Apocalypso's Atomic Arcade: Take-Two

Showing posts with label Take-Two. Show all posts

2010/06/12

Legal Battle Between 3D Realms and Take-Two Ends in Settlement

VS.

Friendship. Friendship? Again?

Finally, the legal woes that have raged on for over the past year between the once great developer and publisher 3D Realms and the publisher Take-Two Interactive has come to an end as of last month.

It’s been said that the two companies settled out of court and the lawsuits have been dropped. The battle started over 3D Realms’ reported failure to release Duke Nukem Forever, and allegedly costing Take-Two millions of dollars in investment. 3DR let go of the development team working on DNF because they couldn’t afford to keep working on it due to funding issues with T2. This is when T2 swooped in with the lawsuit and tried to add insult to injury. 3DR reportedly made a counter-suit though.

Alan Lewis, Take-Two:

“We can confirm that the matter has been resolved, and the company is not providing additional details of the agreement.”

And now this means that Duke Nukem Forever is cleared for release. It’s likely not finished, but there you are. It’s unknown whether T2 will still publish the game.

----

Source: Duke Nukem Forever Lawsuits Settled [Shacknews]

2010/04/19

Possible BioShock MMO in Development [Rumblings]

Some rumours were confirmed in the last week, and now new ones, or not so new ones it seems, have surfaced.

It was finally confirmed after a lot of rumours that a new X-com title, called XCOM is in development at 2K Marin. But something that could quite possibly be another title kept under wraps at 2K is a BioShock MMO.

This apparently isn’t the first time that this rumour has cropped up, and 2K has reportedly suggested in the past that they might have plans to do just this. About two years ago, in March 2008, it was said by the boss of Take-Two, Strauss Zelnick, that it was a potential possibility.

As for a particular studio working on the project, rumours have it that it’s 2K Marin, but remember that 2K Marin is working on XCOM, or at least the Australian branch is, mainly [complicated, I know].

It’s kind of funny though, when I think about it, a BioShock MMO could just work.

----

Source: Rumor: BioShock MMO in the works [Destructoid]

2010/04/06

More Duke Nukem Forever Footage: Leaked Video

Duke Nukem Forever has made some what of another comeback when it comes to news this month. Firstly we all discovered lately that George Broussard was on Formspring answering questions and so on, but he’s reluctant to speak on DNF.

Then on Twitter, it was said that April 1st was supposed to be the day that DNF went to gold master, and began its road to an eventual release this year, if Take-Two hadn’t messed it all up.

Now something that’s been online since December 2009 which nobody had discovered until now, has surfaced. It’s yet another video clip showing off some leaked footage of DNF.

Some of this has been seen before, and the rest hasn’t.

Some have tried to pass this off as an official trailer, but George Broussard was asked on Formspring if it was, and he replied thusly:

“No. That second trailer is not official and is a low quality fan made trailer created out of some leaked footage a "fan" grabbed from a level designer portfolio site. The music and voice was all added by the video creator.”

Too right. The Duke impression wasn’t too good. It certainly wasn’t Jon St. John, for sure. And the guns sounded pretty weak. But the video is entertaining nonetheless.

Duke Nukem Forever Leaked Footage

----

Source: Shacknews

2009/06/23

The End for Duke Nukem, or is it Only Just the Beginning?

Lately there's been a resurgence of news regarding Duke Nukem Forever and the whole 3DR-T2 situation. The latest is that 3DR has filed a countersuit against Take-Two.

Apparently another Duke Nukem game was in development at 2K Games until this year when all of a sudden the project was either halted or cancelled. This game was to be titled Duke Begins- a working title, and was scheduled for a 2010 release. This was the game reportedly involved in the publishing deal between T2 and 3DR back in 2007 for $ 2 500 000.

3DR now believes that there's some sort of conspiracy, or another bully tactic, conducted by Take-Two and 2K Games to pressure 3DR to sell the Duke Nukem IP (Intellectual Property).

Some people report that 3DR might still be working on Duke Nukem Forever, even though the DNF team is gone.

So, that's TWO Duke Nukem games we might never see. Three strikes and you're out...

Sources:

3D Realms Countersuit Reveals Continuing Duke Nukem Forever Work, New Duke Game
http://www.shacknews.com/docs/press/20090518_dnf_3dr_.x

2009/06/18

Former 3D Realms Employee Finds a New Job, and Other Stuff about DNF

It seems that Tramell Isaac, former art director of 3D Realms and part of the team working on Duke Nukem Forever, has finally found a job!

He's also started posting a series called "The Wild Ride", which is all about his experience at 3D Realms.

In other news, the legal battle between 3D Realms and Take-Two has gotten dirtier, seeing as T2 claims that 3D Realms has an offshore bank account, which Scott Mi11er has denied.

Still more on DNF, apparently more in-game footage of Duke Nukem Forever has surfaced recently.

Sources:

Talkin' Real At Ya'
The Wild Ride- Part I
The Wild Ride Part II
Duke Nukem Forever Court Documents Reveal Allegations of Offshore Banking Hijinks
More Duke Nukem Forever Gameplay Footage

2009/06/02

Take-Two Experiencing Financial Difficulties

Take-Two, which has been in the news a lot lately, has reported heavy losses in its second fiscal quarter of 2009.

Net revenue was reported at $ 229.7 million, down from $ 539.8 million in the same period last year. Net loss was reported at $ 10.1 million, compared to a gain of $ 98.2 million in the second quarter of 2008.

It looks as though they might be even more determined to win the lawsuit against 3D Realms to try and get back some money now. Who knows- with all the companies going down in the recession, perhaps they won't last that long...

Sources:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/take-two-reports-heavy-losses-in-q2

2009/05/19

What a Mess: 3D Realms Sets the Record Straight

This really pi$$es me off.

It’s been two weeks, and after all the rumours and “statements”, including the official goodbye on 3D Realms site, 3D Realms clears up the whole misconception about their “closure” and claims that Take-Two is full of alien b@stards. It turns out that the conspiracy theory, although wrong in suggesting that DNF was still in development, was right about 3DR not closing up shop at all.

3D Realms has in fact not closed, according to a press release recently, but the team working on Duke Nukem Forever was let go. 3DR claims it will continue to act as a company and license and co-create games based upon the Duke Nukem franchise.

3DR also states that it didn’t receive the $ 12 000 000 from Take-Two, but instead this was a deal between Take-Two and GT Interactive/Infogrames. It was only in July 2008 that Take-Two paid 3DR $ 2 500 000 in an agreement for another unannounced game.
GT Interactive (now Atari AFAIK) paid 3DR $ 400 000 in 1998, and this was the only publisher funding 3DR ever received, and a pittance compared to the $ 20 000 000 that 3DR put into the development of Duke Nukem Forever out of their own pocket.

The rumour about the $ 30 000 000 deal that was supposedly offered by Take-Two for the Duke Nukem IP is actually partially true, even though Scott Miller of 3DR allegedly denied it in a comment on Shacknews, which might not have been Scott Mi11er at all. Take-Two offered to acquire the DNF team and the Duke Nukem IP for an undisclosed amount. 3DR refused the deal and a few days later the DNF team was let go.

Last week, Take-Two filed a lawsuit against 3DR, but seeing as Take-Two didn’t ever actually give 3DR any money, the case is “without merit”, and is thought of as a school yard tactic in order to obtain ownership of the Duke Nukem IP.

Even though Take-Two has the publishing rights for Duke Nukem Forever, 3DR still has some rights to release the game directly to the public, which is interesting.

Now to see what actually happens to Duke Nukem Forever. Will it sit on the shelf, gathering dust? Will it remain on hold with 3DR, continuing to work on it at some point in the future? Will it be sold off to someone else or given to another developer to finish? Will it be released for free to the public (like hell)? Will it be cancelled forever and everything related to the game burnt and thrown away?

Things seem to be looking up a bit at the moment in any case- 3D Realms is still around.

Sources:

http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/58681
http://www.shacknews.com/docs/press/20090518_dnf_3dr_.x

2009/05/16

3D Realms "Conflict" with Take-Two Started Years ago

This is the Time-Line of the Conflict with Take-Two

• Take-Two, the publisher, initially invested $ 12 000 000 into DNF in 2000.

• On May 20, 2003, Jeffrey Lapin, then CEO of Take-Two, told reporters that the game would not be out by the end of 2003.

• In response, George Broussard commented on Shacknews, saying that "Take-Two needs to STFU imo."

• Later in the year, on December 18, 2003, Jeffrey Lapin said that 3D Realms had told him that Duke Nukem Forever was expected to be finished by the end of 2004, or the beginning of 2005.

• In June, in a filing with the SEC, Take-Two revealed that they had renegotiated the deal and would receive $4.25 million instead of $6 million upon the release of the game. The filing also revealed that Take-Two was offering a $ 500,000 bonus if DNF was commercially released by December 31, 2006.

• Broussard denied the rumors that DNF would be released, saying that 3D Realms never cared for or asked for the bonus. He stated that he would "never ship a game early."

• In 2007, the two companies entered into a second agreement.

• May 6, 2009- 3D Realms closes.

• Duke Nukem Forever publisher Take-Two has confirms that it was not funding ongoing development of the 3D Realms project.

"We can confirm that our relationship with 3D Realms for Duke Nukem Forever was a publishing arrangement, which did not include ongoing funds for development of the title," said Take-Two VP of communications Alan Lewis in a prepared statement.
"In addition, Take-Two continues to retain the publishing rights to Duke Nukem Forever,"

• May 7, 2009- Asset leak begins with screenshots, artwork and demo reel.

• May 14, 2009- Take-Two files a lawsuit against 3D Realms, demands a copy of the DNF source code and wants to restrict leakage of assets.

Kick Him When He’s Down: Take-Two Sues 3D Realms

It looks as though the whole 3D Realms Closure Conspiracy is just that, because Take-Two has confirmed the closure and the fact that former employees are looking for work elsewhere. Another reason is that Take-Two is suing 3D Realms partly because of this.

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc is suing Apogee Software Ltd. (3D Realms) for breach of contract, as we all know that 3D Realms closed down less than two weeks ago, and failed to release Duke Nukem Forever, which it had continuously promised to deliver.

Take-Two, the publisher, initially invested $ 12 000 000 into DNF in 2000, but Scott Miller claims: "No. We didn't get a penny of that money. This, along with so much else, is 100% spin, being eaten up by those who have no clue whatsoever."

At one point, in a filing with the SEC, Take-Two revealed that they had renegotiated the deal and would receive $4.25 million instead of $6 million upon the release of the game. The filing also revealed that Take-Two was offering a $ 500,000 bonus if DNF was commercially released by December 31, 2006.

In 2007, the two companies entered into a second agreement.

It’s also been rumoured that George Broussard went to Take-Two to show DNF off and secure more funding, seeing as they were obviously in financial trouble. Take-Two made an offer, that instead of giving them $ 5 000 000, they would give them $ 30 000 000 if they gave them the Duke Nukem IP (Intellectual Property). Take-Two currently only have the publishing rights.

This rumour was denied by Scott Miller however, who stated that they "would have taken this offer without hesitation".

3D Realms closed down on the 6th of May 2009.

Now Take-Two is determined to get a hold of DNF one way or another, and not to mention get their money back.

Apogee Software Ltd. Is the legal name of 3D Realms, while Apogee Software LLC. is the name of the company which was resurrected last year and is responsible for Duke Nukem Trilogy along with Deep Silver. So, it looks as though neither Apogee Software LLC. nor Duke Nukem Trilogy will be affected by this move, hopefully.

Take-Two is looking to secure a copy of the Duke Nukem Forever source code, and also wishes to ensure that 3D Realms doesn’t let any assets loose. This is kind if bad news, seeing as there have recently been a lots of leaks on the net of demo reels, and concept art as well as screenshots, which Take-Two apparently doesn’t want happening. That’s why on most of the original sites which had them up, like the blogs belonging to former artists at 3D Realms, they’ve been taken down. But it’s too late, seeing as many other sites have them now in their galleries, and not to mention I have pretty much all of them too, and so do others.

Sources:

http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/58651
http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/58642
http://forums.duke4.net/index.php?s=&showtopic=932&view=findpost&p=16747
http://www.duke4.net/news.php?item.277.4