Hi I am UK based and I'm recently forming a team to develop a game. I'm the lead developer and will be bringing on ~5 other artists to create content such as models, textures and music.

For the moment, I have not formed an official company, to avoid the time sink of all the paperwork, contract writing and so on. But without agreements/contracts/licences in place as I understand it, an artist on my team could pull out at any moment and reserve the right to take all their content with them.

To prevent this, I would like to have them upload their content to my website when they are done with it, and to include a licence in that directory that says something along the lines of

"By uploading your content files to this directory, you agree to transfer ownership of your files to the lead developer Alex Lynch, in exchange for payment from the revenue of the game".

I hope this would be enough, until I form a real company and get signed contracts from them.

I am UK based

I'm the lead developer and will be bringing on ~5 other artists

I have not formed an official company to avoid the time sink of all the paperwork, contract writing and so on. But without agreements/contracts/licences in place as I understand it, an artist on my team could pull out at any moment and reserve the right to take all their content with them.

I hope this would be enough, until I form a real company and get signed contracts from them.

When you start to "bring on" other people to your project it is time to stop avoiding the paperwork.

In the US I would recommend reading books on starting a business, visiting the government's local Small Business Administration office, and talking with a business lawyer to help you get all the forms and agreements you need.

Since it is the UK I would change it slightly: Read books on starting a business in the UK, visit your local {whatever it is called} office who can tell you what you need to know, and talk to a business legal person {called a solicitor?} to help you get all the forms and agreements you need.

Once you start to "bring on" people you enter the land of contracts, legal covenants, and employment law. The consequences for getting something wrong can cost a fortune and even land you in jail. Make sure you get it right BEFORE you go down the road.

Hi all thanks for the comments, gave me a lot to think about.

I'm leaning more now to just letting my artists reserve the right to pull out their content at any time, and hopefully to foster enough trust that they won't feel they need to do that. As the game approaches a kickstarter/release though, I will form an official company and get contracts done so everyone gets payment.

I'm leaning more now to just letting my artists reserve the right to pull out their content at any time, and hopefully to foster enough trust that they won't feel they need to do that. As the game approaches a kickstarter/release though, I will form an official company and get contracts done so everyone gets payment.

If "at any time" means after you've already released the game, or right before you release your game, that permits them to hold critical content hostage when you don't have enough time to replace it.

There is not much you can do without employing them, thus compensating them with nice money.

They can negotiate final royalty compensation as tough as they want.

You will have three options:

win/win

win/loose

loose/loose

It will be always in your power to avoid the third one, just do not be too stuborn and proud about your coding part, I would advice you to be equal/equal-like, since the beginning, with someone who donates their time and skill to the game.