14 DAY TRIAL // We already know that video game companies Bethesda and Interplay have settled a long running lawsuit linked to the Fallout franchise and the two sides have recently revealed that the rights to create a Fallout based MMO have not reverted to Bethesda, the company which also holds the right to other genres linked to the series.
Bethesda has released a statement saying that Interplay has received 2 million dollars (1.56 million Euro) in exchange for the rights to the Fallout MMO and that each company will settle its own legal bills.
At the moment Interplay also has the right to sell the first two Fallout video games and the Tactics spin-off under their own name but on December 31 of 2013 these games will also become a property of Bethesda.
When the two companies initially traded the Fallout name Interplay got the right to create a MMO based on the game universe, but also stated it would secure funding and provide proof that it has hit certain development milestones.
Bethesda sued to take ownership of the Fallout MMO because Interplay failed to show that development on the game was ongoing and the agreed milestones were reached.
Robert Altman, who is the chairman and the Chief Executive Officer at ZeniMax, the parent company of Bethesda, has stated, “While we strongly believe in the merits of our suits, we are pleased to avoid the distraction and expense of litigation while completely resolving all claims to the Fallout IP.”
He added, “Fallout is an important property of ZeniMax and we are now able to develop future Fallout titles for our fans without third party involvement or the overhang of others' legal claims.”
It’s not clear whether the work Interplay and Masthead have done on the Fallout MMO will be kept by Bethesda or whether the company plans to start the project from scratch.