Gearbox Software has announced the end of its lawsuit against fellow Dallas-area game studio 3D Realms, confirming that Gearbox is now the rightful holder of the rights to the Duke Nukem game franchise.

The development cycle of Duke Nukem Forever is somewhat infamous in the gaming world. After numerous delays, the game’s creators started listing the release date as “whenever it’s finished,” leading to the derogatory nickname for the game, “Duke Nukem Whenever.” The development of the game took so long that 3D Realms, the studio originally behind the game, eventually laid off the entire development team and sold the unfinished title to nearby studio Gearbox Software, the developers behind the Borderlands franchise.

3D Realms was later rescued from closure when it was purchased by Danish game studio Interceptor Entertainment, but after teasing the release of a new title called Duke Nukem Mass Destruction, they were sued by Gearbox for infringing on the rights it had purchased from them. Now it appears that the parties involved have reached a settlement, with Gearbox coming out the victor.

“When Interceptor acquired a license to develop ‘Duke Nukem Mass Destruction’ (‘Duke Nukem Survivor’) from 3D Realms, we did so in good faith and were not aware of any conflict,” Mike Nielsen, CEO of 3D Realms, said in a joint statement with Interceptor and Gearbox. “We never intended to cause any harm to Gearbox or Duke, which is why we immediately ceased development after Gearbox reached out. To secure the future of Duke, 3D Realms has agreed with Gearbox that a single home serves the IP best. And as big Duke fans, we’re excited to see what Gearbox has in store for the ‘King.’ As for our own games, we’re eager to complete development of the ‘Bombshell’ game and get it in the hands of our fans.”

Gearbox head Randy Pitchford added, “I genuinely appreciate Mr. Nielsen’s and Mr. Schreiber’s statement and sincerely offer my best wishes to Interceptor Entertainment and 3D Realms towards their future success and, as someone who was part of the 3D Realms team when Bombshell was first imagined, I am excited to see what they have in store for us with their game.”

Image courtesy of Gearbox Software