Game Music Copyright Questions

[Jerkface Killah]

Hey all. I figured this would be a good a place to ask this question. I am starting a little series of video game review video's. That is to say, I'm going to review some old games in video form instead of written reviews. My question is about my planned intro/theme tune. I think I need some kind of quick intro for the videos. What are the legalities of using music from old games? The Angry Video Game Nerd uses music from various games in the background of many of his videos, usually during long stretches of him just talking. Do I need to ask permission? Are there royalties involved? Am I better off making an original tune? I can't write music. I was hoping to make a medley of various game's music. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks Community!

JFK

[Hatta]

If you're not using an entire piece, and this is an informational use, it's almost certainly fair use. If not, the worst you'd experience is having a DMCA takedown. no big deal, just recut the video and remove the offending material

[CRTGAMER]

A game company might not like you using their copyright for profit, say if you sold a disc of your reviews.
I think if its non-profit then you should be okay, especially if music playing is the game you are reviewing.

That is unless the original owner sees the Video as a negative review.

[slowslow325]

You're fine. Just do it, nobody really cares/does anything thing about it

[MrPopo]

Honestly I wouldn't worry about it too much. As mentioned, the worst you would get is a cease & desist form letter from the company, and that's if they care enough. From what I've seen of fan use of video game assets, the only things that tend to get shot down are things that are seen as direct competitors to an existing product, such as that Chrono Trigger fan game that got shut down. The use of the assets in a tangental fashion that can draw people's interest to the source seems to be fine, such as 8-Bit Theater.

Heck, even commercial use can be ok. Look at all the video game cover bands out there, including the ones who sell albums for profit.