Bioniclewere once the coolest thing in the world. Hell, even today, I’d argue they’re still rad as hell with their distinct designs and willingness to takeLegoto places they have never gone before. It gave these pieces of plastic a personality, a mythos, and a branching narrative.
There were few cooler feelings than purchasing one of the pods they came in, taking them home, and feeling like you were bringing a strange lifeform into existence by putting all the pieces together. These weren’t just pieces of plastic, but body parts of a creature soon to have a purpose all their own. It’s easy to see why Bionicle took over the world when it burst onto the scene two decades ago and remains a source of nostalgia to this day. And, with all of this success, video game tie-ins were soon to follow.
Bionicle: Masks Of Power Could Have Been Something Special
Over the years, a handful of official Bionicle video games have been produced, ranging from the very first adaptation in 2003, which tied loosely into the Mask of Light animated film, and a bunch of others, including Bionicle Heroes and two Lego Bionicle titles. They failed to set the gaming world on fire quite like Traveller’s Tales’ endless roster of Lego IP tie-ins, but the fact so many were produced pointed to how popular Bionicle had become. Then, like many amazing things from my childhood, they grew into a fond product of nostalgia.
I’m not alone in still holding Bionicle near and dear to my heart, because the folks over at Team Kanohi - now known as Unmaked Games - have spent the past eight years making what it described as “the Bionicle video game of our dreams.” Unfortunately, despite making sure they stuck closely by the Lego Group’s interpretation of fan works, that wasn’t sufficient to stop the giant from knocking on its door. Bionicle: Masks of Power is sadly no more.
The team’sofficial statementis a heartbreaking read, especially when you consider it puts an end to eight long years of work that could have only come from a place of passion.
This past weekend, the developer confirmed it had received a cease and desist letter from the Lego Group, asking it to remove any and all traces of its project from the internet, which included taking down its Steam page and cancelling any potential release plans. Even though it had no plans to charge players for access and made clear in all public materials that it is not an official product, for casual onlookers this distinction likely wasn’t that easy to make.
And Now It Will Never See The Light Of Day
I understand why the project was ultimately shut down, and that its existence could actively hinder the development or eventual release of an official Bionicle video game in the future, but only because it’sthat well done. Besides, if a company as big as Lego is truly serious about protecting its IP, surely it shouldn’t have taken it eight long years to put a stop to Bionicle: Masks of Power when Unmasked Games made a point to stay within the lines and ensure it wasn’t stepping on any corporate toes. But that wasn’t enough.
Copyright is a fickle thing, and companies are going to enforce their own at every turn. But there is inherent value in giving fans the freedom to create and share works inspired by the things they love most, even non-commercial video games on the scale of this one. I won’t pretend I know how to construct a system in which both things coexist is possible, but to wait eight years to put one to rest is needlessly cruel and misguided.
Lego has what are called ‘Fair Play guidelines’ which independent creators are expected to abide by and be aware of when creating works within or inspired by its IP.
There were plans to release an extensive demo for players to jump into, but sadly this is no longer possible. Thankfully, as a bittersweet final hurrah, Unmasked Games has released a two-hour playthrough of the demo for us to enjoy.
It’s incredibly impressive and already has the foundations of an open-world Bionicle game with a variety of gameplay mechanics, playable characters, and luscious biomes. It features the player character traversing fighting enemies, solving puzzles, and also interacting with villages filled with unique NPCs. A lot of love has gone into this, even judging by a small slice of the full experience, and it’s a shame to see its chances of release dashed.
Thankfully, Unmasked Games has no plans to shut down, and in the wake of cancelling Masks of Power has started work on a brand-new title set within its own original universe.
“Our plan is to take everything we’ve learned through creating Masks of Power and use that knowledge and experience as the foundation of a brand-new, original game,” the developers said. “Currently codenamed Project Rustbound, our team has already begun brainstorming concepts for a new, original world that we get the chance to build ourselves.”
I’m proud to see the studio weather this storm and come out of the other end unscathed, but it shouldn’t have gone down this way. Large companies shouldn’t have the power to crush a fan project of this magnitude underfoot after eight years of inactivity, purely because it can. It, and many other corporations like it, need to be more proactive and transparent about what is and isn’t allowed, or they only risk turning more and more people against them.
