It's an estimate based on the general size of Internet communities mixed with web traffic reports to the websites you mentioned with some wiggle room added in for the people who are interested in that stuff but aren't a part of those communities.

I'm sorry, are you talking about what qualifies as art while calling a still picture 'rotoscoped?' You realize rotoscoping is an animation technique and not a general drawing concept right? I mean, there is sketching... which is hastily drawing something from reference without an emphasis on detail. There is…

You aren't describing a large group of people, you are probably describing about 2000-10000 people who care out of an audience of like 100,000,000.

Your second condition doesn't matter when the first is erroneous. And the condition of the software being open source is entirely irrelevant, it doesn't change the relationship of one party profiting from the work of another without compensation. It's just another one of your completely arbitrary ways of coming up…

Open source software companies generally aren't non-profits either. You'd know that if you weren't a complete idiot. And that's why I'm discourteous and impatient towards you. Because you are an ignorant fuck with strong opinions on things you don't know about or understand.

I frequent sooooo many places on the Internet and talk to soooooo many people who play games... my exposure doesn't qualify as 'anecdotal'. And obviously websites dedicated to the whole concept of trophies and achievements are going to have that tiny minority of people who are devoted to them involved.

Define 'a lot' please. It still seems like an esoteric interest and I haven't heard a single person online talking about their gamer score in nearly 6 years. What we talking here, maybe .01% of gamers on these platforms?

Ugh. Vague terminology like 'In many cases' is a big part of why I lack the patience for your nonsense. You are acknowledging exceptions, so why is it that you think a contest for music isn't one of them?

They go after them, but I don't think they are actually care about their numerical gamer scores or trophy counts. They are just being game completionists which is a separate concept entirely from the high score.

NES - SNES
Wii - Wii U
DS - 3DS
Gameboy - Gameboy Color - Gameboy Advance

If a company isn't allowed to accept free work then people aren't allowed to give it. You can't argue one without the other and frankly that's all there is to say on the matter. Your sense of morality is absolutely cancerous by the way and if everyone thought the way you did the open source software industry wouldn't…

The fact that it's a remarkably weak case is kind of the point.

Actually the computer from that scene in Zoolander was an old iMac. In that case, stealing the monitor is stealing the computer :P

Maybe I'm losing patience because no two things you say are coherent. Like I said, I'm done. If you think me losing patience with someone for not being able to follow a thread from start to finish means you win, fine. Enjoy your victory.

That companies which ask their fans to do specific work for designing a game should give some form of monetary compensation. In the case of a contest, a cash award will do.

Comparing scores in most games is meaningless because most games don't really put any kind of cap on score and similarly, most games don't make it difficult to play on forever in some way. It works in Donkey Kong because resources like extra lives and time are limited.

Thank you Mr. Snarky. I guess people aren't allowed to express their bewilderment at esoteric things anymore.

Ridiculous! You are splitting the stupidest of hairs here. Saying something is morally wrong vs. saying something should be illegal isn't the issue. Your complaint is still essentially that no person can can freely of themselves to others who stand to gain from it without that relationship being somehow…

You know what else isn't a work contract? A contest submission. So what's your point?

What, you mean like XBox Live gamer score? I can't think of one person I know who still gave a shit about their numerical score 3 years after the XBox 360 came out... much less on a long term basis. PSN doesn't even bother to keep track of trophies. I don't think too many people out there are really comparing…