Eduke32 devs getting sued by Gearbox

[Luigi2600]

That moment when a furry calls you out on your plain greedy bullshit. Seriously though she did an awesome job exposing his true colors.

[Fox666]

http://techraptor.net/content/duke-nuke ... s-gobeille

[Cage]

I'll repost my post from Doomworld on this:

Looks like a case of "It's our way, or the highway, because we're big and you're nobody". I have no reason not to believe Richard - he's super passionate about Duke and his work plus he's too much of direct-to-point, no-bullshit guy to fabricate a manipulation story, while Gearbox, as we all know, has a history of "very unclear situations" to put it most mildly. No clear, rationally written statement from Gearbox or Randy doesn't help matters either. So I think it's just about imposing their own way - I don't think it's about money - They could easily work out a royalty deal which would guarantee them a buck as well and any realistic up-front payment would be chump change in comparison to their overall revenue.

It's really sad, GBX could easily just endorse the work done on EDuke32 for an easy win-win situation for everyone. Especially since, this part of the quote from the article:

"You’re one of the most knowledgeable people about Duke and you care about it. You should get to impact the new episode and weigh in on our engine updates."

...suggests a potential new release for classic Duke. If they are in conflict with Richard/Eduke32 Team then how are they going to do it? Use the DOS executable? Or are they stupid enough to expect to catch up with ~13 years (iirc) of engine improvements, bug fixing and modern OS adaptation on their own in a mere few months? Megaton Edition port uses Richards and Jonof's code too so if they wanted to base on that they would have to deal as well.

I hope the internet backlash will be enough to solve this situation. And if they decide to sue a disabled man with no money because of a conflict over a game from 1996... We all should rethink if we really want to support a company that acts like this.

[Kinsie]

http://techraptor.net/content/duke-nuke ... s-gobeille

What a magnificent shitfight.

[Fox666]

TX was in position to completely fuck up Gearbox's project if he wanted to. But he's not an asshole and wants to remain the good guy of this story.

...suggests a potential new release for classic Duke. If they are in conflict with Richard/Eduke32 Team then how are they going to do it? Use the DOS executable? Or are they stupid enough to expect to catch up with ~13 years (iirc) of engine improvements, bug fixing and modern OS adaptation on their own in a mere few months? Megaton Edition port uses Richards and Jonof's code too so if they wanted to base on that they would have to deal as well.

Yes, that's what they will do (and fail). The existing contracts established that Megaton would have to pay royalties to JonoF or TX, and that's what they want to avoid. Which brings the question of why Randy wanted TX to sign another contract for his Android port instead of making their own port, if his existing contract is invalid like they claim.

[NeuralStunner]

I hope the internet backlash will be enough to solve this situation.

That's the saddest part of it. Pitchford (I'd rather not refer to him as Randy) apparently doesn't believe the bad PR will hurt him. Though given how many other shitty publishers are still afloat, I'm not sure if it will either.

And if they decide to sue a disabled man with no money because of a conflict over a game from 1996... We all should rethink if we really want to support a company that acts like this.

I find myself wondering if Steam will be OK with refunding this Borderlands 2 bundle I've never touched in ~2 years.

[SamVision]

Thank god the only Gearbox game I have is Opposing Force I got with a Half-Life pack.

[Ethril]

Thank god the only Gearbox game I have is Opposing Force I got with a Half-Life pack.

I don't think that the people who worked on OpFor (which is absolutely fantastic, BTW) are even still working for Gearbox anymore, anyway.

[enderkevin13]

To the people who say that the Eduke32 devs are in the wrong, I will gladly say fuck you.

[wildweasel]

To the people who say that the Eduke32 devs are in the wrong, I will gladly say fuck you.

I'm suddenly very glad that nobody is able to see who voted what.

[leileilol]

Thank god the only Gearbox game I have is Opposing Force I got with a Half-Life pack.

Op4, Blueshit and Boredurghlands here. I was mocking them by the time Blooms In Arms Road To Bloom Hell 30 rolled around

A lot of it sounds like Take2's executive doing though (especially the whole anti-modding stance), not implying Gearbox is less of a backstabby ass here however

[Luigi2600]

A lot of it sounds like Take2's executive doing though (especially the whole anti-modding stance), not implying Gearbox is less of a backstabby ass here however

I have blue shift and opposing force they're honestly pretty good back when gearbox wasn't shit.

[enderkevin13]

3 people voted Eduke32... What the fuck?

[wildweasel]

3 people voted Eduke32... What the fuck?

Maybe don't be such a jerk about the way people vote.

[Rachael]

To the people who say that the Eduke32 devs are in the wrong, I will gladly say fuck you.

I'm suddenly very glad that nobody is able to see who voted what.

Same here.

At any rate, Ender, I see things from a different perspective.

I see one side favoring independence and the other side favoring itself - the corporation, the business. Neither side is inherently wrong, although Pitchford is real high and mighty with himself. It's so easy to side with the small guy and not the corporation because we always see corporations victimizing people. Of course I would side with the EDuke dev on this because I bloody hate people who put profits ahead of morals and doing the right thing. But it doesn't seem Pitchford is all the evil we make him out to be - just a bit emotional and immature. That's when we have to ask ourselves if we were in his shoes would we do the same thing? And honestly - a lot of us - probably yes. Responding to the public berating you is not an easy thing.

You also have to keep in mind that Gearbox might not be where it is today if not for the things they've done to get there. There is something to be said about pride and accomplishment, not everyone is able to climb the ladder of upward mobility and be so highly successful. That doesn't mean Pitchford is in the right but it makes a little more sense where he is coming from.

Another thing you have to consider is that TerminX is putting forth some serious public accusations against Gearbox and Pitchford. Without some proof to back that up, that's actually illegal in the U.S., under the laws of libel and slander. TerminX can really be sinking his own ship just by what he's posted there, and knowing Pitchford there may well come a day when he's going to have to defend every statement he's made on that forum or bust. I don't think that's something that will go over well for him.

So, saying "fuck you" to people because of their opinion is really just plain wrong. Sorry, but it is. And I will not stand with you on that front.

There is never a black and white when dealing with situations like this. Neither side is going to be 100% evil or 100% good. And when it really starts to count, the tables always turn.

What it really comes down to is one simple truth: Both sides, whether you want to admit it or not, really are victims in their own respect. Both have done things to each other they shouldn't have. Both really have the opportunity, right now, to rise to the occasion and say, "I'm sorry, this was all a misunderstanding." If the other accepts the apology, so many great things can come of that. But both are also equally capable of being stubborn and rejecting the apology. I think, more than anything, that's what would really hurt everyone.