Trademark registered earlier this month.
This story contains spoilers for Starfield's main plot.
Last month, Bethesda revealed it plans to release more expansions for Starfield after the upcoming Shattered Space DLC. Now, it's been discovered that the developer has registered a trademark for the term 'Starborn', prompting speculation that this could be the name for the next addition to the sci-fi RPG.
As reported by VGC, the trademark registration was spotted by Twitter user Timur222. The trademark, which was filed with the US Patent and Trademark office earlier this month, covers an array of categories for physical and digital media, including "recorded computer game software" and "downloadable computer game software".
The term 'Starborn' is particular to Starfield, referring to the interdimensional, superhuman travelers who the player encounters roughly a third of the way into the RPG's main story. This connection has led to speculation that 'Starborn' will form the title of the RPG's next expansion after Shattered Space.
Bethesda certainly plans to release further expansions for Starfield. Speaking to YouTuber MrMattyPlays last month, game director Todd Howard was asked whether Bethesda plans to release annual DLC packs for Starfield, to which he answered "I would say more or less, yeah." Howard specified that Bethesda wants this to continue "hopefully [for] a very long time, but we're planning for the one after this, so there will be another one."
As for whether the expansion will specifically be called Starborn, it's undoubtedly possible. But Bethesda could also simply be safeguarding the term, which is central to Starfield's story, as part of its IP. In May, Zenimax Media trademarked the Doom cheat 'IDKFA' ahead of the reveal of Doom: The Dark Ages. But Doom: The Dark Ages wasn't called 'Doom: IDKFA' It was called…well, you've just read it twice, so I won't type it again.
Admittedly, Starborn is a better fit for an expansion title than a bunch of letters Doom fans still debate the true meaning of, and the Starborn are a logical faction to frame a DLC story around. Either way, there's probably a long way to go before we find out for certain. Shattered Space itself doesn't release until this autumn, whereupon it'll shed greater light on the mysterious House Va'ruun cult, who worship a big snake god called the Great Serpent.
Shattered Space will also include the usual things you'd expect from a Bethesda DLC. New locations, new gear such as space suits, new bounties, and new structures for your base, such as an observatory module. As someone who drifted away from Starfield last year, allured by the more innovative shores of Baldur's Gate 3, the impending DLC has led me to consider returning to Bethesda's latest free-roaming adventure.
