It’s not the first time the Monster Energy drinks brand has hit out at a developer over word choice, but this is a particularly bad one.

Monster Energy advertises itself as a drink for gamers. You’ve probably noticed it as a sponsor of various events, and it’s even been placed in some games – most notably Death Stranding. However, despite outwardly projecting a brand image for gamers, the company isn’t exactly a fan of video game developers. The energy drink has once again hit out at a developer for using the word “Monster” in the title of a game.

The last time something like this happened was in 2020 when the drink brand clashed with Ubisoft over the name Gods and Monsters – the original name of Immortals Fenix Rising.

At the time, Monster claimed the trademark was too similar and would confuse users. Of course, no one would want confusion to cause someone to flip on a game disc or pour a drink into their console…

This time Monster Energy has decided to take aim at indie developer Glowstick Entertainment. And it’s for the title Dark Deception: Monsters & Mortals. According to founder and CEO Vincent Livings, the excessive settlement terms sent to Glowstick require the studio to refrain from naming any other games with a variation of the word “Monster” in exchange for the right to use the current name.

Livings decided to fight the case rather than give in to Monster Energy’s demands. He also tweeted that he would share whatever he receives from Monster’s lawyers. That way, other developers who are being harassed can learn about their tactics.

“It also forces us to agree to never use a green & white logo on a black background for any game we ever make. So they own the colors green & white too apparently,” Livings tweeted, revealing further demands from the brand.

“Any logo that has a monster style font will be deemed confusingly similar to Monster Energy’s logo. It demands that we never use one for any future games. This means they could demand that we change Dark Deception’s logo as well. It can be applied broadly.” By agreeing to these terms, Dark Deception: Monsters & Mortals will never get a sequel with the word “Monster” in it.

Source: PC Gamer, Twitter

We're getting some press for the legal spat with #MonsterEnergy. This type of ridiculous trademark trolling needs to be exposed. Nobody owns the word "monster". https://t.co/TXD8wGhFfR

— Glowstick Entertainment (@GlowstickEntmt) April 4, 2023

1. It's well known that @MonsterEnergy is a notorious trademark troll. Unfortunately, they're at it again. For a company that likes to target their drinks at gamers, they also like to try to bully & bankrupt game studios with lengthy high dollar litigation. #indiegamedev #gamedev pic.twitter.com/8xvg7iWqQe

— Vincent Livings (@VincentLivings) March 29, 2023