Konami has quietly filed new trademarks for Star Soldier, Soldier Blade and Alien Crush across the UK and European Union, reviving three names from its older Hudson-era catalogue at almost exactly the same time.
The UK applications were all filed on 15 September 2026, with matching EU applications following on 16 September. Each covers categories including video game software and online game services.
On their own, trademark filings rarely tell you much about what is actually being made. Three related filings landing together are harder to ignore.
Star Soldier is the best-known name of the group. Hudson Soft's vertically scrolling shooter first appeared in 1986 and later grew into a wider series across several platforms. Soldier Blade, released in 1992, is part of that same lineage and remains one of the more recognisable shooters associated with the PC Engine.
Konami still lists Soldier Blade as part of the official PC Engine mini line-up, where it is explicitly described as part of the Star Soldier series.
Alien Crush is slightly different. The sci-fi pinball game also comes from Hudson's PC Engine catalogue, but sits outside the Star Soldier series. Its inclusion makes this look less like housekeeping around one franchise and more like activity affecting a broader slice of Konami's inherited Hudson properties.
The filings themselves are straightforward.
In the UK, Konami Digital Entertainment filed for Star Soldier, Alien Crush and Soldier Blade on the same day. Equivalent EU applications followed 24 hours later, and all three European applications were published on 21 September.
The listed goods and services include computer and video game software, downloadable game software and online game services.
What they do not include is any indication of what Konami intends to do next.
There is nothing in the applications that points to a remake, remaster, collection, re-release or entirely new game. Trademark activity can precede all of those things, but it can also be routine portfolio management.
That distinction matters here, because the pattern is interesting without needing to stretch it further than the records allow.
The pairing of Star Soldier and Soldier Blade makes immediate sense. Alien Crush is the more intriguing addition, because it suggests Konami may be refreshing protection around more than one Hudson-era property at once.
That could eventually amount to nothing more than legal maintenance. It could also be an early sign of renewed commercial activity around games that have been largely dormant for years.
For now, the filings give us the first part of that picture: Konami is actively seeking fresh protection for all three names in markets and categories directly relevant to video games.
The next useful signal will be something outside the trademark system — a ratings entry, store record, platform listing, domain registration, additional related filings or, of course, an announcement from Konami itself.