Last December, Sega filed trademarks for the long-dormant IP, Ecco the Dolphin. Read on to find out what this may mean for the franchise!
Sega Revives Ecco IP With Trademark
Ecco The Dolphin Returns
As reported by Gematsu, Sega filed trademarks for Ecco and Ecco the Dolphin late in December last year, sparking rumors that the beloved franchise might be poised for a revival after being dormant for 24 years. The news became public today, following its filing on December 27th, 2024.
First released in 1992 by the Hungarian game development studio Appaloosa Interactive (formerly known as Novotrade International) and published by Sega, Ecco the Dolphin follows the adventures of Ecco, a bottlenose dolphin, who battles extraterrestrial alien threats to save the planet. The series saw four installments up until the year 2000. There was a planned sequel to the 2000 title, Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future, titled Ecco II: Sentinels of the Universe, but the project was abandoned following the decline of the Sega Dreamcast and the eventual discontinuation of the console.
Currently, Sega is a prominent game developer and publisher, while Appaloosa Interactive ceased operations in the mid-2000s. However, its former staff remains active in the video game industry. Notably, Ecco the Dolphin's creator, Ed Annunziata, released a game called Space War Arena in 2019 and has expressed hope for an Ecco sequel in the future. In an interview with NintendoLife in 2019, he stated, "One thing I can say is in the future, people are playing this game. I never give up!"
As of now, there have been no further concrete developments regarding the future of Ecco the Dolphin, so stay tuned for more updates. Nonetheless, it may soon join the extensive list of IPs that Sega is actively working on. Over the past two years, Sega has announced an impressive array of projects, including revivals of classic franchises such as Crazy Taxi, Jet Set Radio, Golden Axe, Shinobi, and Virtua Fighter, as well as new IPs like the mysterious Project Century and the new "RPG-like" Virtua Fighter.
