The video game developer Gearbox Software officially reveals its intentions to make an announcement next week in relation to the Duke Nukem franchise.
Although the Duke Nukem brand has been somewhat tarnished ever since its entry for PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 was widely regarded to be one of the worst video game sequels so far, it's safe to say that the character himself still retains a certain amount of charm and appeal with fans due to his crassly tongue-in-cheek humor and generally provocative nature. With that being the case, Gearbox Software's CEO Randy Pitchford is set to capitalize on the goodwill gamers have left for the Duke Nukem franchise by teasing that the studio will have an announcement related to the series next week.
As seen in the tweet below, a fan mentioned to Pitchford that the prospect of a Duke Nukem and Gears of War 4 crossover would be "badass," which resulted in the Gearbox CEO alluding to the proclamation for the former shooter franchise being on deck for next Thursday, December 1. Nevertheless, Pitchford declined to put forth any further hints for what the announcement could be despite other fans' begging him to do so.
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For those unaware, the Duke Nukem details are set to drop on the same day as The Game Awards 2016, which could very well be the platform that Gearbox Software uses to make the announcement. Of course, neither the awards show nor the developer have officially confirmed as much, but it's not a farfetched possibility.
As far as what the content of the announcement could concern, it's interesting that Pitchford piped up after a fan had Duke Nukem and Gears of War 4 in the same sentence, meaning that Duke might be added as a playable character for The Coalition's third-person shooter. After all, the game isn't without its guest stars, as Gears 4 recently added the hip-hop duo Run the Jewels as characters.
Of course, there has been speculation in the past that Duke Nukem might be included as a new character for Gearbox's first-person shooter Battleborn. However, considering the fact that there hasn't been a proper new entry in the franchise since Duke Nukem Forever – the release of Duke Nukem 3D: 20th Anniversary Edition World Tour doesn't technically count – it could be high time for everyone to hail to the king once more with a fresh installment in the series.
That said, should Gearbox be ramping up to an announcement for a brand new Duke Nukem game, the studio will have a lot of work ahead in order to ensure that one of the best action video game characters gets the proper treatment on current generation platforms. After all, the franchise's track record as of late has arguably been less than stellar.
Gearbox Software's Duke Nukem announcement is scheduled for next week on Thursday, December 1.
Source: Randy Pitchford – Twitter (via IGN)