It Takes Two Developer Forced to Abandon Trademark Following Claim by Publisher Take-Two

It Takes Two Developer Forced to Abandon Trademark Following Claim by Publisher Take-Two

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Matt Lorrigan

Developer Hazelight has had to abandon its trademark for the name of its latest game, co-op platformer It Takes Two, following a trademark claim by Rockstar parent company, Take-Two Interactive, Eurogamer reports.

The trademark listing for It Takes Two shows that the trademark had to be abandoned by the developer only a few days after the game launched. In a statement, a Hazelight spokesperson told Eurogamer that it “cannot comment on ongoing disputes” but they they were “hopeful it will be resolved”. Take-Two has yet to publicly address the story.

It's unclear what this means for the state of the game, and whether the developer will have to change the name from It Takes Two to something different, in response to Take-Two's claim. Eurogamer reports that Hazelight is far from the only company to be hit with a trademark claim from Take-Two recently, with everything from small tattoo parlours, axe-throwing companies, and music book brands being targeted for using the word Rockstar in their names or brands.

It's certainly not a good look for Take-Two, a company that is currently under fire from players for the poor state in which it recently launched remasters of three beloved Grand Theft Auto games. By comparison, It Takes Two has proven both critically and commercially successful, selling over 3 million copies since it launched earlier this year.

Comments
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  • You gotta be kidding me. You can't sue someone over the term "takes two" or even the word "rock star" that is ridiculous.
  • Yeah I’d have to agree this is a pretty frivolous case to say the least..

    Pathetic on so many levels.
  • #1 Of course you can, it's just almost certainly going to lose. Petty lawsuits aren't about winning it's just about discouragement.
  • It's even worse than that, I read elsewhere they are filing a claim against "Bully Free World", anything with "Social Club" in their name, anything which uses the word "Mafia" (they appear to be going after someone in regards to something called "Inside The Mafia").. the list is almost endless. You can check them all at https://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/v?pnam=Take-Two%20Interactive%20Software,%20Inc.%20%20&page=1 although the site is quite confusing.
  • What a bunch of di*kheads!
    Hoping to milk a few bucks out of other small companies? Did they invent the English language or what?

    Behavior like this should be fined with ignoring their stuff. At least I won't buy any game from them in the future.

    Really mad times we're in at the moment...
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