@BobHarris Some PCBs could support multiple romsets, and let's not forget NeoGeo. Like I mentioned before, the cabinet (besides the copyrighted artwork) was not a consideration at all for legality, only the PCB/ROMs. They are most likely MAME based hacks, but it IS possible.

@mattrixk Yep, I totally understand WHY you want to protect your work- and your should, and you have every right to. Just saying that I've seen very expensive (and not necessarily successful) corporate legal battles over stuff like this. As for which license to use, I don't know enough about the various licenses out there right now to make an educated suggestion for you. Perhaps @herb_fargus or @BuZz might have some suggestions.

@herb_fargus said in Shop selling retropie: I also have to appreciate Sega's approach to ROMs (where they are selling ROMs through steam for use on emulators) The issue here really isn't the so called piracy, it's the companies not providing a platform for accessing games. I have no doubt the majority of people would pay for ROMs if they could I think thats a real valid point. I know many who cannot compete with he likes of eBay etc for genuine hardware. I'm lucky enough to own a boxed SNES with several boxed games, but some of the more popular titles in similar condition are hitting 3 figures plus: I can't afford that. However, if a company was to sell the ROM's that were specific to the likes Retropie (I know its not just that simple, but you know what I mean), you have an opportunity to increase the audience and hook peoples interest in a series (Zelda or even Mario), potentially wanting more (no different to binge watching a TV series). You'd also reduce the amount of game 'over saturation' within emulation. It's not unusual to see people with game libraries running in to 1000's: no issue with that at all, but you end up getting indecisive and fed up easier, in my opinion. I have 4 systems installed on my Pi, under 30 games. Some of those are ones that I loved playing as a youngster, but some are also ones that I used to pick up and read the boxes of in the shops over and over because I couldn't afford them when I was younger. However, as gaming/tech evolved, often you'd miss out on some masterpieces because the industry picked up pace real quick and your console was superseded. My top two emulators are the Amiga and SNES: i have a mixture of 'had' and 'wanted' games on there, and am really enjoying playing them as if they were new once more. It really adds to the experience in my opinion. If I could buy a ROM that came with a digital manual (manuals are a lost art these days) and restored but original artwork (which I'm trying to do myself), I'd happily part with my hard earned. I don't want mass, I'd rather pay for quality over quantity, and it's that change in mindset that I feel, would make Emulation a more widely accepted port, potentially opening the doors for new customers. You'll never stop piracy, but if RP was a recognised platform for playing approved purchased ROM's I think that would be a massive step forward and a step in the right direction for the industry.