However, Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences president Joseph Olin told Shacknews that no company wants to be excluded from E3, noting that the conference is still the largest annual gathering of its kind in the gaming industry.

"The venue itself, I don't think E3 is as exciting as the products that are within it," Olin added. "I think, perhaps [at] the old E3, the frame overpowered the print. And now, I think it really is the opportunity to focus on the work, which is the most important thing."

Olin's comments bear sharp contrast to remarks made by several industry leaders. Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello offered harsher words for the revised E3, which as of 2007 has shifted towards an invitation-only arrangement for attendees... Read more

Though few details were revealed, a small piece of concept art (pictured left) was posted, in addition to a short sentence of plot detail. Following our initial report, the bulk of the website was taken offline.

"This time, abandoned and framed for the disappearance of his family, Tommy escapes an Earth that no longer wants him for a future that cannot survive without him," reads the description.

While 3D Realms' Scott Miller made mention of a sequel following the original game's release, today marks the first update on the project in nearly two years.

Prey 2 was listed for release on PC and Xbox 360, but no other specifics have been released thus far, including whether Human Head will reprise its role as developer. The studio currently has no known projects.

Radar Group referred to itself as an "original IP incubator," with the goal of managing original gaming projects that can be further developed into cross-media properties such as "films, TV shows, novels and toys."

"We design games from the ground up with an equal emphasis on storytelling and gameplay," reads a statement on the company's website.

"We build into our original, co-created IP the hooks to make for both a great game and a great film. You don't have to look far for proof that our new approach will work; sales charts every year greatly favor IP born within our industry."

Miller will serve as the company's chief creative officer, with Jim Perkins taking on the role of CEO. Following our initial report, the bulk of the website was taken offline.

Some of the first games the group will take on were listed, including original IP from 3D Realms and such as Prey 2 and Recoil Games' Earth No More. Two unannounced titles were also listed, in addition to a third person adventure game titled Incarnate.

That premise, as well as the name 'Earth No More', is pretty much what Scott and Polgardy pitched to several game developers--including 3D Realms--in 2005, according to the lawsuit.

According to the plaintiff, anyone can see similarities between what was pitched and what 3D Realms announced, noting, among other things, a similarity in concept art.

"First of all, the title 'Earth No More' is a title that I haven't been able to find in the title of any intellectual property out there," said the plaintiff's attorney Tre Lovell. "There's no movie, TV show, book, play, anything like that which has the title 'Earth No More'."

Scott and Polgardy are seeking damages under the US Copyright Act, additional statutory damages of up to $150,000 plus attorney fees, and an injunction against the distribution of the game.

"While we have internal targets, dates and goals, like every developer, we are not ready to share them," Broussard posted on the official 3D Realms forums. "The release date is still 'when it's done', and will be until the appropriate moment. Platforms have not been finalized or announced. "

"You can rest assured that we are moving toward a goal and that the recently released teaser trailer is the start of that process and seeing more of the game, sooner than later," he concluded. "We apologize to gamers and websites everywhere for this series of events. Sometimes, you can be too trusting of people and assume things that come back to bite you."

Update 2: The Dallas Business Journal has made several corrections to its initial report, clarifying that Duke Nukem Forever is internally projected by developer 3D Realms to release this year, with a strong possibility that Xbox 360 ... Read more

"The release is still 'when it's done,' but you can expect more frequentmedia releases and we're not changing engines again and we haveconsiderable work behind us," Broussard told Shacknews today when asked about a release date.

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The trailer features the work of longtime Duke voice actor Jon St. John as well as prolific game composers Jeremy and Julian Soule. Several captures from the video are available below.

Platforms for the game were not confirmed, but when asked today whether Xbox 360 in addition to PC is likely, Broussard's response sounded positive though not definitive. "I don't think we've stated that yet for the record but your observationsare probably correct," he conceded.

First announced for PC in 1997 as a followup to the studio's classic Duke Nukem 3D, Duke Nukem Forever is known to have gone through several significant development iterations. Its last major showing was at E3 2001 with its impressive gameplay trailer; the current Duke Nukem Forever is said to share little in common with that game. For more on the history of Duke Nukem Forever, check out Nick Breckon's feature, published today.

"It's basically a restart as the techchanged and we've been on this version of the game since 2004 or so," Broussard said today."The released media up to this point are not longer relevantother than for curiosity purposes."

Prepare to hail to the king, baby. George Broussard of 3D Realms has confirmed on his company's official forums that a teaser trailer for the long (long, long) awaited Duke Nukem Forever will be released tomorrow around noon Central time. (Update: Now released!)

Though the video is just a minute-long teaser, it will contain gameplay footage, and Broussard promised more on Duke Nukem Forever is on the way. Along with the announcement came a single teaser screenshot of Duke.

"Last Saturday we had our annual company Christmas party. It was a lot of fun as usual but it featured one special surprise," explained Broussard. "It turns out that several people had been secretly working late nights and into the wee hours of the morning preparing a special video for those at the party. They created a short teaser for Duke Nukem Forever. After seeing the teaser we thought it was something we should share with all of you and while it's just a teaser, rest assured more is coming."

Broussard confirmed that Duke Nukem 3D voice actor Jon St. John is returning to play his titular role, and credited noted video game music composers Jeremy and Julian Soule. This will mark the first new Duke Nukem Forever video in six years, when 3D Realms released the now-classic E3 2001 trailer.

News of the studio's desire to develop the port came in our very own chat comments from 3D Realms' George Broussard, who said the studio could develop a Live Arcade version of the game if Microsoft is interested.

"Truth be told, we've talked to Microsoft about it and have some people that would port it," he wrote. "Just waiting on the good word from Microsoft to continue."

This wouldn't be the first time the series has made it to consoles. Nintendo 64, PlayStation, and Game Boys Advance and Color have all hosted Duke.

Broussard confirmed the accuracy of his post to Shacknews, but declined to comment further.

Last week, the developer received a letter from the ESRB, which it forwarded to Shacknews, listing over 30 instances of its website violating the ESRB's Terms and Conditions Agreement. Most of the violations stemmed from 3D Realms' use of "old pixilated" rating icons and the lack of content descriptors, such as "Blood" and "Nudity." Steps to obtain the proper rating icons and content labels were not provided, though the letter contained contact information for an ESRB representative.

The ESRB specified that 3D Realms had only 10 days to comply before facing penalties. Actions available to the ESRB, as described in the letter, depend on the severity and the frequency of the infractions, but can range from mere warnings and the "temporary suspension of all ESRB rating... Read more

Initial details on Earth No More surfaced in the latest issue of Game Informer, which is set to hit stores and subscribers later this week. Beginning in a small, quarantined New England town, Earth No More's antagonist comes not from space, but from nature. As a result of mankind's constant pollution of and experimentation with the environment, a growth of deadly red vines and mutating spores have overtaken the world, perverting whatever they encounter.

When reached for comment, Miller told Shacknews that ... Read more

I’d love to see Steam spin off as their own company. That would be a smart move. That removes the conflict of interest issue and it would give Steam focus as a separate company. Since they’re buried in Valve, if Valve doesn’t do well for a game or two, Steam will get cut before their internal game development. They have to consider Steam secondary. I don’t know why they hang on to Steam as an internal thing. They’d probably rule the game industry if they did. A truly independent company is going to come along, and I know of a couple of start-ups. I think one of these companies will emerge as the product leader and they should be able to take Steam’s spot.

My overall impression is that digital distribution is definitely going to be a huge force in the future. I’ve said for quite a while that the next generation consoles will have this built in from the start. Day one releases will be available online. I think brick and mortar places will lose a lot of business this way. Microsoft and Sony have to be saying “if we cut out the retailers, we get a bigger piece of the pie.” There’s no issue with it, you just need to get people bigger hard drives. Digital delivery is going to be a key part of console revenue.

Anyway, we are often contacted by talented, experienced independent studios looking to partner with us as we've done with past studios. It has become apparent to many studios that partnering with us allows them to create an original game, and reap far more of the rewards and benefits, by getting a better overall deal, and also sharing in the ownership of the IP -- the real Holy Grail in this industry. Id went on to become an industry super star. Remedy has achieved that status, and Human Head is right at that level, too, with publishers knocking down their doors to sign them after Prey's release.So, going forward, 3D Realms will become a studio polygamist, teaming up with more than one studio, working on perhaps 4-6 external projects simultaneously, creating new IPs and hopefully helping more and more deserving, talented independent studios achieve financial independence, and the ability to call their their own creative shots in the future. I am hiring one or two additional IP Creative Directors to assist me in the management of these games. We've already been contacted by numerous highly qualified independent studios, and more are welcome to contact me. In a way, we're going back to our roots. Fun times ahead!