14 DAY TRIAL // The team at Interceptor Entertainment, which previously said it was working on a new Duke Nukem title called Mass Destruction, announces that it is currently in the process of acquiring 3D Realms, the team that created the character and the series.
Polygon quotes Frederik Schreiber, the chief executive officer of the company, as saying that an official statement will be soon offered in order to give fans more clear information about the acquisition.
He adds, “With this acquisition, we aim to strengthen 3D Realms and protect the legend that it is. The brand itself is very valuable, and we want to ensure the survival and return to the level at which it is renowned.”
3D Realms was created in 1987 and has, since then, worked on a wide variety of titles, including Commander Keen, Rise of the Triad, and Shadow Warrior.
Apogee Software was also an important publisher in the ‘90s, most notably unleashing Wolfenstein 3D to the world and basically creating the entire first-person shooter genre as we know it today.
Interceptor is a Danish company that traces its own history back to 2010. It managed to launch a re-imagining of Rise of the Triad that many fans of the original appreciated for the way it retained the core mechanics while updating the rest of the experience to appeal to modern players.
Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction is the company’s next project, but it seems that it might need to clear out some legal hurdles before the title can be created and launched.
The problem is that 3D Realms has given most of the rights to Duke Nukem as a character in 2010 to Gearbox, when the creator of Borderlands stepped in so that the development process for Duke Nukem Forever could be completed.
The game flopped on launch, dismissed by both fans and critics for its limited mechanics and poor presentation, but Gearbox seems to be interested in making sure that its intellectual property is protected in the long term.
Interceptor says that Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction is created in good faith but it will probably need to cut a deal at some point in the near future in order to continue working on the title.
The 3D Realms acquisition might be designed as a way of enhancing the reputation and the legitimacy of Interceptor before it enters into negotiations with Gearbox over the future of Duke Nukem.