Excellent advice.
I was doing that anyway before this legal problem came up. I finally feel that I own something with no doubts or restrictions when I buy a title from GOG. So I preserve them all on DVD. They're mine! All mine!

share pwease :( lol

I thought that there was going to be a good debate on this, but see that this forum was to bash Bethesda.

I'm sorry but what did you expect? We all love GoG, we own games they sell and think that the idea of DRM-free games is just fantastic. Bethesda wants to finish it all by removing the best games on this site (that I already own) and you think I should thank them for it? Go see a doctor.

I don't have anything against Bethesda's actions in this case since they're simply protecting their revenue and profit, which is what you would expect any good company to do. Interplay are the one's acting a little shady here.
That said, my response to reading the news of the lawsuit was to immediately buy a copy of Fallout from GOG.com and download the whole shebang: game file, manual, avatars, wallpapers, etc. If worse comes to worse, at least I'll have a legit copy.

I hope you're right. But I'm afraid that remains to be seen...

I wish I could be that optimistic! If it were just about a MMO project gone awry, or packaging don't you think that it could have been just as easily fixed by a simple phone call instead of a law suite? I'm banking on some extracurricular nefarious motive here.

I would normally agree with you but I'm starting to wonder if this may simply be a case of Interplay being incredibly stupid. It seems that they just ignored their license obligations.
Otherwise none of this makes any sense.

First of all, nothing involving money and intellectual property rights is ever solved with 'just a phone call.'
Secondly, what exactly do you think this is all about? Selling the old Fallout games hurts Bethesda in no way whatsoever, and in fact is probably great for them - people who play the older games might be more inclined to check out the newest game if they enjoy 1 and 2.
As far as I can tell, what happened is that Bethesda licensed the right to make Fallout sequels. A year after that, Bethesda decided they'd rather buy the ENTIRE IP. This means Fallout is no longer an Interplay product, but 100% Bethesda. Interplay doesn't even have the right to sell the old games anymore. In the same deal, Bethesda licensed to Interplay the rights to make an MMO.
The reasoning I suspect is behind this is that Bethesda knew that Interplay would start shitting out really terrible online fallout games that would muddy up the brand name, which would be bad for them since they now had the rights to make multiple sequels in the main line. So Bethesda being pretty big decided that the best solution to this was to buy up the entire IP and simply license the online rights to Interplay. In that license are really restrictive terms that required Interplay to raise a certain amount of money and start production within a certain time limit, and they've since failed to do so, with Bethesda pulling the plug on them.
It was a pretty savvy move by Bethesda, because now they own a revitalized license with a ton of interest in it and multiple products being developed for it, and they don't have Interplay shitting out horrible MMOs potentially shying customers away from the series. This lawsuit is the final step in completely removing any link Interplay has left to Fallout.

Actually you make a very good point here, and maybe (just maybe :) ) I was a little overly presumptuous on Bethesdas actual motive. I tend to agree with you that Interplay did act stupidly, however I think it started when they sold the actual IP. And I understand that they fell on hard times, but they did have several rather popular IPs (although not necessarily as popular as FO) that they could have sold. The way it looks Bethesda was actually pretty liberal with what could and could not be done with the original three titles. The only stipulations that I heard was that Bethesda's Advertising Department had to approve promotional materials (that's hardly a stumbling block), and to get some-odd percent of sales (nothing too hard here either). So Interplay descends further down the slippery slope by using a questionable advertising slogan for the repackaged games. (Which is another post altogether.)
But where my alarm goes off is that:
1) Bethesda was so incredibly liberal before their new game became a 'hit,' and now all of a sudden they want to start clamping down and start enforcing restrictions.
2) If Bethesda was actually suing just because they didn't raise the $30 million to make the FO MMO, then why sue? No court is going to rule in favor of Interplay if they weren't even close to that amount. I would imagine that if Interplay were to get a favorable ruling that they would have to show that yes they were very close, or had some sort of promissory note from investors showing that they had the backing but just didn't have access to funds yet. (But really who wants to invest in a company that only has $16K dollars on hand?)
3) The argument that Bethesda was afraid Interplay would ruin the name of FO is bogus. Interplay created, developed and marketed the FO franchise out of thin air. All the fans were obviously happy with FO under an Interplay banner, so that's a fallacious argument at best.
4) If this whole thing were just about a misleading (sort of) game box design/advertising and promotional materials why was the law suite worded (and I quote)
"Bethesda is asking for injunctions against Interplay's manufacture, sale, and distribution of back catalog Fallout games, that a judge declare the trademark licensing agreement terminated, and that Interplay pay for damages and legal fees."
That means, and I admit that my legalese is a little rusty, that they want Interplay to completely stop EVERYTHING. Bethesda could have easily just sued Interplay to change the box design. This happens all the time, if you live in America you know what I'm talking about. On commercials that sell those stupid over the counter Viagra 'alternatives' it says 'These statements have not be evaluated by the FDA.' Car commercials for vehicles that get those insanely high miles-per-gallon, it says 'Based on MPA estimate.' Cigarettes can't have cartoon camels, and must display the Surgeon Generals warning. The list goes on and on. Why not just sue for a change in the packaging? Why stop everything altogether?
This is what leads to think there is something nefarious going on. But I think we can agree (regardless of motive) that there is more to this than meets the eye. Phew, I'm tire of typing :P
-- Edited for punctuation, and the board messed me up LOL
@ Jinnigan
Jinnigan, you're right about the phone call thing. I was using hyperbole and sometimes that's hard to get on a typed message. I was trying to say in effect "You can kill a fly with a shotgun, but there are far easier ways of doing it."
I agree that selling the old games really helps Bethesda a LOT. So you make my point for me, why try to stop someone from selling them at all?
Wrong, Bethesda DID give them the right to sell the original titles in lieu of receiving a percentage of sales and one or two other stipulations. Yes Bethesda did give them the option to make an MMO.
Ok, I'm going to say this again, the argument that Bethesda was afraid Interplay would ruin the name of FO is bogus. Interplay created, developed and marketed the FO franchise out of thin air. All the fans were obviously happy with FO under an Interplay banner, so that's a fallacious argument at best.
No, Bethesda already owned the entire IP, you just said that yourself a couple of paragraphs up. They gave Interplay the option to make a MMO... IF they could come up with some serious dough ($30 Million) by a certain time, they didn't and thusly it reverted back to Bethesda by default. Once again I posit the argument that:
No court is going to rule in favor of Interplay if they weren't even close to that amount. I would imagine that if Interplay were to get a favorable ruling that they would have to show that yes they were very close, or had some sort of promissory note from investors showing that they had the backing but just didn't have access to funds yet. (But really who wants to invest in a company that only has $16K dollars on hand?)
Yes it was a savvy business move, Bethesda made out like bandits buying the IP for (I heard) $5.7 million dollars. This shows what can happen when you are in the right place at the right time. And it is true that Interplay isn't what it used to be. They really haven't had any good games for a while now. But I choose to remember them the way they were, a cool company that was short on funds but long on creativity. Which is what matters most. That's why these games still sell. (It's certainly not because the graphics are 'cutting edge' is it?)
As far as them 'shitting out horrible MMOs' we will probably never know. But if you ask me I don't think realistically Bethesda every thought that would happen anyway. (Interplay only has $16K on hand for the love of Pete.) I think that was probably just a ruse to seal a sweet deal before Interplay realized what was really going on.
The only time I have ever shied away from a game because of a company name is when it reads EA, UBIsoft, and now possibly Bethesda Softworks. Remember content is king, brand names are just for show. Besides it's easier to change what someone else worked hard to build, than it is building from scratch.
You're right they are trying to remove Interplay from the FO franchise, why else would you sue someone who couldn't afford to defend themselves even if they wanted to? Perhaps to get the rest of the other companies IPs to put through the hands your cookie cutter coders? This makes me question motives right there.

I have fond memories of way back when I started gaming. I remember wondering why all the best games came from Interplay. The first Interplay game I ever played was Fallout on a Mac. I had a technical question and decided to call Interplay directly. I was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of the person who answered the phone and answered my questions. They truly loved what they did and were proud of their games.
I have other reasons for my dislike of Bethesda. I'm afraid what you and others are saying here may be right. I just don't understand what threat Interplay could be to Bethesda for Fallout, other than Bethesda wanting to own it all. Maybe they think that we love the Fallout name and don't care about the substance. If so, they're fools.
Those who like the way Bethesda makes games will always prefer the relatively shallow Bethesda style over the depth of the old Black Isle games. I don't believe that Bethesda has the talent or the desire to make a game as good as the original Fallouts. The trend nowadays is for more "cinematic" experiences with shallow boring gameplay.
I enjoyed playing Fallout 3 but it's no match for the old versions. It was simply nostalgic to be in the Fallout universe no matter how distorted it was.

It's not a matter of questioning beth's motives. If I tell my boss at the office that I'll have my reports completed by the end of the week, and it takes 3 months for them to be done, I'm going to be in trouble.
Interplay agreed to have stuff up and running by now, and they don't. It's not bethesda's fault. Don't sign contracts you can't fulfill.

I don't think most of use care about V13 and have been expecting project to fail (I don't even understand why Interplay is so persistant to keep project going). Most of us are concerned about the original Fallout Trilogy and it's availability. Other concern is that if Interplay goes bust due to this lawsuit, what happens to rest of Interplay catalog available here and elsewhere.

@ frankd2 - Sorry for my late reply Bro, I've been swamped at work :P
I know what you mean, nostalgia is rampant when when discussing the original Interplay. I remember thinking that EWJ and Boogerman were just IT when I was younger, and then as I matured I found the wonderful world of Fall Out, and MDK (Don't get me wrong, I still like EWJ and Boogerman too.) Oddly enough though, now that you mention it, I called Interplay on an EWJ question and the lady got me through the first boss, but the phone bill was outrageous LOL.
As a side note, if you were playing the original FO on a mac, that must have been pretty sweet. If memory serves Macs back then were killing PCs on graphics and performance.
I hope that I and everyone else are mistaken about what's going on, and that's not because I hate Bethesda or love Interplay. We will probably never get another FO game that is even in the same ballpark of fun and coolness as the originals. But those that did withstand the test of time don't deserve to be in some perpetual Intellectual Property Limbo or Developer Hell. But I digress. What are your other reasons for disliking Bethesda? I detect some repressed negativity, methinks.
Yes I've noticed the disturbing trend of "playing-a-movie" games. Too much time is taken from actual game development (or in some extreme cases, never even gets there), to trying to make everything look photo-realistic. After all there's only so long something pretty can keep your attention without having any depth(This goes for both girls and games LOL). Besides who wants to sit through a 20+ hour movie? I guess the days of just being happy with flying ships in Galaga, and a funny looking fat plumber who saves the princess from an overgrown turtle are gone. But I hold the hope that one day developers will realize that a game is supposed to be fun first, and that a players imagination can more than make up for a few graphical shortcomings. At any rate when your talking about spending 5+ years in development and in some cases hundreds of millions of dollars. You tend to take less risks, and produce more and more things along some misconceived 'pattern' for winning. Which in turn means almost no creativity, just cookie cutter crap. (Hollywood is a great big glaring example of this principle. When was the last time you saw something really original?)
Concerning being in the industry, no, I'm not. I've only worked on 1 'commercial game,' commercial as in it was sold to the public. I do occasionally create games though, mostly for friends or family. (They make great gifts... I think? At least it says you care.) My passion stems from the experience that I have had making my own, and the fact that I am a Programmer/Graphic Designer by trade (that's right I'm a nerdy-moody artistically inclined fellow). So I know how much work is involved, and just like anyone else I can appreciate pure talent when I see it :)
Finally -- Dude you rock! I wish you wouldn't have edited your post. Of all the people in the world during the past several years that have seen my handle 'Gordan Shumway.' You are the ONLY person to get the reference! Dude I would so give you 100+ rep points for that :)
P.S. Melmac isn't doing so hot, I hear there was some trouble when every one on the planet turned on their hair-dryers at the same time. :)
EXACTLY! I couldn't have said it better myself!