CTO Steve Collins say the vision for the engine—and the company—is the plan for the future.

Hey, I am looking for your feedback to improve the portal and the atmosphere it bring to the room ! ☺️

cross-posted from: https://pawb.social/post/21347149

The post is a summary and context of a SAG-AFTRA press release: https://www.sagaftra.org/member-message-video-game-strike-update

A great read about the effort and time put into Balatro from its developer. Saw it linked elsewhere, and thought people here might appreciate a look at just how long it really took to get it right.