If you thought Duke Nukem Forever was the last gasp for the ’90s video game icon, well, what the hell were you thinking? Publisher Take-Two certainly isn’t done with Duke, regardless of the reception of his latest game.
Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick tells Forbes that “you will see future Duke IP coming from this company.” Pretty clear cut, but Zelnick gets less clear when expounding upon the future of Duke (and other games).
“Part of it is the economic opportunities that interact with entertainment are so huge,” Zelnick says. “Part of it is that we are very creative folks in control. Part of it is we don’t want to ever be in the position of dumping something down just to make another buck. If we can take some of our intellectual property and bring it to another medium in an extraordinary high quality way, that delights consumers and represents an interesting commercial opportunity for us, we will. We have certainly considered doing that with BioShock and with other titles. So far we haven’t brought anything to market, but stay tuned.”
The Duke Nukem IP will be exploited next month in comic book form with the release of IDW’s Duke Nukem: Glorious Bastard, but it sounds like Strauss and company have grander plans than just comics. Take-Two and developer Gearbox at one point had a spin-off, Duke Begins, in the works, a game that was reportedly scrapped amidst lawsuits between the publisher and 3D Realms.
I’d be willing to give Duke another shot, given a shorter, better directed development cycle. You?
Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick: Our DNA Is Gameplay, Our Clothing Is Cinema [Forbes]
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