Apogee Software

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Apogee Software Ltd. developed the first three games in the Duke Nukem main series. The original game, Duke Nukem, was released in 1991 as a two-dimensional platform game for the IBM PC with 320×200, 16-color EGA graphics. When Apogee learned the name 'Duke Nukem' might have been trademarked for a character from the television series Captain Planet and the Planeteers, they changed it to Duke Nukum for the 2.0 revision. The name was later determined not to be trademarked, so the spelling Duke Nukem was restored for Duke Nukem II and all successive Duke games. The sequel, Duke Nukem II, took advantage of 256-color VGA graphics, MIDI music, and digitized sound. The third game, Duke Nukem 3D, was released in 1996 as a first-person shooter featuring three-dimensional environments with two-dimensional sprites. In 1996, Apogee rebranded as 3D Realms.

In Their Own Story

In 1991, Apogee Software released Duke Nukem, a 2D platformer for the IBM PC with 320×200, 16-color EGA graphics. The game had three episodes, the first distributed as shareware. When Apogee learned the name 'Duke Nukem' might be trademarked for a character from Captain Planet and the Planeteers, they changed it to Duke Nukum for the 2.0 revision. After determining the name was not trademarked, they restored Duke Nukem for Duke Nukem II and all later games. Duke Nukem II used 256-color VGA graphics, MIDI music, and digitized sound. In 1996, Apogee rebranded as 3D Realms and released Duke Nukem 3D, a first-person shooter with 2D sprites in 3D environments. The franchise generated over $1 billion in revenue by 2001.

Reader's Guide

Apogee Software Ltd. developed the first three Duke Nukem games. Duke Nukem (1991) is a 2D platformer with 320×200, 16-color EGA graphics and three episodes, the first distributed as shareware. Duke Nukem II (released after the name was restored) features 256-color VGA graphics, MIDI music, and digitized sound. Duke Nukem 3D (1996) is a first-person shooter with 2D sprites in 3D environments, released for MS-DOS, Mac OS, PlayStation, Sega Saturn, game.com, Sega Genesis/Mega Drive, Nintendo 64, and later for Xbox Live Arcade (2008), iOS and Nokia N900 (2009). The most recent main series installment, Duke Nukem Forever, was released on June 10, 2011 in Europe and Australia and June 14, 2011 in North America after development by 3D Realms and later Gearbox Software, who acquired the rights in 2010.

Did You Know?

• Apogee Software rebranded as 3D Realms in 1996.
• The original Duke Nukem game was temporarily renamed Duke Nukum because of a potential trademark conflict with a character from Captain Planet and the Planeteers.
• Duke Nukem (1991) used 320×200, 16-color EGA graphics with vertical and horizontal scrolling.
• Duke Nukem II used 256-color VGA graphics, MIDI music, and digitized sound, but only 16 colors are actually used onscreen at once.
• The Duke Nukem franchise generated over $1 billion in revenue by 2001.