3D Realms Has Closed Shop

Of all the games currently in development, Duke Nukem Forever is one in particular that’s been made fun of time and again. How long will it take to see a release? Forever, of course. Sadly, that  might actually be the case, as it has become known that the development studio behind the game, 3D Realms, has shut down, despite the fact that no “official” word has been made directly by the company.

However, it has indeed been confirmed by former employee Joe Siegler on the official forums, however, where he references an interview he made just days ago in saying, “When I recorded that, I didn’t know.“, so it appears that 3DR is actually… gone. As a huge fan of 3D Realms  and Duke Nukem in particular, this news is really quite upsetting. It’s hard to be surprised given the insane release schedule for DNF, but that makes the news even more difficult to take.

For those who’ve been gaming for a while, and I’m talking 286/386 days, chances are you’ve played games from these guys even if you don’t realize it. The company first started out as Apogee and released such gems as Cosmo’s Cosmic Adventure, Hocus Pocus, Mystic Towers, Rise of the Triad, Commander Keen, Crystal Caves, Max Payne, Halloween Harry, Raptor and so forth. Not to mention Wolfenstein 3D and Duke Nukem I and II.

What will happen with what’s left of DNF is up in the air, and chances are good that George Broussard is working hard to figure out a way to keep the company afloat, unless that ship has already sailed. We’ll likely learn a lot more in the coming days. Hopefully it doesn’t mean the end for DNF. Many of us have been waiting a while for it (I still have a copy of a 1997 preview on the game), and it would be a shame to see it disappear.

A very reliable source close to Duke Nukem Forever developer 3D Realms today confirmed to Shacknews that the development studio has shut down. The closure came about as a result of funding issues, our source explained, with the shut down said to affect both 3D Realms and the recently resurrected Apogee. Employees of both entities have already been let go.