The Catholic Game Nerd

Should it be legal to download ROMS?  Are video game system emulators legal?  Can I make a backup copy of a game I already own?  I see these questions on the internet and I read about the lawsuits taken against video game pirates.  You can probably find plenty of sites that defend the idea of emulation and ROMS, and there are several sites that will be quick to point out the copyright laws and clauses of game manufacturers.  Is there a gray area?  Is there some relativity to the principle?

The short answer is no.  Game companies do not want their games copied and distributed, in short, because it takes money out of their pockets at some point, either from resale, residuals, or something else.  They go after the people who violate this.  This is true of PC games, arcade games, and video game console games as well.  In fact, many of the newer systems are constantly devising new ways to thwart would be game dumpers and pirates.  The bottom line, however, is that they do not allow copying and they are not afraid to come after you.  

I admit that before I learned about the legal issues surrounding ROMs and emulators, I had MAME32 and several other system emulators.  It was great to relive old memories of arcade games that I just can't find anymore, systems I used to own as a kid, and old games I had never seen before from various systems.  It was a lot of fun until I realized it was illegal.  Of course I looked for loopholes to justify having the emulators and ROMs, but in the end I had to conclude that it was wrong and kill all the files.  It certainly is tempting with so many ROM sites out there offering free downloads, and even places that will build custom cabinets to house an emulating PC and monitor.  

I'll tell you what I would like to see happen.  I would like to see the game manufacturers like Taito, Capcom, Bally Midway, Namco, Nintendo, and more get together and come up with a royalty plan akin to the way iTunes works.  Nintendo is essentially doing that now with their virtual console on the Wii.  You pay a fee, download the game, and play it on an official system emulator that you've paid for (or manufacturers give away as an incentive to rent/buy ROMs).  Apple has the means of encrypting and monitoring purchases.  They are able to keep (at least in general terms) people from stealing songs from others' iPods through their authentication features.  I think it would work.  I for one, would not mind paying a fee to do this.  GameTap is doing something like that now, and they have a great collection.  I'd like to see it continue and become something you can play offline as well.

Games I would like to have as an arcade console in my garage (in no particular order):

Mappy

Pac Man

Donkey Kong

Dragon's Lair

Pengo

Time Pilot

Time Pilot '84

Rolling Thunder

Bionic Commando

That would be a great start.  I'm not sure how I would pay for all of those, nor how I would keep them all turned on.  I wonder what does it cost to restore a video game cabinet, buy a board, and get the game going again?  That is something I want to check on.  I'm sure there are games for sale as well.  I know of very few arcades these days (how sad).  If anybody knows, please let me know.