The developer behind upcoming zombie MMO The Day Before has filed a new trademark for something known as Dayworld, suggesting a name change is in the pipeline.

This new trademark, spotted by WellPlayed, covers a range of categories, including "downloadable game software; computer game software downloadable from a global computer network; downloadable computer game software for use on mobile devices", and more.

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As a quick reminder, The Day Before was originally meant to release on PC back in March. However, in a bizarre series of events, it transpired that developer Fntastic had failed to trademark the game's name, which had subsequently been contested by a company behind a calendar app.

In the midst of this debacle, all traces of The Day Before were removed from Steam.

In June, Fntastic insisted it was the first to use the name, and said it was "optimistic" about regaining its name through legal proceedings and being reinstated on Steam "soon".

Now, several months later, The Day Before is still to return to Steam in any form, even though it remains slated to release for PC on 10th November.

Image credit: Eurogamer

So, does this mean Fntastic has decided to rename The Day Before in a bid to get it back on Steam ahead of its impending release date? It seems likely, though Dayworld itself also may spark some issues (as noted by PCGamesN, there is a trilogy of dystopian novels by the late Philip José Farmer called Dayworld already).

And while this all goes on, The Day Before's community of fans remain unconvinced at the game's legitimacy. On the game's official Discord, fans noted its absence from Gamescom last week and are now calling for further updates from Fntastic on how development is progressing.

Eurogamer has asked Fntastic for further comment.

Image credit: The Day Before Discord/Eurogamer

Earlier this year, Fntastic faced criticism for its lack of communication. The developer responded, rebuffing any suggestion The Day Before was a scam, stating: "When the game comes out, people will finally see the truth."