Many out there are still clinging to the hope that the closure of 3D Realms is nothing more than a huge publicity stunt. I've personally seen comments from fans who believe a huge reveal will be made at E3, but are they really wrong for thinking this?
A posting on Reddit reveals that savedukenukem.com was registered the day of 3D Realms closure. While that isn't really anything remarkable, another site, saveduke.com was registered the day before the announcement. It was registered by an anonymous proxy, something not typically done by a casual fan.
G4 offers up a small list of bullet points explaining how this entire closure could be one elaborate hoax.
To be fair, they also list other, very plasusible reasons why the sites were registered and why the "leaked" material hit the web with the force that it did after the announcement.
Hit the jump for even more revealing details and a special look back at the history of Duke Nukem Forever's development.<!--more-->
G4 does feel that this may be a half and half situation. It's half of a PR stunt and half the truth. The closure of 3D Realms does now allow another company to come in and acquire the Duke IP, leading G4 to believe we will eventually see Duke Nukem Forever, just not from 3D Realms. The "Save Duke" campaign may just be an elaborate ploy to drum up publicity for the game that began its life over a decade ago.
In which camp do you stand? Are you one of the ones holding on to the belief that this is a massive hoax and that an announcement will be made soon saying "Gotcha, we're actually done and shipping in three months!" or do you believe 3D Realms is no more and that we may never see Duke again?
In other Duke related news, Shacknews tossed up a three page look at the history of Duke Nukem Forever's development. A development period that began in 1996, ended just days ago, underwent multiple publisher changes, multiple engine upgrades, and even saw the complete developmental restart, overhaul, and release of Team Fortress 2.
Take a look at the full timeline of Duke development courtesy of Shacknews.
A posting on Reddit reveals that savedukenukem.com was registered the day of 3D Realms closure. While that isn't really anything remarkable, another site, saveduke.com was registered the day before the announcement. It was registered by an anonymous proxy, something not typically done by a casual fan.
G4 offers up a small list of bullet points explaining how this entire closure could be one elaborate hoax.
• The website Save Duke Nukem was registered the day the game was announced as canceled.
• The site Save Duke was registered the day before the announcement was made.
• Both sites were registered by anonymous proxy, something fans probably wouldn't do-- someone is trying to cover something up!
• A ton of material (screenshots and videos as well as detailed design documents) was leaked immediately following the games official cancellation. The theory goes: If 3D Realms had all of this material sitting around while their company crumbled, and the games was this close to completion, why wouldn't they have used it to save the company and the game?
• The point of the subterfuge: To drum up user interest in the Duke franchise and put it into the forefront of gamers' minds by creating a fake grass-roots "Save Duke" movement.
• The site Save Duke was registered the day before the announcement was made.
• Both sites were registered by anonymous proxy, something fans probably wouldn't do-- someone is trying to cover something up!
• A ton of material (screenshots and videos as well as detailed design documents) was leaked immediately following the games official cancellation. The theory goes: If 3D Realms had all of this material sitting around while their company crumbled, and the games was this close to completion, why wouldn't they have used it to save the company and the game?
• The point of the subterfuge: To drum up user interest in the Duke franchise and put it into the forefront of gamers' minds by creating a fake grass-roots "Save Duke" movement.
To be fair, they also list other, very plasusible reasons why the sites were registered and why the "leaked" material hit the web with the force that it did after the announcement.
• These two sites were registered by employees of the company who knew the company was shutting down, or even fans who heard rumors before the news actually broke.
• All these leaks are actually that: Leaks. They were released more to secure future employment for laid-off artists and programmers than to drum up interest in Forever. If you take a look at the videos, they're pretty far from the kind of polished, finished product game companies release to promote their game, but they're exactly like the kind of thing artists put on their "reels."
• There is no fake grass-roots campaign. Everything we know officially about the game is actually the truth and no one is trying to manipulate gamers' minds.
• All these leaks are actually that: Leaks. They were released more to secure future employment for laid-off artists and programmers than to drum up interest in Forever. If you take a look at the videos, they're pretty far from the kind of polished, finished product game companies release to promote their game, but they're exactly like the kind of thing artists put on their "reels."
• There is no fake grass-roots campaign. Everything we know officially about the game is actually the truth and no one is trying to manipulate gamers' minds.
Hit the jump for even more revealing details and a special look back at the history of Duke Nukem Forever's development.<!--more-->
G4 does feel that this may be a half and half situation. It's half of a PR stunt and half the truth. The closure of 3D Realms does now allow another company to come in and acquire the Duke IP, leading G4 to believe we will eventually see Duke Nukem Forever, just not from 3D Realms. The "Save Duke" campaign may just be an elaborate ploy to drum up publicity for the game that began its life over a decade ago.
In which camp do you stand? Are you one of the ones holding on to the belief that this is a massive hoax and that an announcement will be made soon saying "Gotcha, we're actually done and shipping in three months!" or do you believe 3D Realms is no more and that we may never see Duke again?
In other Duke related news, Shacknews tossed up a three page look at the history of Duke Nukem Forever's development. A development period that began in 1996, ended just days ago, underwent multiple publisher changes, multiple engine upgrades, and even saw the complete developmental restart, overhaul, and release of Team Fortress 2.
June 1, 1998: Team Fortress 2 development begins.
June 15, 1998: A few days following the Duke Nukem Forever trailer debut, 3D Realms drops the Quake II engine and licenses then-Epic MegaGames' Unreal engine. "We don't feel there will be a significant development delay," says Duke co-creator George Broussard.
August, 1998: "At this point, we are really in full production mode again on the game," reports Broussard in a .plan file. "We expect to have gun and guys walking around any day like we never switched engines." The team aims for a 1999 release.
September, 1998: Scott Miller claims that DNF will "set a new standard" for first person interactivity.
June 15, 1998: A few days following the Duke Nukem Forever trailer debut, 3D Realms drops the Quake II engine and licenses then-Epic MegaGames' Unreal engine. "We don't feel there will be a significant development delay," says Duke co-creator George Broussard.
August, 1998: "At this point, we are really in full production mode again on the game," reports Broussard in a .plan file. "We expect to have gun and guys walking around any day like we never switched engines." The team aims for a 1999 release.
September, 1998: Scott Miller claims that DNF will "set a new standard" for first person interactivity.
Take a look at the full timeline of Duke development courtesy of Shacknews.
Comment