I am not a lawyer, but I believe Big Bug is correct; don't contact the company.
1. They will certainly refuse permission unless you are willing to discuss licensing terms (which they might do if they don't have their own recent computer version). But do the research before inquiring.
2. If you go ahead in spite of their refusal you will have established your intent to infringe their copyright by contacting them.
I believe there are three areas of law in this area, of which two may be relevant:
1. Patent law
(not relevant)
2. Trademark law
Make sure nothing in the game has a similar name or insignia as the original. If you have a copy of the actual game the trademarks are probably listed somewhere. Also check ebay for pictures of older versions; there have probably been many versions over the years.
3. Copyright law
This is the biggie: Make sure NO TEXT is copied from the game, especially the rules, even by accident. You must phrase the rules in your own words. Also, don't copy any identifiable look-and-feel elements of the original game; if the dice have red spots, yours should not be (since most dice have black spots), but you could have blue spots, for example. You can have a unique look and feel, just not the original game's.
The scoresheet should also be as different as it can reasonably be.
As a concrete example of this issue, the online community of the boardgame Diplomacy (originally by Avalon Hill, now Hasbro) has had to be careful in their automated online judging systems and various other software. They distribute maps that are similar to the original but not the actual map. The do not distribute the rules, claiming it would violate copyright. (Of course, there may be some agreement with Hasbro requiring this, since they do call it Diplomacy).
Also, you could check to see how many other similar games are out there, download the demos and read the licenses. There may be an established licensing process for this game.
Finally, be careful; in the law there's always more to the story than meets the eye and the bigger legal team will find it.
-Pete
1. They will certainly refuse permission unless you are willing to discuss licensing terms (which they might do if they don't have their own recent computer version). But do the research before inquiring.
2. If you go ahead in spite of their refusal you will have established your intent to infringe their copyright by contacting them.
I believe there are three areas of law in this area, of which two may be relevant:
1. Patent law
(not relevant)
2. Trademark law
Make sure nothing in the game has a similar name or insignia as the original. If you have a copy of the actual game the trademarks are probably listed somewhere. Also check ebay for pictures of older versions; there have probably been many versions over the years.
3. Copyright law
This is the biggie: Make sure NO TEXT is copied from the game, especially the rules, even by accident. You must phrase the rules in your own words. Also, don't copy any identifiable look-and-feel elements of the original game; if the dice have red spots, yours should not be (since most dice have black spots), but you could have blue spots, for example. You can have a unique look and feel, just not the original game's.
The scoresheet should also be as different as it can reasonably be.
As a concrete example of this issue, the online community of the boardgame Diplomacy (originally by Avalon Hill, now Hasbro) has had to be careful in their automated online judging systems and various other software. They distribute maps that are similar to the original but not the actual map. The do not distribute the rules, claiming it would violate copyright. (Of course, there may be some agreement with Hasbro requiring this, since they do call it Diplomacy).
Also, you could check to see how many other similar games are out there, download the demos and read the licenses. There may be an established licensing process for this game.
Finally, be careful; in the law there's always more to the story than meets the eye and the bigger legal team will find it.
-Pete