'Ghost Recon Future Soldier' trademarked

Ever since it was first revealed in January--and officially announced in April--Ghost Recon 4 has been shrouded in mystery. No details on the next installment in the Tom Clancy-inspired tactical shooter series have been revealed other than its release window, which will be sometime after March 2010.

Even the game's name is a working title, obscuring whether it is a direct sequel to the last installment in the series, 2007's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2. That mystery deepened in October, when the Australian Classification Board classified a game called "Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Predator."

Now, the plot has thickened further. According to a December 14 US Patent & Trademark Office filing filing, French publisher Ubisoft has trademarked the term "Ghost Recon Future Soldier" for use in "game software and electronic game programs." The trademark also extends to games for PCs, consoles, handhelds, and mobile phones.

The title Ghost Recon Future Soldier raises several possibilities. The most likely is that the game will concern the Future Soldier programs being conducted by the US and its NATO allies. The initiative, currently part of the US Army's Brigade Combat Team Modernization Program, focuses on outfitting infantrymen with networked communications and high-tech equipment. Much of that equipment was featured in the critically acclaimed Advanced Warfighter 2, set during a fictional conflict in the year 2013. (GameSpot's video review is below.)

Unfortunately, any official announcements regarding the game will likely not be made this year. When asked by GameSpot about the trademark and the status of the new Ghost Recon game, Ubisoft reps offered only a clipped "no comment."