Duke Nukem Forever
From Invertopedia, the encyclopedia of how things fail
Duke Nukem Forever was the sequel to 1996's Duke Nukem 3D, announced in April 1997 with a goal of release by mid-1998[1]. 3D Realms switched engines, rebuilt, and told fans it would ship "when it's done"[2]. By May 2009 the studio's owners had put over $20 million of their own money into it and let the team go[2][4]. Gearbox Software finished the game[3], and it came out on June 14, 2011, fourteen years after it was announced, to mostly poor reviews[5][6].
Contents
The bet
Duke Nukem 3D sold about 3.5 million copies and made co-owners George Broussard and Scott Miller wealthy[2]. Miller called Duke "a franchise that will be around 30 years from now, like James Bond"[2]. Broussard promised the sequel would outdo the original in humor, interactivity and fun[2].
Because 3D Realms had its own money, it paid for the game itself and took only a $400,000 advance from its publisher[2][4]. With no publisher's deadline, the team could keep improving the game until it was right.
What happened
| 1996 | Duke Nukem 3D comes out and sells about 3.5 million copies.[2] |
|---|---|
| Apr 28, 1997 | Duke Nukem Forever is announced, built on id Software's Quake technology, with a goal of release by mid-1998.[1] |
| May 1998 | A trailer at E3 wins raves.[2] |
| Jun 1998 | Weeks later, Broussard switches to the rival Unreal engine. A programmer calls it "effectively a reboot of the project in many respects."[2] |
| 1999 | A new version of the Unreal engine is announced, and Broussard upgrades again.[2] |
| May 2001 | A new E3 trailer, the first look in three years, is the talk of the show. The answer to "when" stays "when it's done."[2] |
| 2003 | Publisher Take-Two says the game will not come out that year and begins writing it off as a loss.[2] |
| 2006 | Broussard admits, "Basically, we threw everything out and started again." By August, nearly half the team has quit.[2] |
| May 6, 2009 | Out of money after talks with Take-Two fail, 3D Realms lets the development team go. Take-Two sues about a week later.[2][4] |
| May 2010 | The two companies settle and the suit is dismissed with prejudice.[7] |
| Sep 3, 2010 | At PAX, Gearbox shows a playable demo and says the game will come out in 2011, published by 2K Games.[3] |
| Jun 14, 2011 | Released to Metacritic scores around 50 on Xbox 360.[5][6] |
| Jul 2011 | Analysts at Wedbush, Michael Pachter's firm, cut their sales estimate for the quarter from 3 million to about 1.5 million.[8] |
The kill shot
It restarted every time technology moved, so it was always behind the thing it was chasing.
Games technology was improving every year, and Broussard would not ship with anything less than the latest. When he saw a new game with a flashy effect, he wanted it in Duke Nukem Forever; staff joked that if a new title came out, "don't let George see it."[2] Former employees said there was no endgame, no picture of what the finished game would be, and so no way to know it was nearly done[2].
The money that freed the studio from publishers also freed it from deadlines. One employee recalled Broussard saying, "We could go another five years without shipping a game," because the bank account allowed it[2].
Red flags ignored
- No deadline from anyone. Self-funded, with a $400,000 advance, the studio answered to no publisher and said it would ship "when it's done."[2]
- Every new game reset the plan. After playing Half-Life, Broussard walked in saying, "we have to have that in Duke Nukem Forever."[2]
- Tech demos, not a game. A developer hired in 2000 said the features were "incredibly cool technology," but "it wasn't a game."[2]
- A small team for a big game. By 2003, 18 people worked on it full time, when 50 or more on one title was not unusual.[2]
- Pay tied to a launch that never came. Low salaries plus profit-sharing meant staff left when the payday didn't arrive.[2]
The cost
3D Realms put over $20 million into the game[2][4]. Take-Two said it paid $12 million to GT Interactive and Infogrames for the publishing rights, and 3D Realms said it got none of that, only the $400,000 signing bonus and a later $2.5 million tied to another agreement[4]. In 2009, the studio asked Take-Two for $6 million to finish; the two sides disagreed over the counteroffer, and the team was let go[2].
When it finally shipped at $60, critics called it ugly, offensive and boring[9]. Game Informer gave it 6.75 out of 10[5].
The inversion
Ship what you have. You can't win a race by restarting it. Pick a point to stop adding, lock the design, and finish.
What survived
The people. Gearbox's Randy Pitchford said, "We brought all of the guys back together. We want to finish the game. Preserve what they made," and Allen Blum, a level designer on Duke Nukem 3D, was still on it[3]. The lawsuit between 3D Realms and Take-Two ended in a settlement in 2010[7].
The game shipped. It topped the UK retail chart on its first weekend, and an analyst still expected it to sell at the low end of 1.5 million to 2 million copies[10].
References
- ^ “Duke does Quake - The Big Question Answered - Why?”. 3D Realms press release, April 28, 1997, archived. The announcement through GT Interactive, the Quake technology, the goal of release by mid-1998.
- ^ “Learn to Let Go: How Success Killed Duke Nukem”. Wired (Clive Thompson), December 21, 2009. The development history: engine switches, Hargrove's quote, "when it's done", the team size, staff departures, the $20 million, the $6 million request, May 6, 2009 and the Take-Two suit.
- ^ “UPDATE: Duke Nukem Forever Live Impressions”. Game Informer (Jeff Cork), September 3, 2010. Gearbox at PAX, a 2011 release, Pitchford's quotes on owning the IP and bringing the team back.
- ^ “3D Realms: We're Not Closing, Spent $20 Million On Duke Nukem Forever”. Kotaku (Stephen Totilo), May 18, 2009. 3D Realms' statement: the team let go May 6, over $20 million spent, the $400,000 signing bonus, $2.5 million from Take-Two, the $12 million Take-Two paid for rights.
- ^ “Duke Nukem Forever Review: 12 Years In The Making”. Game Informer (Andrew Reiner), June 14, 2011. The June 14, 2011 release and the 6.75 score.
- ^ “After 15 years of development, Duke Nukem Forever sucks”. GamesBeat, June 13, 2011. Launch Metacritic scores: 50 on Xbox 360, 58 on PS3, 63 on PC.
- ^ “Duke Nukem Forever Lawsuits Settled”. Shacknews (Chris Faylor), June 11, 2010. The settlement agreement of May 14, 2010 and dismissal with prejudice.
- ^ “Analyst: Duke Nukem Sales "Disappointing"”. TheSixthAxis, July 6, 2011, citing Gamasutra. Wedbush's cut from 3 million to about 1.5 million units, with Pachter's comment.
- ^ “Duke Nukem Forever Arrives, and Apparently It's Awful”. Technologizer (Jared Newman), June 14, 2011. The roundup of critics' reviews and the $60 price.
- ^ “Analyst: Duke Nukem Forever Expected To Sell Over 1.5M”. Game Developer (Mike Rose), June 15, 2011. Top of the UK retail chart on its first weekend; the 1.5 million to 2 million estimate.