[Update] The Last Guardian’s Trademark Has Been Abandoned

[Update] Game Informer’s Jim Reilly (amongst other US-based journalists) has tweeted that a representative from Sony has confirmed that “The project is still in development. [There is] nothing new to report at this time.” Original story below:

The Last Guardian‘s absence at this year’s E3 may have been quickly followed by assurances from Sony that the game would ship when it’s “absolutely ready”, but lingering doubts remain about this long-awaited PlayStation exclusive. Recent changes to the status of its trademark have renewed the rumours of the project’s cancellation, but this panic is perhaps somewhat premature.

Now displaying the rather ominous sounding “Abandoned – No Statement Of Use Filed” update on Trademarkia, the game’s trademark has officially lapsed, leading many to presume that the project has indeed been cancelled. Thankfully, this is not necessarily the reason for the update.

As Superannuation detailed through various tweets, the change in status could in fact be nothing more than the game still being far from finished. The Last Guardian received a ‘Notice of Allowance’ in January of 2010 which meant Sony had three years to deliver the product in order to extend the trademark. Having failed to show any signs of a commercial release being possible by January of 2013, the trademark has lapsed and the initially frightening “Abandoned” update has been applied.

It would therefore appear that the project’s drawn-out development is behind this unsettling update. There are other possibilities, such as a change to the game’s name making the trademark redundant or Sony simply forgetting to renew it, and whilst cancellation is amongst them it is not the most likely of explanations.

Those awaiting the follow up to 2005’s Shadow of the Colossus, have had an arduous adventure so far and it doesn’t appear to be ending any time soon – at least not with the conclusion they’re hoping for. With no signs of the game’s release on the horizon it is only news of its cancellation that could bring this journey to a close in the immediate future, and as affecting as what we have seen so far from The Last Guardian has been it would pale in comparison to the emotion such news would almost certainly inspire.

Source: VG247