That photo is Bethesda official, from their Twitter page. You can see a map if you look closely.

Hmm. Not gonna go screaming "FALLOUT 4 CONFIRMED!!!11!1!1!!!!!!!!!1!!1!1!11!!1!!!!!!" here but, maybe it isn't a hoax after all. Here's hoping

No, it wouldn't. If they shut it down, then in order to protect their trademark, they'd have to start shutting down fan sites, otherwise anyone could easily prove that they abandoned their trademark by not moving against sites that are violating it much more severely.


It's a standard rock texture, not a map. The things you point at aren't even aligned.

Yeah okay.

Actually zoom in and examine the patterns. The map is almost ridiculously noticeable. Instead of glancing at it and going LOLNO.

Then look at the comparison photo where the person enhances the colors to make the map even more visible.

Fan sites aren't registered at the Zenimax adress in the whois and pretend to be a FO4 teaser.

But this hypes people up for nothing at all. Shouldn't they at least be saying daily on their twitter "no it's NOT OURS don't get hyped" or something like that?

Yep that's the easiest solution to shut them up. If they aren't wanted. It worked for the Prey 2 hoax for Bethesda.

I've examined it closely and there is only a rock texture there that resembles a map. A rock texture like any below:

https://www.google.de/search?q=free+rock+textures&safe=off&espv=210&es_sm=122&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=UkacUqDVOImG4ASP54DgAw&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=1366&bih=652

Grab any of these images, desaturate, then fiddle with the settings until you get something vaguely map like. With enough time anything can be construed to resemble a map.


Anything can be put in WhoIs, especially on GoDaddy, which doesn't require any sort of verification. Furthermore, Reddit digged up the original WhoIs data for the server, registered by a random Polish guy using an address with Warsaw and putting ZeniMax Media Inc. in the company field. Which is, y'know, fraudulent, since ZeniMax Media is not registered in Poland.


Why would they shun free publicity?

Argh, again with this bs. This [censored] hypes people up for Boston, Vault 119 and all that, with characters from previous games. Imagine people's faces when Todd tells everyone we're going back to CW.

See you support my argument here if it's fraudulent then something has to be done. To quote you:

and doing such a thing isn't typical fansite behaviour.

And I can imagine them saying next, "Surprise! that site was a hoax; we had nothing to do with it, but it was sure fun to watch the excitement it caused!"

_{*To those [speed readers] that may need it mentioned, this is a semi-serious guesstimate/joke, and not confirmation of any hoax statement.}

You mean the red, swollen faces bursting with endorphin flowing into the brain?


No, I don't support your argument. I'm pointing out that a. anything can be put in WhoIs and b. the original WhoIs had nothing to do with ZeniMax. Why ZeniMax hasn't moved against it I have no idea, but it may be the fact that they'd be effectively pursuing a ghost.

Furthermore, what makes you think ZeniMax isn't doing something against it?

the differance between a HOAX site using trademakred information/logos/assets and a fansite is:

HOAX SITE:

Attempts to be a legal official partner/rights holder of an IP and attempts to pass it ff as they work for the company

FANSITE: states rather on almost every page that they are not affilated with the owners of the IP and are FANS and run the site as such and that they hold no legal rights to any copyrighted material.

as a side note if you own a copyrighted piece of material and someone places it say on a shirt/or there car or there website without your consent you have a legal obligation to file a s&D order,but its not required you can willingly allow it to slide if its not harming your offical brand/image which alot of companies actually do allow it to slide.

The simple fact that this whole thing is going on for a while now and no official statement was made yet. If Bethesda is so fan friendly as you are stating a simple twitter post at the start of the whole thing had stopped the whole fuzz. In addition there was this little Tumbler copycat game (at the start of the survivor speculation) which interestingly stopped very early and debunked itself as hoax.

You're thinking of trademark law, not copyright law. Different things.


Again, why would they deny themselves free publicity? You're thinking in a binary fashion, that either it's legit or Bethesda would've shut it down. There's plenty of middle ground. Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

I so don't understand this point of view. We've had much more fun following efforts to decipher what's going on than we would have with a standard announcement. We've been inclined to believe Beth is behind it, but in a way it doesn't matter. We've enjoyed the mystery, and the game will be formally announced/released, regardless. I find it odd that so many gamers aren't more ... playful.

With everyone hyped for Boston, specifically V119 and [censored] like that, anything's that's not that will leave people disappointed. There is a chance at least. They can't allow that.

Some of us have better things to do than waste time trying to crack a site that's likely to be a hoax. Y'know, like work. House chores. Spending quality time with your wife. These kinds of things. I'd be all over this site if it was legit, but as it is? I prioritize.


Again, why? If it isn't Boston, then people will be disappointed regardless, since rumours of Fo4 being set there floated since 2008 and the original game. Still, the joy of having a new Fallout game will overshadow any disappointment.

I don't think binary here. What I am simply saying is if Bethesda wanted to stop this thing it would be happend in seconds with a simple tweet and Bethesda knows this. That's all.

This isn't court btw.

That is obvious. And since it's obvious, it matter very little.


No, but a discussion where facts really do matter and can easily confirm or disprove the site in question.

So where is the prove? Judge Tagaziel

I always thought they were basically the same things,Learn something new each day...I'm certainly no lawyer.

I find it sad too.

I've listed it several times already, sesom.

Also, even though we butt heads a lot, I actually like you a lot. Must be Stockholm's syndrome.


I am.

Intellectual property law is complicated and varies from country to country. You basically have:

- copyright law: exclusive rights to use, make, sell, distribute, and perform tangible original works, eg. games, books, music, the things; you cannot copyright something that is in the public domain, like an idea, fact, the environment, and so on and so forth,
- trademark law: exclusive rights to symbols, designs, anything that distinguishes goods/services that come from a particular source; since trademarks are context-sensitive, you may trademark something that may not be copyrighted, such as a generic word (Apple) used in an arbitrary context,
- patent law: exclusive rights to use, make, and replicate an invention, ornamental design of a certain good, or an artificially created plant; unlike trademark and copyright, in order to benefit from this protection you must have a patent, otherwise you can't do nothing.

This just a very basic, very simple primer.

Actually, we've spent a lot of time on those things this week-end. The FO3 playthrough I started on Saturday has been somewhat time-consuming, I suppose, but just monitoring the messages and imagining what it would have been like to live through the events they portray hasn't.