Gearbox Software recently filed a lawsuit against 3D Realms, claiming that 3D Realms’ newest upcoming Duke Nukem games were a breach of contract and a violation of Gearbox’s IP rights- apparently Gearbox owns the Duke Nukem brand now.
But 3D Realms insists that is not the case- not only did the original contract stipulate that 3D Realms was committed to finishing a game called Duke Nukem Survivor (which apparently became Duke Nukem Mass Destruction, the game that caused this lawsuit), but that 3D Realms owns the rights to the Duke Nukem IP anyway.
So… which is it? Who owns the IP? Who owns the rights? The saga of Duke Nukem is like a cheap, horrific CW soap opera, with more twists, backstabbing, and intrigue than real life should have. Can they all just figure out who the brand belongs to once and for all, and then put it to rest? It’s not like the IP is worth a damn now anyway.
