Gearbox sues 3D Realms and Interceptor over Duke Nukem

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Gearbox Software is suing developers 3D Realms and Interceptor Entertainment. 3D Realms and Interceptor recently unveiled the game Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction, while the rights to the Duke Nukem franchise are held by Gearbox.

The news was discovered by Joystiq. After selling the rights to Duke Nukem in 2010, 3DR tried to “convince others that that hadn’t happened,” according to Gearbox. According to correspondence from Gearbox, which Joystiq obtained and posted online, Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction has been in development at 3DR and Interceptor since September of 2013. According to Gearbox, 3DR did not inform Interceptor that it was not free to develop further Duke Nukem games. Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction was unveiled in early February.

“Apparently no good deed goes unpunished,” Gearbox adds. “Let’s not forget that, before Gearbox got involved, 3D Realms spent over a dozen years developing Duke Nukem Forever.” It took so long for 3D Realms to become entangled in lawsuits with its publisher, Take Two. Gearbox said it was asked by 3D Realms to not only help the developer get rid of the lawsuits, but also complete the “tech jigsaw puzzle of a game that was Duke Nukem Forever at the time.” Gearbox agreed because of the developer’s personal ties to both 3D Realms and fans of the Duke franchise. “Gearbox soon learned that 3DR’s work was completely imperfect; the mountain of problems Gearbox encountered is too long to list in this letter,” the company said.

It’s not the first time Interceptor Entertainment has been out of alignment with Gearbox Software. For example, in 2011, Interceptor halted development of the Duke Nukem 3D Reloaded mod due to development conditions that Interceptor could not live with.

A few days after 3DR received the letter, 3DR executives Scott Miller and George Broussard acknowledged that they did not own the rights to release a Duke Nukem game and pledged not to infringe any further Gearbox trademark. to commit. In the letter, Gearbox not only calls for the work on Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction to be stopped, but also for financial compensation. In a statement to Joystiq, Gearbox said “3DR’s mistakes are unfortunate for anyone who cares about Duke Nukem.”

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