Bobby

@DidYour40119 @TheOmniLiberal I don't like something=right wing. Like you said it's how you feel.

@TheOmniLiberal I feel like teaching the IDF how to get away with war crimes is firmly on the right

What I would say if I was a communist:

It's a cultural difference. You and the rest of the world will never see eye to eye on mods. Mods are almost universal in the US and are actively celebrated by a lot of developers. It's player freedom, something that is priority. I get choosing to go along with the creators intention, but that less of a priority compared to player experience.

@snapwith MODを権利だと思っている方々ですから放置安定です

ま、オフライン化を簡単だとか、サーバー公開を簡単だと思っている段階で、もう議論の対象になりえない。

I appreciate you taking the time to reply even though you're heading to work. I’m not trying to claim that “clean-room + MIT license + shut down” are magic words that automatically make everything okay. I agree those arguments alone don’t erase the legal gray area. At the end of the day, the client still belongs to Square Enix, and connecting it to an unofficial server modifies the intended environment. I get why that doesn’t sit well even if no assets are distributed and it’s non-commercial. My point was narrower: technically, the project doesn’t require running the official service post-shutdown (the servers have been offline since April 30, 2024), and it explicitly avoids distributing copyrighted data. That distinction matters for how some people view the severity, but I’m not saying it makes the whole thing clearly legal or risk-free. Laws on reverse engineering, client modification, and interoperability vary by country, and past private server cases have shown that companies can still push back successfully in some situations. On the Final Fantasy precedent you mentioned: Square Enix has taken action in the past, especially around FFXIV (takedowns or pressure on certain mods, data-mining, or fan sites that crossed into harassment/defamation). For older titles like FFXI, there have been DMCA notices against streamers of private servers, but the emulator code itself (when written clean-room without using official assets) has generally stayed in a grayer zone — companies often target distribution of assets or monetized servers more directly than pure preservation efforts. Those cases show enforcement is possible, but they don’t always treat every fan server the same way. I only wish for things to work out legally and respectfully toward the creators’ rights. At the same time, I hope future work in the industry creates better infrastructure and legal clarity so these situations aren’t so messy. Things like clearer end-of-life policies, optional offline modes where feasible, or frameworks for preservation (similar to what Stop Killing Games is pushing for) could reduce the need for these gray-area revivals while still protecting IP. Preservation desire and acceptability are related but separate, like you said — I’m not mixing them to force a “gray” label. The core tension is real: IP control exists for a reason, yet completely abandoning a paid experience without any fallback creates frustration on the player side. At the end of the day, would you find it acceptable if the SE said it was ok or is it a hard line? Thanks again for the thoughtful reply. Safe travels to work

I get that you’re carefully explaining the technical side — clean-room, MIT license, all that. But jumping from that to “it’s less of a problem” is quite a stretch. At the end of the day, what you’re doing doesn’t really change: you’re taking a client owned by スクウェア・エニックス and making it run in an environment it was never intended to run in. “Not distributing assets,” “non-commercial,” “the service is shut down” — these are all common arguments, but they’re not exactly magic words that make things okay. Private server cases in the past didn’t really accept those points either. Also, are you not aware that similar things have already happened with Final Fantasy, where there were takedown requests and legal pressure applied against private servers? I understand the desire to preserve things, but that’s a separate issue from whether it’s actually acceptable to do. Right now it just feels like those are being mixed together to make it look more “grey” than it really is. And if “the company didn’t preserve it” becomes a justification for users to rebuild it freely, then what exactly is the point of IP control in the first place? Anyway, after going this far into the discussion, bad timing — I’m heading to work now, so my replies will be slow. I’ll get back to you later.

あくまでオンライン用のサーバのふるまいを模倣したソフトという理解で、こういったプロトコルのリバースエンジニアリングや再現はまず違法ではない（Steamの任天堂製ゲームコントローラサポートもそう）。公開されてるリポジトリの説明でもゲームデータのコピーは一切ない。 x.com/g_a_man2/statu…

No, the private server project (lunar-tear) does not require or use the original NieR app after the service ended. Facts: The game servers shut down completely on April 30, 2024. There is no official way to log in or play anymore — the app itself can't connect to anything. Lunar-tear is a completely separate, fan-made server emulator written from scratch using clean-room reverse engineering. It only emulates the backend protocols so the old client can talk to it. You still need your own copy of the original game client files (the APK you downloaded while the game was live). The project explicitly does not distribute any copyrighted game assets, binaries, or master data. The code is original work released under MIT license. Using the old app with a fan server is technically a modified setup, but it's not "worse than using a copy" in the way you mean — because the official service no longer exists. The project even includes a clear legal disclaimer stating it's non-commercial, not affiliated with Square Enix, and for preservation/research purposes only. I'm not saying this makes it 100% legal everywhere (laws vary by country), but it's not the same as running the game while the official servers were still up. The bigger issue for many people is that Square Enix shut the game down with no offline mode and no asset release, so the full story became inaccessible. That's why these revival projects exist in the first place. I am not for piracy. It is wrong. I'm just presenting the facts of the situation. I am a huge NieR fan and would have loved to play the game and learn the lore myself, but I missed the opportunity. That being said I will not pirate. I hope a situation can be developed for this to work out legally. Respect to you for caring about the IP rights though. Do you think companies should be required to offer some kind of offline version or data dump when they end service on a paid/live game? That is what I hope for people like me that missed the opportunity.

@chihirobelmo これってサービス終了してもまだダウンロードできるニーアのアプリを使うんでしょ？ コピーを使うよりタチ悪くない？

Hopefully better expectations and communication will bring about a solution. That is why I do advocate for legislation that can put together plans for end of service where the company neither has to give up IP at end of service as well as not having to invest in perpetual servers and can hand over service to the community to operate. This is a win win for the company. All can be achieved through legal means.

@ConserRobert @TK14349168 この問題に関して、ゲームメーカー公式から依頼を受けた委託運営という形ならば海賊版に当たらないので、良いのではないか？と考えています。 まずは日本のゲームメーカーにこの話を知ってもらう必要がありますがね。

アメリカはあれほど巨大な市場があるのに原作者に金が落ちないから日本のコンテンツに蹂躙されてる

@sasori_yokuneru @GenosPapa That's great to hear!

@ConserRobert @GenosPapa わかるよ。 正規ルートで遊びたいファンもたくさにるし、一部の人が熱くなりすぎてるのにはウンザリしちゃうよね。 私自身、君みたいな人がいる事を日本の人たちにも伝えられると良いなって思ってる。私は色んなファンと交流して同意できなくとも理解し合えたと思う。 私はこの経験大切にしたいね。

Japan sees pirating unobtainable products as wrong but is fine selling Doujin which requires a relaxed concept of ownership for intellectual properties. The West would see Doujin as “bootleg” and argue it’s wrong and only the company should profit from the intellectual property

@karanohito01 @WildWiredWeasel @Estusplash It's probably the same for you with US media, so you can emphasize. US media is a far bigger industry than Japan after all.

@WildWiredWeasel @ConserRobert @Estusplash ぼくらは第一言語で視聴できるっていう恵まれた環境に生きているから、必要な人の実情に思いを馳せられないっていう問題がありますね

情熱的なニーアコミュニティ (公式がコンテンツを続けられるようにお金を払う情熱はないが、死体を墓から掘り起こす情熱だけはあるコミュニティ)

Sorry. I thought that's what you meant. I almost never post on this app but I started spamming like a weirdo. I just wanted people to look at it more thoughtfully. I am a Nier super fan but I was only introduced to the series after the game ended life. But I always try to get my Nier content the right way.

@ConserRobert @GenosPapa 的外れって事はないと思うよ。 とても真摯な態度だよ。 そしてこれは日本のファンに対しても、海外のファンに対してもだけどさ、 なんていうか、一旦私たち落ち着いて、お茶でも飲んで話さない？って思うのよ。 その点君は冷静でとてもいいと思うよ。ただ、色んな所に貼ってるから、びっくりするよ。

@sasori_yokuneru @GenosPapa Any thoughts on it. Do you agree or anything come off base?

@ConserRobert @GenosPapa いいよ！内容はとても良かったから。

@sasori_yokuneru @GenosPapa My apologies if it was annoying.

@ConserRobert @GenosPapa 君めちゃいっぱい主張してるね。

There are many US companies that took the service approach and found success at reducing piracy. There were European piracy groups that were eating up out music industry and other media types in the early 2000s. The solution was companies like spotify and itunes, netflix and steam. These offered superior service in a legal way and it all but eliminated wide scale piracy

@WildWiredWeasel @ConserRobert @Estusplash ぼくたちの考え方とは違うけど、一考する価値のある話だと思います

@AstellarDiabell @qooniangniang I would allow my argument to stand on its own merit. He is arguing the there is an opertunity cost to this project. It's an extremely weak argument because opertunity cost can be applied to just about anything. Youtuber and streamer play throughs would fall under his umbrella.

@qooniangniang @ConserRobert A lot of people play gacha games entirely F2P especially in the west. "Whaling" (spending a lot of money on free games) is generally seen as a bad idea. The point is a lot of players of free gacha games never spend money on them anyway so there's no revenue loss for them.

I see the opportunity-cost argument — that players spending time on the private server might otherwise buy or play other official Square Enix games. It's an interesting point in theory. But for NieR Re[in]carnation, it's pretty weak. The game was always niche. It hit about 15 million downloads early on, but it struggled with revenue for most of its life and was shut down precisely because it wasn't meeting expectations. Two years after shutdown in 2026, with no major new NieR content announced, the idea that a small-scale, opt-in private server is meaningfully pulling players and money away from current Square Enix titles feels like a stretch. Most people coming back to it now are nostalgic fans who already played it years ago. They're not suddenly going to start spending heavily on other active gacha games just because this one stays dead. The revival is tiny and requires real effort to access — it's not competing with anything profitable on a large scale. That said, I'm still not justifying piracy. Unauthorized copying of active, officially available media is wrong and often entitled. Creators deserve support for their work. This specific situation with a fully abandoned game just feels like a moral gray area for many people, especially when the only alternative is the entire story becoming completely inaccessible. The views on this clearly differ a lot between communities.

@ConserRobert プレイして失ったユーザーの時間はメーカーにとって損失を与えるのに充分な時間だと思います。復活しなければ他のゲームを購入してプレイする時間になっていた可能性があるわけですからね。

Servers have been shut down for years. You can't buy anything anymore. I'm not advocating for piracy, but there is a disconnect on the actual stakes at hand here. It's the gotcha game Nier Reincarnation. This whole drama swelled up after some project began to open up local servers so individuals are already own the game can go back and play it again. As it stands now, nobody is profiting. While it is true piracy is wrong, I would say this one of the least damaging cases there are.

@Agushera04 課金なかったっけ？

I get Matthew 5:44 — love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. We must obey that. But Jesus also said: “I send you out as sheep among wolves. Be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” (Matt 10:16) He warned of wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matt 7:15), flipped tables, and called out deceivers. Paul adds: “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers.” (2 Cor 6:14) Jesus loved deeply, but He never formed peaceful partnerships with ideologies that oppose Him and slaughter His followers. Loving enemies means praying and sharing the gospel — not lowering our guard or pretending the wolf isn’t there. We can love Muslim people without yoking ourselves to Islam. Jesus brought grace AND truth. We need both. Wake up.

What is behind the increasing simping for Islam on the right? It's truly bewildering

@WildWiredWeasel @karanohito01 @Estusplash I agree with you solutions.

@karanohito01 @ConserRobert @Estusplash The solution, especially in the modern day, is establishing and publicizing legitimate channels of payment. You will see piracy decline enormously when that happens.

@karanohito01 @WildWiredWeasel @Estusplash Are you asking this guy or me?

@WildWiredWeasel @ConserRobert @Estusplash 凄い哲学的に見えるけど、ちょっと意味が分からない 噛み砕いてもらえると助かるな

I get where you are coming from and I think that is a good cope. You must factor in the precedent that would set. The "no lost profit = no harm" logic would justify a lot of things that are clearly wrong. If a store has unsold inventory sitting in the back that isn't generating revenue today, does that mean I can just walk in and take it because "they aren't losing money on it"? No — because the store still owns it and has the right to control what happens to it. The same goes for abandoned or "dead" games. The fact that the company stopped supporting the servers doesn't automatically transfer ownership or the right to copy to fans. The IP still belongs to them. Taking and distributing copies (or enabling copies via private servers) is still unauthorized use of their property. Piracy requires something of value being taken without permission — and the value here is the creator's exclusive control over their own work. That's why copyright law treats unauthorized copying as infringement, and why many people (including courts and lawmakers) describe it as a form of theft. It's not "nothing of value" just because the owner isn't actively selling it at that second. If we accept the logic that "no current profit = no piracy," then almost any unauthorized copying of older or niche works would suddenly become okay — which undermines the entire incentive to create in the first place.

@ConserRobert @karanohito01 @Estusplash If they aren't making money on it, they aren't losing money on it. If they are losing no profits, there is no piracy. Piracy requires something of value being lost. If there is nothing of value being offered, there is no piracy to begin with.

@kengakusha1 My tribe, the Choctaw, are just white basically at this point. We still have our own tribal nation but we run it like a good business and make money.

今俺が会話できているアメリカのみんなはネイティブ・アメリカンではないよな？ 俺はネイティブジャパニーズなんだ 日本の歴史は長い だから何度も侵略はあった 戦争に勝ったり負けたりした でもネイティブジャパニーズは残り 今のところ大半の国民がネイティブジャパニーズだ ネイティブ・アメリカンは侵略され繁栄はしなかった 俺たちは同じように日本の原住民なんだ だからこそ独自の文化を守れたし 今も世界のみんながその文化に注目する 逆に俺はネイティブ・アメリカンの民族的な文化に神秘性を感じるんだよ 何か惹かれているんだ アメリカで移民が成功したのは 侵略者の勝ちを意味する つまり日本に来た中国人やムスリムが日本人を壊滅させることと変わらない 日本人はそれを成功と思わない それだけの事だ