3DRealms comments on closure, lawsuit
3DRealms issued a statement this week addressing it’s closure and offering a rebuttal to Take-Two Interactive’s lawsuit alleging breach of contract related to Duke Nukem Forever. The statement, at face value, sheds some light on just what rights the creators of Duke Nukem Forever hold. The first thing worth noting is that 3DRealms claims that the company has not closed, despite notes on the company’s official web site, insider information and multiple news reports.
“Despite rumors and statements to the contrary, 3D Realms (3DR) has not closed and is not closing,” the company said in a statement. “3DR retains ownership of the Duke Nukem franchise. Due to lack of funding, however, we are saddened to confirm that we let the Duke Nukem Forever (DNF) development team go on May 6th, while we regroup as a company. While 3DR is a much smaller studio now, we will continue to operate as a company and continue to license and co-create games based upon the Duke Nukem franchise.”
What the company will be able to accomplish without any funding, developers, a less-than-stellar public image and a pending lawsuit seeking $20 million in damages for “breach of contract,” is in serious doubt.
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Category Action, Genres, Industry, Other, PC, Platforms, Public Interest | Tags: 3DRealms,Apogee,closure,Lawsuit,Rumors,Statement,Take Two
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THQ Releases Second Quarter Financial Data
Earlier this week rumors started brewing that THQ was shuttering a number of its studios. Today, those rumors were confirmed, as THQ announced its financial results for the second financial quarter of 2009.
Along with the closure of five studios from the company’s stable of sixteen, THQ also reports it also announced layoffs of 250 members of its developmental personnel, roughly 17 percent of the total studio staff. The company also recorded net sales of $164.8 million for the quarter, compared with $229.3 million in the prior year. Overall for the quarter, THQ stated a total loss for the quarter of $115.3 million. The company cited a lighter slate of new releases as a major reason for the losses.
THQ outlined its plans for restructuring, which included pushing both Red Faction: Guerilla and Darksiders: Wrath of War from a projected Q4 2009 release well into the 2010 fiscal year.
“We have made substantial progress in improving product quality and innovation, as evidenced by recent shipments of several well-reviewed games including de Blob and Saints Row 2,” said Brian Farrell, THQ president and CEO. “We are aligning our business to be more competitive in key consumer segments and address the current business environment. We expect the combination of a much more focused and competitive product line with a more efficient cost structure to put THQ back on the path to growth and profitability in fiscal year 2010.”
