Activision Looks to Trademark “Drum Hero.” “Bass Hero” Gets No Play, As Usual

Will Activision’s next “Hero” game focus on the plight of the drummer? It’d appear that way from a recent trademark filing for “Drum Hero” by the megapublisher. We can’t yet say that Activision has trademarked Drum Hero, as an examining attorney isn’t yet on the case. But Activision’s looking for the name to affect toys, handheld games with LCD displays (read: iPhone, PSP and Nintendo DS), arcade and coin-operated games, toy drums, action figures (What?) and a “handheld unit for playing electronic games.” As Kotaku notes, the trademark filing doesn’t necessarily mean Drum Hero is in the pipeline. Activision could just be locking down potential pairings of the word “Hero” with musical concepts to prevent imitations. And trademarking “Hero” alone would probably prove too difficult.

Keep in mind that Activision trademarked “Guitar Villain” and “Drum Villain” in 2007, perhaps for the same reason, as we’ve heard nothing to suggest that those games are in the works. Heck, the very idea of a Guitar Villain is beyond my imagination, unless it involves Creed. Though I do find it odd that those trademarks include software and downloadable games, while that language isn’t mentioned in the “Drum Hero” trademark filing. Something’s afoot, and with next year’s music game slate looking pretty clean, I have a feeling we’ll hear more soon enough. [USPTO via Kotaku]