rebranding
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'H1Z1' has a new name and old mechanics
H1Z1 got somewhat left behind as rival battle royale games like Fortnite, Apex Legends and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds exploded in popularity over the last year or so. Its player numbers dwindled and the H1Z1 Pro League didn't even finish its first season due to a lack of interest. Back in September, a different development team took over as Daybreak Game Company revealed the title would be renamed Z1 Battle Royale (or Z1BR). The rebranding is now official as of today, as a wealth of updates arrive in a major patch.
Seven corporate rebrand attempts even worse than 'Oath'
Now that the Verizon-AOL-Yahoo! merger is finally nearing its completion, AOL CEO Tim Armstrong took to social media on Monday to unveil the combined organization's new name: Oath. No, seriously. They're calling it Oath. Yeah, like the promise. No, I don't know why either, but that distant rumbling you hear? That's the sound of the revamped moniker being ruthlessly dragged through Twitter by innumerable hot takes.
Logitech attempts an image makeover
When someone says "Logitech," we're sure the first things that pop into your head are boring computer mice (zzz), keyboards (zzzzz) and other peripherals (snore). Well, the company's likely attempting to look more in vogue, especially to the younger crowd, because it's reinventing itself with a new logo and an overall more colorful design. It's also launching a new label for its latest categories (probably including its non-computer accessories) called "Logi." Unfortunately, the company hasn't revealed more details besides the "Logi" name, but we're sure you'll be seeing products under the new label soon enough. Any brand can benefit from having a distinct personality -- just look at Apple and how easy it is to identify its products -- so it's easy to see why Logitech wants to be more memorable. Only time can tell, though, if this makeover can make an impact.
Frozen Endzone now Frozen Cortex, original name 'a bit rubbish'
Mode 7's upcoming turn-based strategy game is now Frozen Cortex and no longer Frozen Endzone, after the developer admitted a rebrand was necessary. In a frank blog post, the Frozen Synapse creator revealed its reasons for the change, one being "the original name was a bit rubbish and we got bored of it." Mode 7 also introduced Mac and Linux versions this week in an update to the Steam Early Access release, as well as "significant" aesthetic changes. The studio added it believes the game looks better in its new guise, and that the original name was tied to perception of a "Madden game with robots."
You Don't Know Jack maker Jellyvision becomes Jackbox Games
Jellyvision Games has been making variations of You Don't Know Jack for a while now, which is of course the irreverant and very popular trivia game. The title originally began as a series of PC and Mac games, though, of course, Jellyvision has taken the series to consoles, and then more recently to Facebook and iOS. Now, after nearly 20 years of work, the company has decided to rebrand itself, and Jellyvision is going to become Jackbox Games. The new branding makes a lot of sense: It definitely allows the company to focus on You Don't Know Jack and that brand, and it sets the company up as a multiplatform studio. Jellyvision always was, but this should give Jackbox a chance to do more with the upcoming next-generation platforms, as well as other devices like Roku and Ouya. Additionally, Jackbox has two more upcoming apps to release, in addition to the recent Lie Swatter. It is sort of a bummer to see a longtime brand pass on. But Jackbox is doing good work, and hopefully it'll be able to build an even stronger reputation with its new identity. Show full PR text JELLYVISION GAMES, MAKERS OF YOU DON'T KNOW JACK, RE-BRANDS AS JACKBOX GAMES Indie Trivia Game Developer Expands into New IP and New Generation Publishing, including Ouya CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – June 5, 2013 – Independent developer Jellyvision Games today announced its re-branding initiative with the new moniker: Jackbox Games. After nearly two decades of entertaining players with their landmark YOU DON'T KNOW JACK franchise, the former PC and console developer has expanded into a full-fledged new-generation publisher for multiple games on social and mobile platforms, Roku, and now Ouya. "The rebranding of our studio represents the completion of an evolution," said Mike Bilder, GM. "Today, Jackbox Games not only has the creative and technical resources to make great games, but we're seizing on the opportunity presented by new generation platforms to bring more games to market ourselves - however and wherever they best fit." In May 2012, YOU DON'T KNOW JACK was launched on Facebook as the studio's first social title, and it was met with critical acclaim – winning SPIKE TV's "Social Game of the Year." December 2012 saw the launch of the franchise on mobile, starting with iOS, and last spring the first new IP from the publisher hit the market in the form of Lie Swatter™. Last week, Ouya announced that the YOU DON'T KNOW JACK franchise will be ported to the Android-powered console platform as a launch title. The studio has also announced two upcoming apps for 2013: Clone Booth™ and Word Puttz™. "The big payoff for us has always been the engagement people feel when playing YOU DON'T KNOW JACK, which is really born out of our commitment to innovative design, top-notch writing, and high production values," said Harry Gottlieb, founder. "Our move to self-publishing on all these new platforms really frees us up to make a whole lot more of the kinds of games we like to play and to get them into the hands of the players who really want them." The Chicago-based studio has reached critical and commercial success since its 1995 introduction. The studio has sold more than five million units of YDKJ for PC and console. Last year, there were 3.5 million installs of YDKJ through Facebook, IOS and Android. The company's products have been showered with praise and hold more than 50 industry awards including the aforementioned SPIKE TV award and 2013 "Best Trivia Game" from the Best App Ever awards. As a mid-sized independent developer, the team has produced numerous significant industry innovations. YOU DON'T KNOW JACK was one of first games to use writing and audio to provide fully interactive gameplay, where players experience direct interaction with a virtual host. And now the studio has incorporated its brands directly into mid-sized games, previously the exclusive domain of mammoth publishers, expanding the independent monetization model.
Google Play Android redesign and Babel chat branding surface on Google+
Google I/O may still be a solid month away, but folks on Mountain View's social network are already stumbling across leaks and notifications hinting at what might be in store. Google Play's 4.0 redesign, for instance, briefly appeared on a YouTube employee's profile before being deleted, matching the holo-themed leak we saw last month. The update shows a landing page we didn't see in the previous walkthrough, and includes a message introducing the redesign that promises to make it "easier to browse and discover new favorites." Google's rumored Babel chat rebranding is making the rounds too, apparently surfacing in Gmail when certain messages are moved to trash. Neither are surefire announcements for I/O, but the timing is about right. Skip on past the break for a screen grab of the Babel notification.
Sony Mobile rebranding quietly begins, changes to roll out over the next month
With the assimilation of Ericsson's wireless stake now neatly a footnote in its corporate history, Sony's moving on and making its newfound freedom known -- albeit quietly. According to a rep for the company, its first rebranding baby steps began just last night, with the former SonyEricsson portal now redirecting to SonyMobile.com. Other related properties, like its social networking extensions and various related digital properties, are also slated to make the transition throughout March, with further announcements planned for Mobile World Congress next week. We'll be there live in just a few days, so stay tuned. In the meanwhile, hit up the source below to see synergy at its finest.[Thanks, Kevin]
Land of Chaos Online rebranding as LOCO: Evolution
Land of Chaos Online is one of a large number of games that's close to being a full MMORPG but isn't quite there. The team behind the game at alaplaya has had its sights on a more full-featured experience for a while. Later this year, the game will be launching a huge update dubbed LOCO: Evolution, which is adding new elements of persistence together with several new character types and a new faction for players to explore. The update promises to add a persistent town in the form of Arhonnas, complete with the usual staff of NPCs. The addition of a third faction to the game pushes conflicts into a struggle between Heaven, Hell, and Nature, with players caught in the middle. And aside from that, there will be new gameplay types to explore, new areas to look through, and several other quality-of-life improvements. The update should be release later this year, but until then you can take a gander at the teaser trailer after the break. [Source: alaplaya press release]
Gateway TP Series A60 tablet pops up at Future Shop, cops Iconia Tab A500's style
We weren't exactly thrilled with Acer's 10.1-inch Iconia Tab A500, but that hasn't stopped Gateway from re-skinning the Honeycomb slate and claiming it for its own. Appearing to be a re-branded versions of the A500, the Gateway A60 comes with 16GB of built-in storage, 1GB RAM, a dual-core 1GHz Tegra 2 processor, a five megapixel rear-facing camera and front-facing two megapixel snapper, 802.11b/g/n WiFi connectivity and the list goes on. Just like its brother from another mother, this Gateway will set you back $399, and while we can't guarantee that it will perform the same, we'd suggest taking a look at our A500 review before shelling out those clams. [Thanks, Bir Bikram Dey]
Picasa, Blogger to get renamed: now with more Google?
Google's reportedly trying to put all of its product eggs into one self-branded basket. According to Mashable, two of its most popular services -- Picasa and Blogger -- may go under the branding knife and come out the other side looking like 'Google Photos' and 'Google Blogs.' With the exception of the latter's planned UI overhaul, both services should function exactly the same. The move -- alleged to take place within the next six weeks -- would unify the search king's user offerings ahead of the public launch of Google+. And if that social service's rumored July 31st launch date pans out, we could be seeing this overhaul very soon. But don't expect crown jewel YouTube to receive similar treatment, that site's brand equity already sent its ugly step-sister -- Google Video -- to the grave.
Nokia slams door on Ovi label, rebranding everything to Nokia Services
Nokia's Ovi Store, Ovi Maps, and Ovi everything else will soon be getting a name change. The Finnish company has announced that it's "evolving" its software brand identity by renaming its service offerings to Nokia services, starting with new devices in July and August. This transition is expected to last into 2012 and was pretty much inevitable in the wake of Nokia's hookup with Microsoft earlier this year. Part of that agreement was for Nokia software, Maps in particular, to be made available in other Windows Phone devices and across Microsoft's range of services, so it makes sense for Nokia to literally put its name on its wares. Nothing structural will be changing about software roadmaps or plans up in Finland, this will be just a new nameplate atop the same strategy as outlined previously.
Ether Saga Odyssey officially launches
Some updates are too big to just write the whole thing off as a patch. Ether Saga Odyssey has just launched today... and if the name looks more than passingly familiar, it's because up until very recently the game was Ether Saga Online. Perfect World Entertainment has re-branded the game with a new title to commemorate the groundswell of content added with this update, including new races, new starting areas, and a brand-new graphics engine for the game. But the launch festivities don't stop with the new title -- there are plenty of other events and rewards to kick off the rebranding. For starters, experience gained will be doubled for the weekend, which should help new players bring characters up to level 30 faster than ever. That's a good thing, as new characters who hit 30 will receive special rewards, as will players who stay logged in for an extended period of time. The promotions end on May 4th, so if you're itching to give the new Ether Saga Odyssey a try, now is the time.
THQ logo revamped for a new focus on 'innovation and creativity'
You know that old, silly THQ logo? The one where it looks like the letters are going high speed? That is now, officially, old and busted. As seen above, the publisher unveiled its new logo (aka "the new hotness") this morning, with company head Brian Farrell noting, "Our new logo epitomizes the change, innovation and creative growth that are the cornerstones of the new THQ." Farrell is of course speaking to the past few years of major changes at THQ, kicked off with the hiring of core games VP Danny Bilson in early 2008 and followed by several successful business choices in the subsequent years -- everything from achieving cost-cutting goals early on to brokering deals with top talent. The new logo will start making retail product appearances this February and "will be rolled out over the next few months" in other venues. Goodbye speedy THQ logo, hello crazy future-font THQ logo!
Ntreev rebranding as SG Interactive
Ntreev USA, the publisher behind free-to-play titles Grand Chase, Pangya, and Trickster Online, has announced a corporate rebranding as well as new games and an online portal. In a press release made public earlier today, Ntreev revealed that it has changed its name to SG Interactive and will be expanding to offer new online games and services through a portal that is scheduled to launch early next year. The portal will focus on existing F2P titles as well as several new games, the details of which will be announced before the end of 2010. SG Interactive, originally founded as Ntreev in 2006 and located in Southern California, was recently acquired by SmileGate, the Korean publisher responsible for Cross Fire. Be on the lookout for a Massively interview with SG Interactive coming soon.
AT&T announces expensive rebranding (sigh)
Stung by Verizon ads, and a slew of unhappy customers, AT&T is doing what most companies with image problems do: Fix their problems. Get a new logo. A new color scheme. New ads. "All of our communications across all of these channels is 'Rethink Possible' and this integration of design," Esther Lee, AT&T's senior vice president for brand marketing and advertising, said in an interview with Advertising Age magazine. It's reported that AT&T, which is one of the country's five biggest advertisers, spent $1.87 billion on marketing and advertising last year. The new company slogan, "Rethink Possible" is supposed to alert us that nothing is impossible if you are an AT&T customer. Right. I'm really enjoying that tethering. I guess "expanding the boundaries of 'can'" actually adds in a few values of "cannot." One good outcome of all of this is that the Luke Wilson ads will be going away. AT&T still seems tight with Apple, but if the iPhone does wind up going to Verizon then things might rapidly change. I've really never understood these re-branding exercises. Me: "Hey Mary, I know you hate AT&T but they have a new logo now." Mary: "Great, I'm going to drop my Verizon plan today and hook up with AT&T. And the color changes? Breathtaking!" You can get some samples of the new campaign at the AT&T website. I'm glad to hear how much AT&T is spending to upgrade its network. It still doesn't work in my house, but of course AT&T is quite happy to sell me a hardware doo-dad so that I can use my own internet bandwidth to get access to the AT&T network. Thanks for that one.
Nokia phones will still Come with Music, only stores see rebranding
If you live in India, our story was correct -- your mobile subscription music service will be called "Ovi," and no longer carry the weight of the cumbersome Comes with Music branding -- but we're hearing that in other Nokia territories, including the UK, that's not quite the case. Nokia UK told Pocket-lint that while the company's online music store will indeed be renamed "Ovi Music" across all 22 territories this year, the Comes with Music service is here (and there) to stay. To tell you the truth, though, we're not that interested in the fate of a brand name. We'd prefer if Nokia made a more ballsy move -- like discontinuing their service's most controversial feature, Comes with DRM.
NVIDIA GeForce GT 340 highlights introduction of 300-series cards, none are powerful enough to matter
Is there a tribunal where you can bring up marketing teams for crimes against common sense? NVIDIA's epic rebranding exercise knows no bounds, as the company has now snuck out its very first desktop 300-series cards, but instead of the world-altering performance parts we've always associated with the jump into the 300s, we're getting what are essentially GT 2xx cards in new garb. The GT 340 sports the same 96 CUDA cores, 550MHz graphics and 1,340MHz processor clock speeds as the GT 240 -- its spec sheet is literally identical to the 240 variant with 1,700MHz memory clocks. To be fair to the company, these DirectX 10.1 parts are exclusively for OEMs, so (hopefully) nobody there will be confused into thinking a GT 320 is better than a GTX 295, but we'd still prefer a more lucid nomenclature... and Fermi graphics cards, we'd totally like some of those too.
The Shack, short on money for new signs, asks for your help
Like the rest of America, we've gotten some serious LOLs out of Radio Shack's current bid for relevance. But, as you know, rebranding comes at a price -- all those new signs excising the word "Radio" from the chain's storefronts aren't exactly cheap, you know. That said, we were equally amused and annoyed by today's email blast urging consumers to carry around little pieces of paper with the word "THE" printed on it. That way, you can obscure the offending noun whenever you find yourself within close proximity of one of these signs -- saving the company money on signage and increasing brand recognition in one bold move. Still unclear of the concept? Get yourself detailed instructions after the break, or hit up that read link to catch some rockin' videos on the company's Facebook page... and prepare to be underwhelmed.
Radio Shack rebranding to 'The Shack'?
tweetmeme_url = 'http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/02/radio-shack-rebranding-to-the-shack/'; tweetmeme_source = 'engadget'; Details are a bit light on this one, but thanks to a tipster and some chatter we picked up on the interblogs, it looks like Radio Shack may be about to undergo a pretty noticeable rebranding. The above image was taken from a terminal within a store, and while it's not completely clear if this is a short-term promotional push or long-term strategy (apparently the company will remain Radio Shack on the corporate side), our tipster says that in-store signs will reflect the change this week, and storefront signage will begin to be reworked as "The Shack" sometime later this year. When you think about it, it makes perfect sense -- radios aren't exactly considered cutting edge these days, and from the sounds of things, the store is about to launch a full assault on the mobile space, bringing T-Mobile into the fold this month, and attempting to cover the gamut on cellphone reselling. Still, we're not sure "The Shack" is the right direction... unless they wanted us to immediately picture a remote location where very, very bad things happen. Update: Apparently we're not the only ones talking about this -- someone has added detailed info on the rebranding to the company's Wikipedia page. According to the writeup, the switch will kick off with celebrations "in San Francisco and New York featuring '14 foot tall laptops' streaming the images from their webcams from one city to the other, live music in both locations, as well as television coverage of the event." Uh, okay! Update 2: Guess they weren't kidding. Here's the promo page on Radio Shack's site. Thanks Ellis D.!
Mortal Kombat team sheds Midway skin for 'WB Games Chicago'
Picked up by Warner Bros. in the auctioning off of Midway Games' assets, the development studio behind the Mortal Kombat franchise has seemingly been re-branded by its new corporate overlords. Superannuation spotted the info in the LinkedIn profile of Connie Gabelein, a human resources employee currently with Warner Bros. and formerly with Midway (and apparently never part of the management that was recently let go from the failed publisher). Ms. Gabelein lists her position as a "recruiter/HR generalist for the WB Game family of studios, which includes Monolith Productions, Surreal Software, Snowblind Studios and WB Games Chicago."Furthermore, former Midway CTO/now "head of WB Games Chicago" Michael Weilbacher's LinkedIn profile seems to corroborate our suspicions. We've contacted Warner Bros. and Midway for comment and will update this post with more information as we get it. Source 1 - SuperannuationSource 2 - LinkedIn Profile of Connie GabeleinSource 3 - LinkedIn Profile of Michael Weilbacher
