A new report from Danish website Borsen reveals that Texas-based publisher Apogee Software/3D Realms has been purchased by Interceptor Entertainment, located in Denmark. Those who are old enough to remember DOS games may recognize Apogee/3D Realms as the creators of Commander Keen and Shadow Warrior, and of course the Duke Nukem franchise. As Gearbox Software currently owns the Duke Nukem license, and the recent Shadow Warrior reboot came from Flying Wild Hog and Devolver Digital, Apogee/3D Realms has been somewhat inactive as far as publishing titles goes.
According to Borsen, CEO Mike Nielsen has been appointed to the head-position of Interceptor Entertainment. Neilsen states that “[w]ith this acquisition, we aim to strengthen 3D Realms and protect the legend that it is”. Neilsen specifically cites Duke Nukem, Commander Keen and Shadow Warrior, and goes on to say that the 3D Realms brand is “very valuable, and [they] want to ensure the survival and return to the level at which it is renowned”. Before the purchase, Interceptor Entertainment and Apogee/3D Realms already had a business partnership; Interceptor is responsible for Duke Nukem 3D: Reloaded, Duke Nukem 2 for iOS, and the Duke Nukem Platformer Pack.
While Duke Nukem and Shadow Warrior are in other hands at the moment, it’s interesting to see Neilsen specifically calling out Commander Keen. Episodes 1-5 were released on Steam back in 2007, and Commander Keen: Keen Dreams was released on the Android platform last year, but this is one of the only Apogee/3D Realms franchises to not receive some kind of reboot. This corporate purchase also comes during the lawsuit between Apogee/3D Realms, Interceptor Entertainment and Gearbox Software, in regards to the Duke Nukem license. Gearbox purchased the property license in order to finally finish Duke Nukem Forever, and begin work on a brand new Duke Nukem title at some point; Gearbox is suing Apogee/3D Realms, as they are allegedly attempting to re-license the already-sold property- the process would result in copyright infringement.