UPDATE 4 - FEB 18 09:43: Sony has filed a request to get the trademark reinstated, declaring that its failure to file an extension request was "unintentional".

UPDATE 3 - FEB 17 09:58: SCEE has confirmed to VideoGamer.com that The Last Guardian is still in development, but has yet to comment on the reason for the trademark's cancellation.

UPDATE 2 - 17:44: According to an update on French site GameBlog.fr, Sony France has "categorically" stated that the game is still in development.

UPDATE - 17:15: It's worth bearing in mind that this isn't the first time a trademark for The Last Guardian has been abandoned. Back in 2012, a trademark for the game was abandoned after Sony failed to file a Statement of Use.

So what's going on? Has The Last Guardian really been abandoned? Hopefully Sony will be able to shed some more light on the situation later today.

ORIGINAL STORY: Sony appears to have abandoned the trademark for The Last Guardian.

According to an update filed on the website of the US Trademark Office (spotted by NeoGAF), the trademark was abandoned earlier today after Sony failed to request an extension for its use.

Sony has yet to formally announce The Last Guardian's cancellation.

The trademark's abandonment is the latest twist in the game's troubled development, which was initially announced as a PS3 title in 2009. Last summer, Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida said that Team Ico was "making great progress" on the title.

However, even if Sony has abandoned the game's trademark, it doesn't necessarily mean that the project has been cancelled. It could, of course, have plans to re-reveal the game under a different title.

VideoGamer.com has contacted SCEE for comment.

Source: uspto.gov (via neogaf.com)