Back in 1993 Hard Drivin’ introduced a ‘Ghost Mode’ feature that would allow you to race against your previous run. Since I never liked the game all that much, I was not aware of this. I was also not aware that a patent was filed and subsequently granted for the now ubiquitous feature, which must be licensed to anyone wanting to use the feature.
““It’s more of a unique [patent] than other things I’ve seen,” said Debbie Minardi, vice president of corporate development at Global VR. Minardi acquired one of those dozen or so ghosting patent licenses for a “Shadow Attack” mode in the arcade version of Need for Speed: Underground.
While Minardi acknowledges that the ghost mode is more original than some of the “you’ve got to be kidding me” patents she’s come across, she says it still probably doesn’t deserve full legal protection. “If it was me I’d never have given them a patent on it,” she said. Taking that conviction to court, though, is another matter entirely. “Patents like these probably are easy enough to argue against, but it’s expensive,” she said.”
Link! to the full Gamasutra article.