Agent has been in development hell for well over a decade, with no real news coming out since its first reveal aside from a few confirmations that it still existed. But with Rockstar’s Agent trademark dropped, it seems like the game has been abandoned once and for all.
A glance at the United States Patent and Trademark Office indicates that Rockstar, which was set to be the developer and publisher of Agent, let the trademark become abandoned back on November 19. They originally renewed the trademark back on December 5 of 2016, with a notice of allowance date of April 18, 2017.
Agent was first announced back at E3 2009. Set to be a PlayStation 3 exclusive, it was announced as a stealth action game set in the 1970s. Sony was so into the idea of a exclusive title for the PlayStation 3 that they touted at one point (via GameSpot) that the game would “set the bar for the industry”.
Ben Feder, then CEO of Rockstar’s parent company Take-Two Interactive, the parent company of Rockstar Games, also echoed that sentiment, stating that the game would be “genre-defining”.
Despite the high amount of confidence Sony, Rockstar and Take-Two had for the game, virtually no information came out after its reveal at E3 aside from a 2010 release date. That date came and went, and aside from the occasional confirmation from Rockstar that the game was still in development, there was nothing but radio silence when it came to Agent.
A few screenshots and concept art drawings (H/T Eurogamer) have been leaked in the nine years since the original announcement. But these few screenshots are all we know about the title — there was never even a confirmation that development had been moved to the PlayStation 4 when that console launched in 2014.
Rockstar North, who were set to develop the game, have developed a number of games since Agent’s reveal nearly ten years ago. Red Dead Redemption, L.A. Noire, Max Payne 3, Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2 have all been released to critical acclaim.
