Wizards of the Coast could revive Netrunner

A classic collection card game created by the creator of magic: The Gathering could return soon. Earlier this summer, Wizards of the Coast presented a new brand application for netrunner, a collection card game originally created by Richard Garfield. The presentation of the trademark suggests that Wizards of the Coast is looking to change netrunner in some kind of mobile game, since the presentation is for the categories of electronic downloadable games that will be used in connection with computers, console play devices and Wireless devices . Wizards of the Coast recently opened several digital studies, so this registered trademark could be linked to the aggressive digital plans of the company.

Netrunner was created as a derivative of the cyberpunk 2020 RPG and focused on a battle between a solitary hacker (Runner) and a megacorporation (Corp). The card game was unique in the sense that it was asymmetric: the sides of the letter Corp used letters totally different from those of the runner, and each side had different goals that complete to win.

Wizards of the Coast netrunner products from 1996 to 1999. Fantasy Flight Games with license netrunner in 2012 for its android: Netrunner Living Letters Game, which published from 2012 to 2018. Since then, netrunner has lived thanks to the letters created by Fans and continuous game online. Both the original netrunner game and android: Netrunner received widespread praise, which led to the game to cultivate a dedicated fan base and ongoing game despite the fact that 3 years have passed from a netrunner the liberation came out. It is noted that while netrunner originally took place at the cyberpunk 2020 universe, Wizards of the Coast retained the rights and trademark of netrunner, while R. TalsoRian Games maintained the rights over the cyberpunk RPG, which finally led to the recent adaptation of the Video game Cyberpunk 2077.

It is also observed that Wizards of the Coast recently announced a new Ciberpunk song Magic: The Gathering Set called Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty. While Kamigawa (and Magic: The Gathering as a whole) has no links with netrunner, the time of the June presentation and the August ad seems a bit unusual.

The presentations of trademarks are not so unusual, but it is observed that Wizards of the Coast had to present them with good faith, which means that they can not simply present the trademark to avoid another person to use it. Hopefully, we'll see what Wizards has reserved soon.