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Why are games the exception? Just curious why FOSS is required for non-entertainment but if you're being entertained it's OK for a studio to get profit?
Because games are works of art. They generally don’t work like other software. Most software is designed to meet some requirements and either does so or works toward doing so over its lifetime. A game seeks to tell a story or provide an experience that may improve over time, but in many cases is a static end product.
Of course that isn’t all cases these days because there are a lot of subscription based models and game seasons, etc. But you still expect a game to be a thing for a limited time, or at least its development.
There is clearly a ton of exception to this, but I tend to think of game producers as workshops filled with artists and such. More like making a movie than maintaining a building.
Just seems like a weirdly arbritray distinction to who should or shouldn't be able to profit from their work. Like just because the maker of say Fusion Studio (video composting software) aren't making something to illicit an emotional response from you they shouldn't be able to charge for what they do?
In no other sphere would this distinction exist, imagine if all non-fiction books were free but you still had to pay for novels? Or because a bus is a utilitarian vehicle it's manufacturer shouldn't be allowed to be paid for it but because a Farrari exists for the pleasure of driving it, they can charge you to buy one.
edit: I do see the point about the fixed vs open ended though
I want to be explicit. I’m not at all saying people “shouldn’t be able to profit from their work”. No way; all labor should be rewarded. I’m just saying I can see why works of art are somewhat different than tools. You use fiction versus non-fiction books as an example, but I’m actually putting those in the same box as games and movies.
I generally prefer FOSS for practical and ethical reasons, but I have no problem with paid software or people being paid to write free software. I think most software can be done better by an interested community. Free software is just better in many cases. Sometimes that is true with games too though. Enemy Territory, for example.
If I'm reliant on software in order to do something (backups, accounting, etc.) I don't want that software working to be up to the whims of some company.
Games I'm fine with because they're art and the creators should be able to earn money from them.
Then remember to only buy indie or well unionised studio because the artists certainly don't earn much money from big studio games.