5 ms·

Is it known why this response comes out now, 2-3 years after the “DOOM Eternal OST Open Letter” to which it responds? Waiting until any related NDAs time out?

wilsonnb3 4y ago
Mick says in the statement that he feels like he has exhausted every other avenue of addressing the Open Letter and lack of payment for all of the music used in the game, this is pretty much a last resort that he didn't want to have to publish.
Centigonal 4y ago
Mick goes into detail about how he's been pursuing a settlement, and resorted to posting this after years of stalling from Zenimax.
nvarsj 4y ago
Seems obvious to me. Making a public statement is always going to be the option of last resort for a professional. Seems like Mick did everything he could and finally did this as his last ditch attempt to at least rescue his reputation.
- mywittyname 4y ago
  I'm surprised that he can't issue a DCMA takedown of Doom Eternal.
  - enneff 4y ago
    The ownership of those works is certainly a complex issue. Contractually ownership would have been assigned to id, but what happens for unpaid work? What about works in progress? Depends on the contract terms and the interpretation of those terms. Sounds like a lot of grey areas, and there can be significant repercussions for making spurious DMCA claims.
    - hnick 4y ago
      As an amateur it sounds a bit like copyright with a lien or caveat attached. They legally own it now, but can't legally use it since it was rejected and not paid for. It's not as clear cut as if I personally ripped BFG Division to put in my indie game.
    - realusername 4y ago
      The ugly truth is that DMCA claims are mainly a weapon against smaller creators, you can't realistically use it against big companies in reality.
filoleg 4y ago
The post explains it quite well, I suggest reading it. I know it is a long read, but there is zero fluff or wasted space on much personal musings in there, all pure factual content. Tl;dr: very messy legal proceedings and multiple settlement offers (including a proposed gag order that ZeniMax's legal team was trying to force upon Gordon) are the reason for why. And those legal negotiations started less than 2 years ago, after the release of the game. And throughout that whole post, it is evident that Gordon (despite being wronged multiple times in a row) pretty much kept giving them second, third, fourth, etc. chances to resolve it amicably, as he believed it was in the best interests of the projects ultimately succeeding. Only to get taken advantage of and being stabbed in the back multiple times by the same person he decided to give those extra chances and forgiveness to.

wilsonnb3 4y ago

Mick says in the statement that he feels like he has exhausted every other avenue of addressing the Open Letter and lack of payment for all of the music used in the game, this is pretty much a last resort that he didn't want to have to publish.

Centigonal 4y ago

Mick goes into detail about how he's been pursuing a settlement, and resorted to posting this after years of stalling from Zenimax.

nvarsj 4y ago

Seems obvious to me. Making a public statement is always going to be the option of last resort for a professional. Seems like Mick did everything he could and finally did this as his last ditch attempt to at least rescue his reputation.

mywittyname 4y ago
I'm surprised that he can't issue a DCMA takedown of Doom Eternal.
- enneff 4y ago
  The ownership of those works is certainly a complex issue. Contractually ownership would have been assigned to id, but what happens for unpaid work? What about works in progress? Depends on the contract terms and the interpretation of those terms. Sounds like a lot of grey areas, and there can be significant repercussions for making spurious DMCA claims.
  - hnick 4y ago
    As an amateur it sounds a bit like copyright with a lien or caveat attached. They legally own it now, but can't legally use it since it was rejected and not paid for. It's not as clear cut as if I personally ripped BFG Division to put in my indie game.
  - realusername 4y ago
    The ugly truth is that DMCA claims are mainly a weapon against smaller creators, you can't realistically use it against big companies in reality.

filoleg 4y ago

The post explains it quite well, I suggest reading it. I know it is a long read, but there is zero fluff or wasted space on much personal musings in there, all pure factual content. Tl;dr: very messy legal proceedings and multiple settlement offers (including a proposed gag order that ZeniMax's legal team was trying to force upon Gordon) are the reason for why. And those legal negotiations started less than 2 years ago, after the release of the game. And throughout that whole post, it is evident that Gordon (despite being wronged multiple times in a row) pretty much kept giving them second, third, fourth, etc. chances to resolve it amicably, as he believed it was in the best interests of the projects ultimately succeeding. Only to get taken advantage of and being stabbed in the back multiple times by the same person he decided to give those extra chances and forgiveness to.