Stalcraft: X Renamed to Stalzone After Trademark Issues
The name change resolves a trademark conflict with Blizzard and aligns the game's title with its current extraction-shooter gameplay, dropping the 'craft' suffix that suggested a sandbox survival game.
Reporting from 1 sources: Game Spark.
Developer EXBO has renamed the free MMOFPS Stalcraft: X to Stalzone. The original name was rejected for trademark registration because it resembled Blizzard's StarCraft. A legal battle and a change to Stalcraft: X did not resolve the problem. The name also misled players about the game's genre, which is now an extraction shooter with MMO elements.
Developer EXBO has renamed the free MMOFPS Stalcraft: X to Stalzone. The game, set in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, began as a Minecraft mod server recreating the world of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. It has been available on Steam and the Epic Games Store since December 2022. EXBO stated that the original name Stalcraft, a combination of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and Minecraft, was rejected for trademark registration because it resembled Blizzard Entertainment's StarCraft. A legal battle and a change to Stalcraft: X did not improve the situation, and the problem grew after the Steam release due to expanded regional distribution. The name also gave the impression of a casual sandbox or craft-focused survival game, which conflicted with the game's current identity as an extraction shooter with an MMO-like feel. EXBO said the name's benefits diminished over time and sometimes became a hindrance, leading to the decision to change it to avoid issues with future campaigns. Stalzone is available for free on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, though the Epic Games Store version still uses the old name as of writing.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.