Konami might have something planned for its classic shmups, as the company has filed for new trademarks on three classic series, including the SNES gem Axelay. Axelay was first released in 1992 and would be developed by some of the same talent that would later leave Konami to form Treasure, and remains a classic even without the sequel the game ending teased.
Konami also renewed a trademark for the Parodius series, namely for Gokujou Parodius Da!. This title derives from the Parodius Da/Gokujou double-pack released on the PS1 (1994) and Saturn (1995).
For those unfamiliar, the Parodius series started on the MSX in 1988, and was seen as a parody of Konami’s Gradius franchise and over over time, would lampoon other IP from the company, including Antarctic Adventure, Castlevania, s, Ganbare Goemon, Tokimeki Memorial, TwinBee and Xexex.
Speaking of Xexex, Konami also filed a new trademark on that title as well. Also known as Orius, the game was first released in 1991 and was noted for its similarity to Irem’s R-Type and X-Multiply games, and received an Arcade Archives port in 2021 for Switch and PS4.
This could just be routine trademark renewals, but the fact that Xexex/orius recently got an Arcade Archives release makes us wonder.
