Watch Dogs, the delayed, open world, hacker-focused game has had the name and trademark abandoned by Ubisoft, leaving questions about the future of the game.
On the United States Patent and Trademark Office website, the serial number 85642398, which is Watch Dogs’ trademark from Ubisoft, has the status ‘Abandoned after publication because applicant filed an express abandonment.’ This was filed on February 1.
Does this mean Watch Dogs is cancelled? No. Ubisoft have spent a lot of money on this game and will want to see a return on the investment. What this probably means is that it is no longer called Watch Dogs and will go under a different name. Perhaps Ubisoft will file the ‘Watch_Dogs’ trademark with the underscore as it has been used in marketing material for the game. The more likely outcome is that it is now a game in a different Ubisoft series, Assassin’s Creed.
Assassin’s Creed is Ubisoft’s prize franchise and the last-minute delay of the game last year may have convinced Ubisoft to attach the Assassin’s Creed name in order to give the game more brand recognition and a better chance of selling more copies and recouping money it has spent on funding the game, especially after it was delayed.
Whatever the case may be, stay tuned to PSU.com to keep up on the latest Watch Dogs news.
Thanks to NeoGAF for the heads up.
UPDATE:
In another conspicuous turn of events, the above report has been found to be fraudulent, with no representative party within Ubisoft Entertainment having filed the purported abandonment of the Watch Dogs trademark. In a petition of repeal, Ubisoft Entertainment has sought to re-enact the trademark in light of the aforementioned claim, and are currently awaiting the result of the request. As ever, we here at PSU will keep you updated with the facts as we get them.