so i found a game, thats going to be released soon and is extremely popular and some nice domains with it in the name are free. can i get into trouble for buying them(the domains have the game name in them)?
Actually no you can't get in trouble for buying the domain itself. You can not get in trouble for buying a domain. However depending on the company you can get in trouble with the website you develop on the site. I think that's what Dave was actually trying to say.
Unfortunately I've seen a few who are aggressively fast enough to send a C&D soon after a domain name bearing their game trademark has been registered. It shouldn't necessarily pose a problem just buying or registering a domain name, but others feel...differently. That's why I said it depends who you're dealing with.
It really depends on the CONTENT of the site. Say nike.net was available, nike.com is registered by the shoe company. Say I sell bed sheets (I make nike brand bed sheets). I can have the content on my site bed sheets, and there really isn't anything Nike Shoes could do about it. Trademarks are registered as types of product. If you are operating with a different product, you are fine. Once you start having content about shoes, any profits you make are in jeopardy, as you are creating a possibility of confusion. That is one of the major tests. And on top of that, fan sites are generally covered under a fair use doctrine. GENERALLY. C&D's really have no legal bearing, and if they are sent without anything to back them up (like you are actually not infringing their trademark) just ignore them. All a C&D does is help them win a case should actual infringement occur, because it shows that they attempted to keep it from going to court, and, in actuality, could help them get more of your money.