3d Realms is no more :( Take Two stopped funding them, and they ran out of money.
Previously unreleased footage of the mythical Duke Nukem Forever is being released now, and turns out there really WAS a game in development. Or maybe they are still messing with us. Either way, they did make some good games, and I suppose we lost some future good titles.
A video: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=YLHALVVM
If DNF manages to get released someday, it'd better be good. 12 years in development? Heh.
In this day and age if you develop the game for more than 2 years, when it comes out it'll be outdated in 80% of the cases.
3d Realms is no more, but as I understood, the game is still "alive" and it's still being developed. Who's to say who ownes who in this crazy corporate world. :p
A shame, they made a lotta good stuff I fondly remember, and they positively invented "When it's done..." I tip my hat.
I have always found it funny that Duke Nukem Forever ... DNF ... Did Not Finish
Personally I've always thought it was a huge publicity stunt to keep the company in the spotlight for their other ventures and they never intended to release the game.
Bummer they folded.
One thing I never understood was why they changed their name to that uninspiring '3D Realms'. 'Apogee' sounded much better, not to mention I (and most likely others) have fond memories of the games they made under that name
Didn't they start to use that name when they released Witchaven (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witchaven)? I think back then a cool pseudo-3D-engine was enough to boast about, so the change would make some sense... As Apogee, however, they had the probably coolest logo fade-in ever...
Hmmm, the side scrollers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzLUEKaEEJY)they had...
*searches DosBox link*
I have to admit, I was really shocked by this news. For me, Duke Nukem Forever had become some sort of universal constant, like entropy. Something happening in a way that can't be truly observed but you still sleep well at night knowing that it is happening.
In a world in which 3D Realms is no longer working in darkness on a game that will never see the light of day... Well, it will be a lot harder to sleep at night, won't it? Will gravity fail next? *shudder*
Fortunately, I'll always have Daikatana.
- Ponch
Based on that video the game would have probably been the best 3D shooter ever, just after Doom. Sad to see them go, I do hope the game doesn't die along with them.
:'(
Hopefully somebody will bail them out, Not the government per say , but Bill Gates maybe?
Still I'd rather have 3D Realms get a bail out then the greedy boneheads in charge of the banks. >:(
I honestly thought Duke Nukem Forever would come out eventually. It feels a bit strange to be in a world where it no longer is in development nor ever will come out.
(not that I was going to play it since I'm not a huge fan but still)
Maybe Take-2 will do the right thing and get one of the Rockstar studios to develop a new Duke Nukem game. In fact, any studio would be able to develop Duke Forever and get it completed a lot quicker than 3d Realms. I mean WTF were they doing for 11 years? 3D realms must have been one hell of a BAD company to not be able to make that game.
But think about it. A Duke game by Rockstar? That so has the potential to blow peoples minds. FOREVER!!!
Here's my two cents:
Maybe Take-2 will do the right thing and get one of the Rockstar studios to develop a new Duke Nukem game. In fact, any studio would be able to develop Duke Forever and get it completed a lot quicker than 3d Realms. I mean WTF were they doing for 11 years? 3D realms must have been one hell of a BAD company to not be able to make that game.
But think about it. A Duke game by Rockstar? That so has the potential to blow peoples minds. FOREVER!!!
P.S
Can I have my midget now please Ryan?
After seeing GTAIV I wouldn't let Rockstar near a Duke Nukem game. Not one as promising as Forever is based on that video.
Quote from: Paper Carnival on Sun 10/05/2009 14:34:08
Previously unreleased footage of the mythical Duke Nukem Forever is being released now, and turns out there really WAS a game in development.
A video: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=YLHALVVM
Just watched that video. Damn, that game looked pretty fun. I wonder how much of it was actually finished? Not that there's any excuse for being in development for that many years, but I have to admit, it looked like a game I would have bought.
- Ponch
Guys... don't you get it? The mere subtitle "Forever" should've been the ultimate hint for all of us... meaning how long it would take to release this game.
Well, I don't get it.
Duke nukem 3D was simply a first person shooter. FPS games can and are developed in less than 2 years today. Even good ones.
What possibly in the world took over a decade and still still got unfinished?
A group of experienced enthusiasts (or official team) could make new Duke3d, in all its glory, coolness and success on Source or Unreal 3 engine and that stupid "Forever/Never" story would be done and over with.
It was never about graphics, wasn't it? I mean, BUILD engine looked slightly better over others in 1996, but it was nowhere THAT good to rely on eye candy only. Also, Quake engine was out already, giving true 3D over 2D sprites BUILD did. All BUILD engine was good at, was hosting array of really cool games, like Blood, Shadow Warrior, Redneck Rampage...
I remember playing D3D because how cool it was to waste pig cops with shotgun, the awesome multiplayer, flying around and exotic maps, such as space station and submarine and weapons, from shrinker to laser trip bombs.
It was still the gameplay, level design, weapons array and atmosphere that made it popular. Why waste decade on rewriting a graphics engine?
Ishmael, how can you not like GTA4? I thought that was impossible. For one thing, Rockstar are actually capable of releasing a game in 2 years. And secondly, I said a Rockstar Studio, not Rockstar North. And thirdly, I think Duke would work better as a well made 3rd person action game as opposed to a FPS. FPS' are so cliche these days. Its the humour and visual gags and stuff that makes duke awesome.
And to Stupot, I'm out of midgets, would you accept Nacho instead?!
It's hard to judge whether a new Duke game would have been GOOD, since we all view Duke3D through rose-coloured specs. Was it all that good with it's stolen dialog, cheap titty thrills and all that?
I do like GTA4 while I don't have to suffer of the horrible controls and the lack of stuff that just seems way too logical to be there to shine with it's absence. And the way it's all built, the lenght you have to go to simply load a game or get to a multiplayer game. Maybe consoles just aren't designed for me then... So I'd prefer they keep the PC games PC games.
Quote from: Layabout on Tue 12/05/2009 13:59:54
Was it all that good with it's stolen dialog, cheap titty thrills and all that?
Good and bad is in the eye of the beholder. Was the original Doom a good game, with its non-existent AI, a player character unable to jump over a waist-height fence, and its cheap bloody gore? For its time, the Duke was ground-breakingly fresh, stablishing new standards for the genre. So yeah, I'd say it was good.
In a few years, in a forum far, far away, people again will ask: "Half Life 2? Was is all that good with it's mute main character, cheap physic playthingumies and all that?"
Aw man, that's sad. I mean, I can hardly consciously recall a time when this wasn't in developement... I was like 6, 7 or 8 when that trainwreck started to get rolling... :P
I still liked Shadow Warrior (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwOYJ2ctPsQ) more. Why isn't sequel announced to this one? This would be a game I really cried if sequel was cancelled.
Same one-liners, but actually funny ones, not macho bullshit.
And much cooler weapons... like nuke launcher?
"Lo Wang do super kung fu jump!"
Quote from: InCreator on Tue 12/05/2009 16:49:21
Same one-liners, but actually funny ones, not macho bullshit.
And much cooler weapons... like nuke launcher?
"Lo Wang do super kung fu jump!"
The manic giggle Lo Wang made when the nuke finished arming always made me smile.
- Ponch
Bugger...first I lose Daikatana as the constant, then this...what is there now that can be hilariously overextended?
Although, echoing much of the sentiment on here, I think Rockstar are one of the few people who could get a Duke Nukem game right.
"Do you want to wash Wang, or do you want to watch Wang wash Wang?"
Comedy gold.
Quote from: InCreator on Tue 12/05/2009 16:49:21
I still liked Shadow Warrior (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwOYJ2ctPsQ) more. Why isn't sequel announced to this one? This would be a game I really cried if sequel was cancelled.
Same one-liners, but actually funny ones, not macho bullshit.
And much cooler weapons... like nuke launcher?
Shadow Warrior was fun (and sticky bombs were awesome), but I always thought Blood (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1SaWmgU1h8) was the ultimate Build engine game (hell, I even coordinated a mod for it - which technically is still in development, been meaning to finish it when I get the time). A kick-ass antihero who looks like a cross between The Saint of Killers and The Phantom Stranger, spouting one-liners from the Evil Dead movies, blasting Lovecraftian cultists with a sawed-off shotgun in each hand or setting zombies on fire with an aerosol can and a zippo. What's not to like?
I keep hoping Monolith will pick up the franchise again sometime and give us proper sequel (let's try to forget that Blood 2: The Chosen ever happened).
Holy shit, Blood looks awesome. All these years later, and I've yet to play a game that has better sound effects than that ;D I guess I have to get it somehow.
I don't remember playing any decent shooters since Half-Life 2. And even though that game was good, it certainly wasn't the best.
Yea, Blood did beat all records with cool weapon selection in a Build game... or FPS game overall.
Pity that Build engine has aged so badly. What looked awesome in mid-90's is totally unacceptable today.
I tried hard, but cannot play those games due ugly graphics and auto-aim keyboard movement.
Only a milestone (and few months) later after Duke3D, Quake nailed keyboard & mouse usage and functioning standard in fps games. Build games have some crazy, useless way mouse & keyboard combo works and it doesn't work as it should (or could) anyway.
I don't really see how they actually tested moving mouse up to move forward in their studios and found it good or usable... Then again, nowadays, people play fps games(!) with gamepads(!) on their stupid consoles... so who knows? Maybe someone really liked and mastered it back then.
I was very skeptic getting used to the WASD layout, after playing so many shooters (even those then "modern" ones, such as Half-Life 1!) with the standard Doom controls. Alt was used to strafe, A to look up, Z to look down, End to center view (when it was allowed). It was playable, but very limiting.
Everyone probably knows this, but there are fanmade modern ports of Doom that not only update the graphics to an acceptable level, but also give the option to allow WASD + mouse movement and disable auto-lock, among other things.
There is also a similar project for Duke Nukem 3d, but I don't know if there's one for other BUILD games.
http://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/8jp0v/were_being_played_savedukenukemcom_was_registered/
I wouldn't be surprised if this was just a big publicity stunt.
Yeah, it could be a stunt, but wouldn't you say it succeded?
Supposed gameplay video, looks nice: http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/316675.html (http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/316675.html)
And the fun continues: Take Two sued 3d Realms for failing to deliver Duke Nukem Forever.
Link: http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/58642
Quote from: anian on Wed 13/05/2009 12:46:02
Supposed gameplay video, looks nice: http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/316675.html (http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/316675.html)
It doesn't fail to look impressive. Could it be that we'll just be waiting... forever?
Well, at least we know Duke Nukem Forever is going to live up to its name ;)
I find it quite strange that its constantly stated that "The Games Industry is one of the few industry that is still booming in the current economic climate", and yet in the past three weeks we've seen at least 5 well known companies go under.
I really feel for the staff of empire that have worked for the last 2 months without a wage packet. There has to be some law against this
So much for Apogee then..
:'(
This 3D Realms thing is turning out to be more fun than the game was probably going to have been. Sometimes, it's better to have the memories than it is to have the sequel.
Case in point: Blood II. Whew, what a stinky sequel to one of the most colorful shooters I had ever played. Makes me glad that Shogo II never arrived.
- Ponch
The latest >news< (http://www.shacknews.com/docs/press/20090518_dnf_3dr_.x):
In short:
Despite rumors and statements to the contrary, 3D Realms (3DR) has not closed and is not closing. 3DR retains ownership of the Duke Nukem franchise. Due to lack of funding, however, we are saddened to confirm that we let the Duke Nukem Forever (DNF) development team go on May 6th, while we regroup as a company. While 3DR is a much smaller studio now, we will continue to operate as a company and continue to license and co-create games based upon the Duke Nukem franchise.
So is DNF ever going to be released? They are still not clear about that :P
Quote from: Paper Carnival on Wed 20/05/2009 14:30:31
So is DNF ever going to be released? They are still not clear about that :P
Except for the name:
Forever probably means the duration of the development of this (DNF) project ;D :P
Thank you Arj0n, that's what I said on page 1. It was, and is, a hint to us all! "Forever" = length of time we must wait.
But... that means that only CHUCK NORRIS will have the stamina to wait it out!
Noooooooooooooooo!