Back in the start of February, Interceptor Entertainment, known for Rise of the Triad, teased an upcoming Duke Nukem RPG, titled Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction. This has recently prompted Gearbox Software, who released the infamous Duke Nukem Forever, to file a lawsuit against both Interceptor and 3D Realms, the original creators of the franchise.
As the story goes, Gearbox bought the Duke Nukem IP from 3D Realms in order to create Duke Nukem Forever, and still retain all rights to the Duke Nukem brand to this day. However, 3D realms allegedly “sought to privately convince others that the sale never happened”. While this may not be the case, the Duke Nukem brand falls under Gearbox’s jurisdiction, and so on the 13th of February the company issued a Cease and Desist Letter to 3D Realms and George Broussard, co-creator of the Duke Nukem series. 3D Realms founder Scott Miller, along with Broussard, have acknowledged the infringement and filed a formal apology to Gearbox.
So, Interceptor Entertainment will either have to re-purpose their upcoming RPG without the Duke Nukem name, or scrap the project entirely. Personally we hope for the former, as the game might be stronger without the Duke Nukem brand after the utter shambles that was Duke Nukem Forever. While this was definitely the right move legally, Gearbox has a lot of work on its hands, and good will to foster, if they hope to turn Duke Nukem into something popular and profitable in the future.
