License questions: server side render, i.e. 'streaming' for games.

generalgameplaying

These are currently not high priority questions, but might become at some point in the future.

 

The architecture as hinted at: game clients connect to the game server, which then renders content onto 2D images, which are sent or streamed to the game clients. The distinction is made by the type of hosting. If you understand this, you probably would skip further text until the sentence before (1), if you're short on time.

The game probably is something like an arena fighting game, or an rpg, the client side may have some assets or abilities to render landscape, otherwise most of the time renders vector graphics (for precise physics), possibly paired with  2D-images forming some pseudo 3D. That's probably mostly premade, where necessary with interactive licenses, probably also with other assets from elsewhere. Now comes in the server/streaming side: E.g. after a fight, the server renders the fight for several camera positions in better quality with a lot of effects, while the gameplay rather consists of decision-making, probably round-based. RPG or for another angle a hunting game, could be interested in not revealing the whole map nor where exactly something is lurking in the shadows, thus often stuff will be rendered server-side and sent to the client, especially things that are not nearby. Think like a hunter "this [cow] must be the stag?" Another application could be (rather) ad-hoc backdrop creation on the server side.

Assume transfering of assets is not exactly 1:1, but rather in the game/render-for-game -ready forms, as if you had an interactive license for all used assets and were distributing a standalone game. 

 

So the question always is: "Do i need an interactive license for this?"

(1) Totally unrealistic:  My machine, with Studio and all on it, poses as the server side, which obviously would be nuts for a business case, but will help in clarification of some odds and ends. So in effect, i am streaming rendered 2D images to the game clients somehow.

(2) Fairly realistic: I host the components that use 3D-assets to render to 2D and send to clients on servers i rent. No third party has access to the assets in use (legally), a quality hosting company under appropriate legislation is contracted for the purpose.

(2.5) Quite realistic: Like in case 2, i rent the barebone or VM servers myself, but in addition i contract an administrator to busy about machine security.

(3) Realistic (low budget): I let other gaming-hosters run my software at their cost, maybe for some license fee per user-hour, maybe for free. They might optimize an OS for the purpose and do whatever to run it efficiently within their infrastructure, then they rent out playing time to players. (Authentication servers would probably stay under my control here, but that's another rather unrelated topic.)

 

So my take is: (3) will likely need interactive licenses, though in theory it could be made dependent on the contract. Gaming hosters might tweak on the OS and file system levels, GPU/accelerators, so there will be more personnel who in theory could mess up or do something at all.  (2.5) See case 2 plus more contracting of administrators who could inspect the server like in case 3, just contracted directly by me. Not sure... (2) May be an edge case, not sure, basically the contract question, but with less likelyhood for the hoster publishing server-side data by accident, with no personnel even inspecting customer data on machines, and no extra administrator, so the security for the server pretty much strictly will be in my hands, except for the virtualization and access-interface technologies. (1) Could work without interactive licenses. So it would seem. 

 

DAZ take on this would be interesting too (or say: finally imperative).

Ascania

That would be video streaming and might not require an interactive licence if you do it from your own computer but might do if you use external server infrastructure. You'll have to contact DAZ directly to get their take of it.

FSMCDesigns

if it's an original game (mods are not allowed) and any 3d content from DAZ can be transferred to a users PC, then you need a interactive license. If it is just 2D graphics, then you do not need a license.