USPS Sends a Message

For a game that doesn't even yet have a publisher, Postal is getting an inordinate amount of attention. Running With Scissors, the game's developer, recently issued a press release announcing that the game has already drawn the ire of US Postal Service employees. Apparently, the USPS sent a letter to the game developer, stating that "All of us at the Postal Service have a sense of humor, but there is nothing funny about your game 'Postal.'" Ten days later, RWS said, Post Office lawyers sent RWS a notice implying that the USPS had a proprietary right to the use of the word "postal."

RWS has stated that the lead character of the action/strategy psychological thriller has no identifiable occupation. RWS spokesman Vince Desi said, "this is a word in common usage employed as the title of a game which has nothing whatever to do with the United States Post Office. We're a small company and this is just an attempt to pressure us." RWS also noted that the Jan/Feb issue of "Postal Life" magazine acknowledged the increasing use of the word "postal" in everyday vernacular.