Sims and Second Life

[Scroggs]

I have been wondering, is it possible to import and convert meshes from the Sims 2 and Sims 3 games to second life?
I know the prims in the Sims are much smaller than the ones found on SL and I am in love with some of the hair, outfits, and objects on the Sims and would love to flaunt them on my SL accounts. If anyone knows, please get back with me.

[Alicia Sautereau]

Like anyone is going to teach you how to rip games and edit for importing

That`s what we call a content thief...

[Cerise Sorbet]

Technically, yes, it's possible to move Sims assets into standard formats. Legally, you'll need permission from EA and/or mod makers to bring that stuff into Second Life. Keep in mind who is running Linden Lab these days, before assuming nobody will notice.

Plus, the imported assets won't necessarily fit the SL avatar so well, so you'd have to rework them anyway.

[Medhue Simoni]

Actually, it's not content theft at all. The person bought the game. There are 2 types of licenses that most people allow for. The first 1 is a license to use the content. The 2nd is a license to sell the content. I would think that uploading a Sims mesh into SL is still just using it. Now, if the person was to sell the items, than that would obviously be wrong. Of course, these are just my opinions.

[Alicia Sautereau]

Yes there is a difference, but it`s SL....

[Scroggs]

Its not the objects created from EA. There are meshes created for the Sims 2 and Sims 3 that were created for custom content.
I create my own custom content for the Sims 2 and I was wondering if it would be possible to import my works into SL.

[Cerise Sorbet]

There is a twist, the public performance/display element, that is inherent to Second Life. The architecture also redistributes those models to everyone who sees them. It's far far away from personal use on a home computer.

[Marigold Devin]

If you've used external software with which to import mesh items created for custom content in Sims, you can in theory import it via the external software into Second Life, but as someone must have paid for that custom content, and therefore the exclusivity of that product, you do, I would have thought, run the tiniest risk of being real life sued for breach of contract!

However, if you tweak the design enough for it to still potentially be desirable enough to put on sale in Second Life, and so it does not look like an absolute copy of the original, that's the way around it.

It's how expensive designer clothing gets from catwalk to High Street stores after all.

[Cerise Sorbet]

If they are models you made yourself, you can use the regular SL tutorials to save them, then upload to Second Life. You don't have to export them from the Sims because you have the originals. If you only made texture mods or something like that, then you need EA's models to put them on.

[Scroggs]

Okay thank you for your help, but my question is that if the mesh is available to anyone via the internet and able to download the mesh, edit, color, and customize the content as they wish, would it still be a legal matter?
I do not currently plan on selling any imports, it is for personal use.

[Marigold Devin]

If you custom made something for someone in a game/place/world/real life, and the pattern for the custom-made item was left somewhere on the internet, by yourself, with the clear information to anyone who might happen to find the website that they could legally take your pattern and make it their own by altering the shape, colour, etc., of it, it would not make it legal to do so if the person who paid you to custom make the item, as part of their agreement with you, expected the custom made item to be a one-off, for them only.

You could be sued for that.

However, if what you are saying is that the mesh is available to anyone, because it is a general piece of design, put out into the public domain for anyone to tweak as they will (as with the Second Life viewer code, which has indeed been used to create many third party viewers, some approved, some not, but that's a whole other kettle of fish), then its all legal and above board, and the mesh/design is legally available to all to do with as they please.

 

[Scroggs]

Thankyou for clarifying this for me (:

[LepreKhaun]

If you lack explicit permission from the owner of the copyright for something you're thinking about, you should seek the advice of a lawyer.

 

If you ever do stand before a judge, saying you were acting on the advice from an internet forum will not help much...

[Chic Aeon]

Just wanted to say thanks for the chuckle on that.

 

In my experience, if you have to ask if it is legal then the likelihood is that it is not. Always best to err on the side of caution. If you build it from scratch with your own textures you can be sure it is legal :matte-motes-inlove:

 

In this vein (sort of) I bought a freebie on the Marketplace the other day. Not what I was searching for -- we all know how that goes. When I unpacked the free car it was very nice BUT the textures were all mirrored and some parts had no mapping at all and wouldn't take a texture. I assumed it was ripped from another game but since I had no evidence I didn't flag it.

Very bad karma. Just sayin'

[Codewarrior Congrejo]

I am just wondering a bit if you created the content for The Sims ™ you should have already a bit knowledge about 3D modeling, as well as knowing that you can take what you made 100% by 'yourself' into any platform that allows 3D models to be uploaded.

In this case you should also already be aware of that not every type of model will work 100% for every game engine, due to the fact that each of them has their own requirements / needs.

Generally for SL the typical construct of The Sims hair models won't work well, because they are created for flat layered polygons, and alpha texture layering which doesn't work well in SL due to the Z-Sorting problem.

Also rigged and weighted body models or clothings would have to be redone to 1 ) fit to the SL avatar and its topology, as well as 2) to be weighted / rigged newly to the SL armatures (male / female).

Normal maps and specular maps will be usable in some time in the future, but right now they are still in testing phase.
And other map types then Diffuse (and later on normal, and specular) are not available for use in the SL material.

However for every piece of custom content you may have 'bought' from some creator, you will still need their full allowance and permissions to 'use' (even if not planned to sell this) these models and textures outsides of The Sims ™. It's up to the creator of the item if they will allow you to do so, or if they find that they don't want their models to be reused in another engine or possibly even altered and edited to be used in here (or even sold).

For your own models you will have to make sure to redo them as much as needed to fit the requirements for this engine (regarding the above notes).

To answer your latest question: but my question is that if the mesh is available to anyone via the internet and able to download the mesh, edit, color, and customize the content as they wish, would it still be a legal matter?

I guess you are refering to models and mods made for the The Sims ™. Which are 'not' made by you, and have been downloaded as freebie for The sims.

Copyright and Intelectual Property Rights also apply if someone offers you content 'freebies' to be downloaded and altered for a certain game. You will have to read their TOS (terms of service) or their permissions carefully, and possibly in best case contact them and ask them for permission to take these models into another gaming platform. Especially due to the fact, that you will upload these models here by yourself being marked as the 'creator' and the models need to be changed in quite some ways that will exceed mostly the regular 'customizing such as : recoloring / retexturing'. If they should give you the permission to do so then it's fine.

But be aware that some may request to be named visually as original creator, or may even ask some money in order for giving you permission to reuse the models in another platform or even sell those items under your name.

In case you were talking about models you made 100% yourself and planning to offer them for free download and customisation - well that is completely up to you what you do with your own models and creations. You can offer them under which ever conditions you wish sold or free. (but as said above - this does not apply for content other people have created)

[Malanya]

 I love the Sims!