The year 2008 is just beginning, yet we can't help but be excited after hearing about gaming giants securing trademarks. Just recently, some people tracked down trademarked titles that haven't been announced yet hold so much promise.

To boot, Square Enix reportedly bagged Crystal Guardians as a video game title. This could very well be the next Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles game after the new ones hit shelves later this year.

Namco Bandai secured a good number of titles including Lost Chronicle and Sengoku Chaos. Three for the Tales franchise were also listed, namely Tales of the Genesis, Tales of the Nexus, and Tales of Hearts.

As Cubed3 noted, it's possible that Namco Bandai chose to reserve this batch in case the company decides to make games under one of those names. Then again, after the simultaneous announcements of Tales of Symphonia: Knights of Ratatosk and Tales of Innocence, it won't be surprising to see another barrage of Tales titles.

From Sega, Ascot Garden and SimROBOT will surely leave many of us guessing. Konami got a hold of Moriage! Kanji-kun, Taito renewed trademarks for classics Chase H.Q. and Darius Garden, R-Type creator Irem snagged Let's Go! Gen-San, and SNK Playmore took Rainbow Future.

With that said, there's the big question: Are we looking at the next great hits here, or were these trademarks secured as a safety measure? While all of the mentioned trademarks relate to video games, some could be for toys and other merchandise. Looks like time will tell, and if it does, we'll catch wind and keep you posted so watch this space for updates!