3D Realms, the company that Duke Nukem Forever nearly destroyed, is back (or I guess we should say they never went away) with a new game from developer Interceptor Entertainment. It’s called Bombshell, and it’s an isometric action RPG coming to the PS4 and PC.
According to a press release from 3D Realms and Interceptor (the company which acquired 3D Realms earlier this year), Bombshell will put you into the combat boots of Shelly “Bombshell†Harrison, an interplanetary butt-kicker out to save the president from an intergalactic threat.
This all sounds great, because we were wondering what 3D Realms was getting up to after they announced their last isometric action-RPG, Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction.
A little background for some of you who only know a little of the Duke Nukem/3D Realms/Gearbox saga: following the release of Duke Nukem Forever back in 2011, 3D Realms partnered up with Interceptor to develop Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction to cash in on all of that Duke-mania after the release of Forever. One little problem: depending on who you ask, 3D Realms doesn’t own the rights to Duke any longer.
In 2010, 3D Realms handed off DNF to Borderlands studio Gearbox Software in an agreement Gearbox says gave them full rights over the tough-talking ’80s action movie quote generator. However, 3D Realms begged to differ, announcing that Mass Destruction was headed to the PS4 and PC in February of this year.
Gearbox ultimately ended up suing 3D Realms and Interceptor Entertainment, arguing in the suit, “Apparently, after selling its Duke Nukem IP rights to Gearbox in 2010, 3DR sought to privately convince others that the sale never happened. The result is the unauthorized development effort that reportedly exists between 3DR and Interceptor.” [Polygon]
It doesn’t take too much of an intellectual leap to guess that Bombshell is simply a re-skin of Mass Destruction with a new, totally different protagonist thrown in (blonde, muscle-bound tough guy vs. lithe lady with black hair – completely different, see).
3D Realms and Interceptor haven’t yet announced a release date for Bombshell, but we can expect a presentation at E3 next month.
This looks like a pretty misguided step at clearing up Duke Nukem’s misogyny. I have a feeling this game will be hilariously offensive for all the wrong reasons.