Game News Shivering Isles - Oblivion expansion?

[Vault Dweller]

Tags: Bethesda Softworks

I've received an anonymous tip from my Bethesda buddies to check the name "Shivering Isles". Turns out that Zenimax Media did some trademark shopping 3 weeks ago: <a href=http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=m5p0aa.2.1>Shivering Isles</a> and <a href=http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=m5p0aa.3.2>Knights of the Nine</a>.
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<blockquote>Word Mark SHIVERING ISLES
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Goods and Services IC 009. US 021 023 026 036 038. G & S: Computer game programs; providing downloadable computer game programs offered via handheld computers, wireless telephones and mobile and wireless devices
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IC 041. US 100 101 107. G & S: Providing online computer games; providing online computer game programs offered via handheld computers, wireless telephones and mobile and wireless devices
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Filing Date August 17, 2006
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Owner (APPLICANT) ZeniMax Media Inc. CORPORATION DELAWARE 1370 Piccard Drive Rockville MARYLAND 20850</blockquote>Let the speculations begin.
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[Andyman Messiah]

Inside scoop, eh? I like it.

Shivering Isles sounds like it's either a new dungeron with some new piece of equipment to retrieve or it's a new house to buy, fill with stuff and never set foot in ever again. 'Course, it might also be just a bunch of shivering isles with ghosts and skeletons. A dungeon, just not IN a dungeon. It's inventive.

Knights of the Nine can be a new faction or group with a religious twist or whatever. Isn't "the nine" the god collective in Elder Scrolls?

 

[NoisyKillerHPB]

Well are the names of the awful add-ons trademarked the same way?

 

[Andyman Messiah]

Heh, maybe it's expansion pack time?

 

[Vault Dweller]

Well are the names of the awful add-ons trademarked the same way?

No.

 

[Elwro]

OMFG I got it! If you buy 9 official mods, you can become a member of the "Knights of the Nine" faction. It's located on the Shivering Isles, which will be introduced in the tenth official mod. If you don't buy it, all NPCs in the game will flood you with messages telling you about it. But when you buy it, you'll no longer be happy as a "Knight of the Nine", because you'll feel as if you deserve a bigger number in your title. This'll give you the incentive to buy the 11th official mod... the possibilities are endless! It's a pure goldmine!

 

[Andyman Messiah]

The more you spend, the more bad-ass you get!

 

[denizsi]

providing downloadable computer game programs

Those mods couldn't be categorized as computer game programs, right? Coupled with:

Well are the names of the awful add-ons trademarked the same way?

No.

Beth is going to put the RP in handheld G base; ahwsum!

 

[DarkUnderlord]

Knights of the Nine: Something about that Nine Divines faction everyone's been asking for.

Shivering Isles: Snowy terrain and an attempt to make up for the fact that anything underwater in Oblivion is bland and lifeless, like the rest of the game. Whilst in Morrowind, there were some pretty cool underwater locations, in Oblivion there's nothing. Oh by the way, underwater was so neglected that light spells don't even work! Torches I can understand but not even a spell of light will illuminate the murky depths.

Oblivion: Sorry, we blew our budget on the forest.

 

[denizsi]

Notice the similarity of the 'Goods and Services' definition found in "The Elder Scrolls Travels"

Computer game programs; computer game programs offered via handheld computers, wireless telephones and wireless devices.

Also, apparently none of the games' patents include the rights to pressed media like books and comic books. Does this mean that if I wrote a TES book or made a TES comic and sell it, they wouldn't have any legal grounds to sue me for copyright infringement?

 

[PennyAnte]

There are references to developments in the Black Marsh in the dialogue NPCs exchange with each other, as well as references to the same among Nords in Skyrim. Perhaps Knights is an expansion involving an expedition into the Black Marsh, with Shivering Isles having something to do with Skyrim (because it's, um, cold there). Not sure if expansions would do much to open new provinces though.

(edited to fix a typo.)

 

[Romanian_Dude2005]

Knights of the Nine: Something about that Nine Divines faction everyone's been asking for.

Notice the word "Knights", not "Priests" or just "Nine Divines" which basicly means that there's going to be another combat faction with a linear storyline in which you'll have to make Rambo look like Ghandi.

There are references to developments in the Black Marsh in the dialogue NPCs exchange with each other, as well as references to the same among Nords in Skyrim. Perhaps Knights is an expansion involving an expeditions into the Black Marsh, with Shivering Isles having something to do with Skyrim (because it's, um, cold there). Not sure if expansions would do much to open new provinces though.

Or maybe a spinoff, there are speculations about "Eye of Argonia" becoming a sequel to Redguard. The Morrowind expansions weren't mentioned in the games dialog, the only international things the NPCs talked about were about the unrest in the Imperial City which lead to curent day Oblivion.

I'm not saying that I'm 100% right but an expansion should be unrelated to anything in the curent game, so that it's not mandatory to finish the storyline in order to progess to the expansion storyline.

 

[DarkUnderlord]

Also, apparently none of the games' patents include the rights to pressed media like books and comic books. Does this mean that if I wrote a TES book or made a TES comic and sell it, they wouldn't have any legal grounds to sue me for copyright infringement?

Copyright != Trademark and unless there were marked differences (IE: presuming you don't make a TES comic but a comic about something else entirely and call it TES) then they'd have plenty of grounds to sue your arse.

 

[Mantra_n]

wow so i guess they're ramping up with two expansions at the same time eh? hmmm two half expansions you have to pay for separately? what better way to make money?

and if you don't like it you have no right right to complain, you had a choice! you just chose poorly eh I'm sure they'll at least look good.

 

[Bradylama]

If PennyAnte is onto something, then I'm pretty dissapointed. The Black Marsh sounded like a neat place in the handbook to the Empire, I'd hate to see them take the location and fuck it up. Maybe they'll waste more money trying to create convincing swamps.

 

[jiujitsu]

It'll be Oblivion with pirates.

 

[Micmu]

Nah, it has definitively nothing to do with oblivion. It's just not the trademark creative bethesdian name, like green road, gold coast, yellow cave, pink forest...

 

[Goliath]

Vault Dweller why are you so obsessed with Oblivion? It is a stupid action game which according to your own review makes a terrible RPG. So why do you spam RPG Codex with Oblivion threads left and right?

Is any Oblivion mod (horse armour hooray!) and even wild speculation about the possible title of a possible expansion of a certainly not very RPGish action game Codex news?!
Personally, I am sick to death of all this Oblivion crap that is certainly not the stuff that attacts me to the codex!

I am the only one who feels this way?

 

[Micmu]

It is a stupid action game

Personally, I am sick to death of all this Oblivion crap that is certainly not the stuff that attacts me to the codex!

Ditto, man, ditto.
Don't forget the retards who keep starting up threads about oblivion's (not)shittiness in General RPG discussion and how they were like totally banned from their boards.

 

[Bradylama]

It's relevant information to Fallout and Elder Scrolls fans. The difference is this one is actually like a news post instead of another Todd Howard said something followed by snide remark.

Obsessing with ESF is old as shit, but I'm both a Fallout and TES fan myself, so I can't really complain.

 

[Lumpy]

Two new Elder Scrolls Travels (mobile games) perhaps?
Knights of the Nine should be the Knightly Order dedicated to the church which you could join in Daggerfall.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Vault Dweller why are you so obsessed with Oblivion?

I'm not.

It is a stupid action game which according to your own review makes a terrible RPG. So why do you spam RPG Codex with Oblivion threads left and right?

Spam the Codex left and right? What are you talking about? I don't post any Oblivion threads in the General RPG section and as for the News section, well, it hardly needs an explanation.

Is any Oblivion mod (horse armour hooray!) and even wild speculation about the possible title of a possible expansion of a certainly not very RPGish action game Codex news?!

Two recently registered trademarks are not wild speculations.

Personally, I am sick to death of all this Oblivion crap that is certainly not the stuff that attacts me to the codex!

What does attract you to the Codex? What kind of discussions do you like? Go ahead, start a thread that fits your preferences, don't just sit and bitch.

 

[denizsi]

Two new Elder Scrolls Travels (mobile games) perhaps?

Probably. I don't understand how can people assume that they are new mods. They can't be expansion(s) because the names are too shitty for expansions even for Bethesda. Spinoffs obviously.

Here are the "Goods & Services" descriptions of the Travels series and mobile Oblivion:

Computer game programs; computer game programs offered via handheld computers, wireless telephones and wireless devices.

COMPUTER GAME PROGRAMS; COMPUTER GAME PROGRAMS OFFERED VIA HANDHELD COMPUTERS, WIRELESS TELEPHONES AND WIRELESS DEVICES

Computer game programs; providing downloadable computer game programs offered via handheld computers, wireless telephones and mobile and wireless devices

compared to the "G&S" descriptions found in PC/Console TES games and expansions:

Computer game programs

Computer game programs

Computer game programs

Computer game programs

COMPUTER GAME PROGRAMS (it's written in caps there. I just copy&paste.)

Computer game programs

And as VD said, none of the official mods are registered.

Interestingly, Battlespire, Stormhold and Dawnstar have no registration record, except for Dawnstar by someone else as a "series of books".

 

[Lumpy]

Right - so, mobile games, I guess.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Oblivion: Computer game programs was abandoned and replaced with Oblivion: Computer game programs; providing downloadable computer game programs offered via handheld computers, wireless telephones and mobile and wireless devices.

In other words, it's too early to conclude that the new names are for handheld games. Seems to be a standard "just in case" business practice these days.