Renegade Studios Sends C&D To Stop Small Creator Using The Word 'Renegade'

Every few years in the TTRPG industry, this happens--a company attempts to prevent others from using certain words in their product names. Normally, that's a trademark issue and perfectly understandable: you can't call your game 'Dungeons & Dragons' for obvious reasons. But sometimes companies call in the lawyers to stop usage of common words or terms which are not trademarks in themselves. Games Workshop and 'space marine' hit mainstream news about 10 years ago, Lone Wolf issued C&Ds over the term 'army builder' in 2010, and now Renegade Game Studios--which makes a number of licensed TTRPGs such as Transformers, GI Joe, and Vampire: The Masquerade--has apparently laid claim to the word 'renegade'. This often results in the Streisand Effect and has the opposite result to that intended.

The Polyhedral Knights had a recent Kickstarter for a game called 'Renegade City' which is billed as a tabletop RPG where you play criminals, and uses dominoes rather than dice. According to Cannibal Halfling Gaming, a couple of days ago The Polyhedral Knights received a letter from Renegade Game Studios' lawyers demanding that they remove the word 'Renegade' from the title of the game.

“Unfortunately, your use of the term “Renegade” in the title of your new game creates the likelihood that consumers might be confused between our client’s games and your game, or believe that the two are connected or affiliated. The likelihood of confusion is particularly acute because you are using the “Renegade” element on the identical types of products that are sold by Renegade, and you are both selling to the same types of consumers in the same market channels. As such, Renegade must ask that you agree to rename your game to remove the “Renegade” element. As such, Renegade must ask that you agree to rename your game to remove the “Renegade” element.”

Renegade Game Studios has allegedly threatened to issue a trademark complaint to Kickstarter (although the campaign is over, so it's a little late for that!) unless The Polyhedral Knights complies by June 23rd.

Mickey Barfield, the creator of Renegade City, spoke to Cannibal Halfling Gaming a couple of days ago:

“It really caught me off guard and frankly upset me. I am blown away at how they can think that my game title “Renegade City” will take away from them in any shape or fashion. Our Kickstarter is about to end in 9 hours [3:08 PM EDT] and we just now get this? I’m still pretty hurt over this. It seems like if they are willing to go after me over something like this, then what is stopping another company like Wizards of the Coast from going after some other company cause the word Wizard is used in a title of a book or game? It’s crazy.”

The news first broke on Twitter when Sprinting Owl Designs reported that "a designer I've previously worked with (The Polyhedral Knights) reports that he just got cease and desisted by Renegade Game Studios (Hunter 5e, GI Joe) for having the word 'renegade' in his game's title."

 

[Abstruse]

That was my reading of their post as well. However, if Rockstar did do that, all Renegade studio has to do is say “Wrong company. That’s not us”. And it would be the end of it for them. No need to send a C&D. This is bad PR. And a poor excuse.

Exactly. And frankly, if I was an executive at Rockstar, I'd be more angry over this. This is basically saying they think the Rockstar executives are so stupid, they'd see a game titled "Renegade City" and assume that the company that made it was Renegade Game Studio rather than, you know, the company whose name is on the product and Kickstarter campaign.

 

[kenmarable]

Renegade’s intent is only to protect its brand and prevent any direct or indirect confusion. In this specific case, the game in question bares an extremely strong resemblance to an intellectual property not owned or licensed by Renegade Game Studios. Even an accidental affiliation, today or in the future, is something we would prefer to avoid. Our intent was to prevent any such confusion well before any issues arise and while there is still time to make changes before their production begins.

I hope any lawyers who advised you that this was legally necessary charged discount rates. This is actually somehow even more nonsensical than the previously assumed reasoning and I'd hate to think you paid full price for that legal advice!

 

[Autumnal]

I presume that an actual statement by Renegade Game Studio would have passed through the hands of someone who knows how to spell “bears”.

 

[MGibster]

Also, classic rock band Styx has been forbidden from playing the 1978 hit "Renegade" in future live performances at State Fairs and on cruise ships.

They've just retitled the song to Apostate.

The jig is up/
The news is out/
They finally found me/
The apostate who had it made/
Retrieved for a bounty/

Does anyone remember when Palladium was sent a C&D from Todd McFarlan for their RPG Nightspawn? I can't remember if it was a trademark or copyright infringement claim, but McFarlan didn't appreciate that they used the word spawn so Palladium renamed the game Nightbreed.

 

[Dire Bare]

Renegade’s intent is only to protect its brand and prevent any direct or indirect confusion. In this specific case, the game in question bares an extremely strong resemblance to an intellectual property not owned or licensed by Renegade Game Studios. Even an accidental affiliation, today or in the future, is something we would prefer to avoid. Our intent was to prevent any such confusion well before any issues arise and while there is still time to make changes before their production begins.

Sorry, but this action has lost me as a customer.

I already have your Transformer RPG core book, and was thinking about the GI Joe one as well. Also the related card games, and the new printings of Axis & Allies. My group is thinking about starting a Vampire game and I was going to try and convince them to go with the latest rules . . . .

Not anymore.

I'm just one dude, no big loss to your bottom line. Just one grain of sand . . . . but I think this incredibly tone deaf and unethical legal attack is going to cost you more than it gains in the long run.

 

[Dire Bare]

I presume that an actual statement by Renegade Game Studio would have passed through the hands of someone who knows how to spell “bears”.

I'm really unhappy with Renegade Game Studio right now, and not super impressed with @ScottG's response here, but . . . . lets not grammar police small, meaningless spelling errors. Jeesh.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Exactly. And frankly, if I was an executive at Rockstar, I'd be more angry over this. This is basically saying they think the Rockstar executives are so stupid, they'd see a game titled "Renegade City" and assume that the company that made it was Renegade Game Studio rather than, you know, the company whose name is on the product and Kickstarter campaign.

Yup. If I were Rockstar, I’d be thinking, “We don’t need another unrelated company sending a C&D to someone because they THINK we might get upset and confuse them.”

That’s….presumptuous.

 

[overgeeked]

Sad but not surprising. People with power bully people with less power all the time. It’s really too bad. Glad this is blowing up in their faces.

 

[Haiku Elvis]

While it is true companies do have to protect trademarks it is abused as an excuse for so much overreach. Especially when it can be done fairly and appropriately.
See the below for a company pursuing a valid trademark issue reasonably.

Percy Pig ice cream renamed after 'polite' M&S request

 

[hunter1828]

It took a minute, but I figured it out. They want TPK to remove the word renegade because they're afraid that Rockstar Games will mistakenly go after RGS for the infringement, not because they just oppose having the word in the title.

Naw, Rock*Star is too busy ignoring Red Dead Online to notice...