BMS content usage in other projects?

[Stract]

I thought I heard somewhere that the Black Mesa Team was OK with others using BMS assets for other projects as long as they credit them. Is this true, and are there restrictions on what can/cannot be used? I’m working on a Portal 2 mod and want to use a few of the models, so I’m just asking to see if it’s alright. Thanks in advance.

Also wasn’t sure where to post this so if this wasn’t a good place to post this, I’m sorry.

[JeffMOD]

tl/dr: If it’s taken from the mod version, you can use it with credit.

Long Version:

According to the License.txt from the mod (non-retail) version of Black Mesa:

@Crowbar Collective

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/.

@Creative Commons

You are free to:[/size]

• Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
• Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material
• The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:[/size]

• Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
• NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
• No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

Note that this does not apply to content from the game (retail) version of Black Mesa.

So if you’re getting the models from the original release, it’s fine as long as you credit them. If one of the models you want is from the paid-for version, you cannot use it and will have to make it from scratch.

[dky.tehkingd.u]

To be honest, if Crowbar Collective didn’t intend to license the retail version under Creative Commons, they shouldn’t have included the CC-BY-NC license file in the installation folder. As it currently stands, I still don’t think we’ve actually gotten confirmation about whether Creative Commons applies to retail, or if that was a mistake. Last time I asked about it, the question got buried and went unanswered, IIRC.

By including the CC-BY-NC license in the retail version, it’s legally implied that Creative Commons is indeed still the license, especially given that no license seems to be included anywhere else with respect to the game’s materials or the website, or even Steam. That implies that anything you can do with the mod, you can also do with the retail version.

[Stract]

@Stract

@JeffMOD

tl/dr: If it’s taken from the mod version, you can use it with credit.

Long Version:

According to the License.txt from the mod (non-retail) version of Black Mesa:

@Crowbar Collective

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/.

@Creative Commons

You are free to:[/size]

• Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
• Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material
• The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:[/size]

• Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
• NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
• No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

Note that this does not apply to content from the game (retail) version of Black Mesa.

So if you’re getting the models from the original release, it’s fine as long as you credit them. If one of the models you want is from the paid-for version, you cannot use it and will have to make it from scratch.

Thanks so much!

[dky.tehkingd.u]

I did a bit of searching around. Apparently, the team is allowing use of retail Black Mesa assets as long as it’s non-commercial. Whether the finer details of Creative Commons still applies is unclear, but you should be able to use retail assets as long as you do not profit in any way from them.

Relevant quote:

@TextFAMGUY1

It looks like as long as you never make any money from it, we’re okay with it.

[Stract]

@dky.tehkingd.u

I did a bit of searching around. Apparently, the team is allowing use of retail Black Mesa assets as long as it’s non-commercial. Whether the finer details of Creative Commons still applies is unclear, but you should be able to use retail assets as long as you do not profit in any way from them.

Relevant quote:

@TextFAMGUY1

It looks like as long as you never make any money from it, we’re okay with it.

Oh, that’s even better! Wasn’t planning to profit anyway. Thanks!!!