Future Past

Prepping for the Public Domain

Short post today, but I hope you find it inspiring!

For many years, corporations in the US (spearheaded by our friends at Disney) successfully lobbied Congress to keep extending copyright protections for their intellectual property. At last, though, they said enough was enough, and now IP is typically released into the public domain 95 years after publication.

Using characters that are in the public domain can be a great way to get the advantages of an IP without having to pay a licensing fee.

HOWEVER - and this is important - you need to consider the countries in which you want to sell the game, and also the specific characteristics or versions of characters that have entered the public domain, and which are still protected.

For example, Popeye entered the public domain this year, but not the spinach part. He didn’t start eating spinach until 1933, so you can’t use that aspect until 2028.

Games take years to design and publish, so I thought it might be fun to take a look at things that will be coming into the public domain over the next few years, so you can begin working on ideas.

Here are a few of the characters, novels, paintings, and movies that will be coming into the public domain that I thought might make for interesting games. There are many others, so if you’re intrigued by the idea, there are way more works to explore.

But if you decide to use one of these works it is a good idea to confirm that they will be in the public domain, and any caveats that may exist. Don’t just take my word for it!

Entered Public Domain In 2025

• Popeye

• Tintin

• The Sound and the Fury (William Faulkner)

• Singin’ in the Rain (movie)

• Skeleton Dance (Disney)

Entering Public Domain In 2026

• Betty Boop

• Nancy Drew (Carolyn Keene)

• Maltese Falcon (movie)

• Dick and Jane

• Pluto

Entering Public Domain In 2027

• Universal Frankenstein and Dracula movies

• Dick Tracy

• The Persistence of Memory (Salvador Dali)

• The Good Earth (Pearl S Buck)

Entering Public Domain In 2028

• Conan the Barbarian (Robert E Howard)

• The Mummy (movie with Boris Karloff)

• Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)

• Horse Feathers: The Marx Brothers (movie)

• Little House in the Big Woods (Laura Ingalls Wilder)

• Hercule Poirot (Agatha Christie)

• Goofy

• Popeye’s Spinach!