A new trademark from Bandai Namco has JRPG fans hopeful that the publisher is planning a Xenosaga trilogy remaster. The trademark is for "Also Sprach Zarathustra," which was the subtitle of Xenosaga: Episode 3, the last game in the series to-date.
While not much is known about why Bandai Namco might trademark Also Sprach Zarathustra, it only makes sense that the company plans to use it for something. However, one has to wonder why the trademark for the subtitle of the third episode has appeared online and not the first two titles.
Of course, Bandai Namco could simply be trying to protect the trademark on one of its titles, but the hope is that this is more than a preventative measure. The most obvious hope is that Bandai is working on a remaster for the full Xenosaga trilogy and this trademark is the first indication of that.
For those that might not be familiar, Xenosaga was a turn-based JRPG series developed by Monolith Soft for the PS2. Its narrative was easily one of the densest and most complex, featuring a diverse cast of characters, tons of lore, and deep combat systems. It is likely the complex narrative that was the make or break selling point of the game, but no doubt Xenosaga had its fair share of fans, who now have the prospect of a remaster on their hands.
Assuming that a remaster is in the works, there are some details that need to be ironed out. First and foremost, the remaster would need a developer, as Monolith Soft is now owned by Nintendo and no longer under the Bandai Namco umbrella. But even if the developer could make things work, Monolith has been going strong with offshoots of the Xenoblade series, so it most likely has a full plate already.
The other thing to consider is what platforms this presumed Xenosaga Trilogy remaster might launch on. When Xenosaga first debuted it was a PS2 exclusive series, until the first two episodes were ported to the Nintendo DS. Hopefully, Bandai would be able to expand the reach of the series by putting the remaster on all platforms, but that’s merely wishful thinking at this point.