In a move that could send waves across oceans and reignite interest in a classic franchise, SEGA has trademarked “Ecco the Dolphin” in a batch of trademarks spanning video game software, entertainment services, toys and other merchandise. While it is unclear what SEGA has in mind with Ecco the Dolphin, it is important to note that the last video game came out in 2000.
For those unfamiliar, while the game is about the Dolphin named Ecco, it has one of the wildest premises ever created in gaming. What starts as a simple story of a dolphin searching for his missing pod becomes a cosmic adventure. Seeking answers, he meets Big Blue, an ancient and wise blue whale, who directs him to the Asterite, Earth’s oldest life form who points our hero to the ancient sunken city of Atlantis.
The story goes further into cliche and mystery as Ecco then discovers an alien race called the Vortex, which harvests Earth’s oceans every 500 years to sustain their own planet. A mix of time travel, unique character design, ancient mysteries, and more make Ecco the Dolphin one of the gaming’s most unique stories.
The success of the first game expanded into several sequels and spin-offs. Ecco: The Tides of Time continued the original story in 1994, introducing time travel and new challenges. Ecco Jr. followed in 1995 as an educational game aimed at younger audiences, focusing on marine life and simpler gameplay.
In 2000, SEGA took the bold move and made Ecco in 3D for the first time with Defender of the Future for Dreamcast and PS2. Unfortunately, a planned sequel Ecco II: Sentinels of the Universe was set for release in 2001 but was canceled after the Dreamcast was deemed an epic failure.
Now, SEGA seems poised to bring back the series, following their revival of other classic 90s franchises with a string of remasters and reboots coming out this year. These include Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete, a remake of the 1992 Sega CD game originally released for Sega Saturn in 1996, and later localized for PlayStation in 1999.
Other notable releases are a reboot of Jet Set Radio and the Virtua Fighter 5 REVO re-release, which is set to launch on Steam on January 27, 2025.
What the trademark really means remains to be seen, but there is certainly a community for a new Ecco the Dolphin game. Whether SEGA aims to revisit past games or create something fresh remains unclear, but interest in both the classic 2D games or a new 3D iteration is high. The franchise is still unique in many ways and should be saved from oblivion.
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