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Wideload, Ubisoft apply for new trademarks

Indie developer files for a trio of game names, while French publisher claims rights to Worlds of Might and Magic.

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With a pair of Activision trademark applications bubbling up to provide insight on the publisher's possible plans for the Guitar Hero franchise earlier this week, it was about time for a trademark fishing expedition. After some quality time with the United States Patent and Trademark Office Web site, GameSpot emerged with a few interesting trademarks.

The biggest of the bites came in the form of an Ubisoft application for a trademark on the phrase "Worlds of Might and Magic" in relation to online gaming services. Filed in November, the application suggests that a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on the Might and Magic franchise might be in the cards at the French publisher.

However, when contacted, a representative for the company said he hadn't heard of it before. In addition, the phrase has actually been trademarked since 1999, when defunct publisher 3DO first filed for it, also for use in an online game. Ubisoft is the last listed owner on that trademark, which, according to the USPTO site, is still live.

Another trio of trademarks was filed for by Wideload Games, the development studio behind Stubbs the Zombie. The trademarks don't appear to be part of any existing franchises, but all were filed for as names of upcoming games. Two of the games--Founding Fighters and Hail to the Chimp--seem to mirror the skewed sense of humor for which Wideload is known, but the third name claimed, Cyclone, offers little insight into the game's content. Wideload did not return GameSpot's request for comment on the filings.

While these trademarks were filed specifically as names of games, such filings are no assurance that the games are actively under development or will ever see the light of day.

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