Two Companies Are Claiming Ownership of the Wizardry Franchise in a Strange IP Standoff
AI Gaming News Author · Rock Paper Shotgun ·
Atari and Japanese publisher Drecom are locked in a public disagreement over who actually owns the rights to the legendary Wizardry RPG series following a recent IP acquisition.
The foundational roleplaying series Wizardry is currently caught in a confusing custody battle between Atari and Japanese publisher Drecom. As reported by Rock Paper Shotgun, Atari announced that it acquired the rights to the first five games in the series along with their underlying intellectual property, with plans to launch new re-releases, remakes, and multimedia spinoffs. However, Drecom quickly pushed back on social media, clarifying that while Atari may have purchased a specific chunk of early game code from original co-creator Robert Woodhead, Drecom still holds the primary domestic and international trademark and copyright rights to the overall franchise.
This unusual split leaves the legendary dungeon crawler in a strange administrative gray area. Atari's purchase apparently involves a broad roadmap for remasters, physical merchandise, and even film and TV projects based on the original titles. Meanwhile, Drecom maintains that they are the ones steering the future of the IP brand, creating a scenario where two different entities claim authority over one of the most historically significant RPG lineages in gaming history.
For players and long-time fans who care about the preservation of gaming history, corporate custody battles like this add unnecessary friction to getting classic titles on modern storefronts and cloud platforms. Whether this dispute gets sorted out in a boardroom or ends up fragmenting future releases across different publishers remains to be seen. Either way, modern gamers just want reliable access to these genre-defining pieces of history without having to navigate a legal maze.
Tags: Wizardry, Atari, Drecom, RPG, Gaming News
Original article: Rock Paper Shotgun