Much of this, of course, goes back to 3D Realms' well-known policy of only shipping a game "when it's done" (WID). Many other companies would have forced the developer to shove Prey out the door when the funding ran shy, no matter what shape it might have been in. I asked Miller if he thinks this is a core reason for the company's success.
"Success, and failure. Clearly, WID has backfired with Duke. WID only works within reason, and we have stretched it to absurdity."
In the end, though, keeping Prey going worked out well. "What ended the dispute was the arrival of Christoph Hartmann and the creation of a new brand within Take 2, and that was 2K Games," says Gerritsen. "Christoph had a specific vision for 2K and a professionalism that totally reinvigorated our relationship with Take 2. We settled our dispute, and from that moment forward, all parties came together again. Prey was once again on track with a committed publisher."
Prey shipped in the summer of 2006, and Gerritsen left the company just months later. To an outside eye, it might seem he was another casualty of Prey, but it's not so.
Gerritsen explains: "During the production of Dead Man's Hand [which shipped in 2004], I had seen some limitations in our approach as a company that I wanted to change. Despite being in the role of CEO, we were an equal partnership as a company, so I couldn't just dictate how I wanted things to be. I deeply respect all six of my partners, and I decided that getting all of them to leave their comfort zone to do things my way was a dauntingly uphill climb and not good for either myself or them.
"I am also very loyal to them and decided that there was no way I could leave them in mid-project, especially on a project as large as Prey. I resolved to remain on the Prey project until we finished it, and [to] secure our next contract before moving on. I think it's a testament to our respect for one another that we handled the transition as smoothly as I think it could have gone."
With Prey a smash-hit, should that give us hope we might see Duke Nukem Forever soon? Miller sounds cautiously optimistic. "The projects are entirely unrelated. Duke is another one of these super-ambitious projects, and that ambition has definitely come back to bite us. But I think we have a shock collar on that dog now, and things look like they're well under control."
Insert joke here.
Matt Forbeck works on tabletop games, computer games, novels, comics, toys, magazine articles for dozens of companies, including Wizards of the Coast, Games Workshop, Mattel, Playmates Toys and IDW Publishing.
