Don't call it a comeback, but Lucasfilm has filed new trademarks for Maniac Mansion, its classic 1987 adventure game.

The trademark filing was extremely (extremely) expansive, ranging from goods like "read-along children's books" to services like "providing news programming in the field of entertainment relating to science fiction over an electronic network." Relevant to our interests, the new mark also references "computer game software and video game software."

Does that mean that LucasFilm or LucasArts plans on revisiting the franchise? Not necessarily. The previous Maniac Mansion trademark had expired, with another still somewhat alive but not applied to much beyond "video games" and manuals. Lucas may just be covering its ass.

At the least, let's hope for a Wii Virtual Console release, with hamster microwaving intact. At best, let's pray for Lucas & Co. to dip into its older IP for something that isn't another Star Wars game.

Maniac Mansion [USPTO]

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