A bit of the old ultraviolence
After an excruciatingly long countdown, Interceptor Entertainment’s cheeky teaser site has been updated to reveal Bombshell, the best little non-Duke Nukem game that’s actually Duke Nukem in Texas we could have asked for.
The reveal trailer features a svelte beauty with a rugged mechanical arm that looks capable of transforming into several armaments — I’m thinking rocket launcher, perhaps? Shelly “Bombshell” Harrison (Tank Girl?) is a no-nonsense Bomb Disposal Specialist turned mercenary-for-hire who’s traveling across four different planets in a bid to (surprise!) rescue the president from aliens. Bombshell is an isometric action role-playing game as well, so prepare for a different sort of violence than the running and gunning you may be used to. And speaking of reveal trailers, this one actually seems a little familiar, doesn’t it? Duke Nukem Forever? Ringing any bells?
Duke fans and 3D Realms followers alike may remember the legal complications that came along with Interceptor Entertainment’s acquisition of 3D Realms. While Interceptor picked up the rights to titles like Shadow Warrior, Rise of the Triad, and Duke Nukem, the end result of the purchase ended up covering only past Duke Nukem games rather than the rights to any future releases.
In fact, it turned out that 3D Realms actually sold the rights to Duke Nukem as a franchise years ago, only for Interceptor Entertainment to announce Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction, which prompted a lawsuit from Gearbox Software for breach of contract, and a mass of other sticky matters. Things got even more complicated when 3D Realms alleged they actually retained the rights to Duke, and then all hell broke loose.
The end result? Interceptor Entertainment technically can’t create any future Duke Nukem releases. As a result, it looks like we’re left with Bombshell, which might be a delicious mix of genres and improve on whatever Duke game we may have seen before. It’s one convoluted situation, but at the very least we can look to the future and hope that this game is awesome. And so far, it looks like it will be. If the wait proves to be too much for you though, you can always go back and look at all of these nifty unused Duke assets for a rush of nostalgia. Check out the Interceptor Entertainment official reveal interview here.
