itch.io

@No Time To Play - After going down the internet rabbit hole, it seems that Lunatic RPGs is Dragon Game Designs, Grinding Game Studios, formerly Ellis Studios and who knows what other pseudonyms. It also appears he has a history of shady practices, such as claiming authorship of stolen artwork and spamming crowdfunding sites and game-hosting sites with shovelware games under numerous pseudonyms.

I found this gem of a thread: https://rpgcodex.net/forums/index.php?threads/the-ellis-studios-tribute-thread.112724/

To save time having to dig through it, here are some notable excerpts (each bullet point is a direct quote):

• To those considering backing this project, beware. This game uses content not made by Jamie Ellis. Ellis has taken screenshots of game maps made by others from Deviant Art and claimed that he has made them. Here are some links of maps that can be seen in the screenshots of this campaign:
  http://tensen01.deviantart.com/art/Unnamed-Fantasy-World-Map-136525669
  http://sillouete.deviantart.com/art/Forest-3-RPG-Maker-Parallax-Practice-425523342
  
  In addition, this "game" is already being sold by Ellis on a couple of different sites, his personal one and itch.io. https://kieferd20.itch.io/humans-and-monsters
  
  The itch.io page shows yet another stolen screenshot, as seen on this DA account. http://hypersnake22.deviantart.com/art/Halterock-Full-view-155359644
  
  This is not an attack or slander, simply a comment to let the buyer beware that this creator is not honest.
•  the whole Studio is weird as fuck, they keep pumping shovelware quality games every two months, trying to earn a buck here and there, spamming the codex with different accounts.
• It isn't just their art assets that are allegedly stolen, a lot of their code has been copied wholesale as well, often times with the OC's legal disclaimers and etc still intact. 
• he delete his site https://blackthornelord.itch.io/sacred-lands this delveloper seem to scamer..

And another thread: https://rpgcodex.net/forums/index.php?threads/mines-of-grimvale-a-pc-3d-rpg-similar-to-dungeon-master.113629/

• I am sure i 've seen some eye of the beholder sprites as well, a bit redrawn maybe, but you clearly see where they come from
• Looks like that Eye of Beholder 4 vaporware
• Some of the spell icons on their kickstarter screens are ripped right from WOW.
• Several of those are from Diablo 3 as well.
•  So is this a module or did they get the rights to use the music from the game or something? Do I get half price because I already have the Neverwinter Nights music from GOG
• Inventory sounds are exactly like Nwn.
• That's NWN VA, yes. Not only the spell chants. All of this seems ripped off. I remember one of the voices because I always picked it for my characters.
• Wow. What in the world? The Red Hand of Doom is literally the exact same game. Look at the character creation as well. https://rpgmaker.net/games/7125/ Edit - Seems some small details are different, but obviously a ton of it is exactly the same.
• lol another one from these guys? It's basically the same demo that every year appears as a different new "game" with a few changes.
  As for the plagiarism thing, also all the feats icons are taken straight from NWN2.
• It is not just about the art. They stole a whole other (unfinished) game and tried to pass it as their own.

From their Cave of Sorrows Kickstarter (which came after the game was already made, it seems?): https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/759393997/cave-of-sorrows/comments

• Hopefully your spell icons are temporary seeing as how they are ripped right out of other games...

From RPG Watch: https://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34496

• I've run into game stopping bugs in every product. Instead of fixing the bugs, they release a new copy of the game under a different name (bait and switch) and a few more engine/rule changes.
• But it looks like they might also be nabbing other people's assets from DeviantArt. In that promo video, there's three maps from three different users on DeviantArt, and one of them is actively claiming he's been ripped off.
• So it implies that the game is finished, but Nut reports there are game-breaking bugs. Not to mention credible accusations of art being used without permission.
• You have shown some random gameplay footage from "Isinica Clash of Magic". The issue at hand is the Kickstarter promo video for "Humans and Monsters", though perhaps they are the same game? The footage shows none of the maps in question. Nothing you showed gives any proof of where you acquired the resources in question.
  
  To clarify, this map appears at 1:06 in the Humans & Monsters promo: http://hypersnake22.deviantart.com/a…view-155359644
  
  As you can see, it was uploaded to DeviantArt in February 2010, and it is claimed that it is someone's else's work. Please confirm which bundle gave you this resource to use, and where in the game it can be found.
  
  Also, this map shown at 1:20 in your promo: http://tensen01.deviantart.com/art/U…-Map-136525669
  
  From that page we can see it was uploaded by another user in September 2009. Again, please tell us which bundle gave you the right to use this asset, and show us where it features in the game. The map features places named Grimstad, Savonia, Royce, and Vestinia - are these locations in the game?

Another thread from RPG Watch: https://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1061418897#post1061418897

• So this is yet another version of the shovelware for which they claim they need a Kickstarter?
• Leaving aside the open question of whether they've ripped off other people's work, I find it pretty astonishing that they're selling yet another iteration of essentially the same game, while the Kickstarter for the previous incarnation is still running. 
• The accusation from the users at the RPGmaker forums is that these devs have simply put screenshots of other people's graphics into their promo. I asked a detailed question that illustrates the suspicions in the other thread, to try and pin this issue down, but I've had no response. If they can provide a convincing response, rather than vague denials, I will happily apologise.
  
  Bear in mind that the devs are calling these users liars, and accusing them of having a grudge against them. If that's not true, and I don't believe it is, that's pretty contemptible. Add to that running a Kickstarter for a game that's already complete and being sold, while simultaneously releasing yet another iteration of that same game, and I think it all looks pretty sketchy.
• And yet, having cancelled the previous Kickstarter (I suspect because that was the only way to remove the video with the evidence of the stolen maps), you have immediately started a new Kickstarter for this spin of the game. The campaign is a copypaste of the last one.

And then there is, of course, him accusing me of stealing art from him, which is utterly nonsensical since I can very easily prove that I created those assets, and they will never be able to prove otherwise.