Scott Miller

Lore & Background

Scott Miller was the producer at Apogee Software who oversaw the development and release of Duke Nukem in 1991. The game's original title was Heavy Metal, but Miller hated that name and chose to name it after the lead character, similar to comic books. He proposed the name Duke, which he felt sounded strong, while Todd Replogle proposed Nukem as the character's last name. After the game's release, Apogee became aware that the Captain Planet and the Planeteers animated series featured a character with the same name (Duke Nukem). To avoid a lawsuit, the software house renamed version 2.0 of the game to Duke Nukum. It later turned out that Duke Nukem was not a registered name, so Apogee registered it and used the original Duke Nukem name in the sequels. Apogee also received a legal letter from Duke University alleging trademark violation. Apogee successfully fought back, and agreed to use the full Duke Nukem name in all their marketing materials.

In Their Own Story

Scott Miller sat in the Apogee office looking at the game's original title: Heavy Metal. He hated it. He wanted something that sounded strong, like a comic book hero. He proposed the name Duke. Todd Replogle suggested Nukem as the last name. That was the moment Duke Nukem got his name. Later, a legal letter from Duke University arrived alleging trademark violation. Apogee fought back and won, agreeing only to use the full Duke Nukem name in all marketing materials.

Reader's Guide

Scott Miller was the producer at Apogee Software for the original Duke Nukem (1991), a 2D platform game for MS-DOS. He is responsible for naming the lead character Duke, rejecting the original title Heavy Metal. After the game's release, Miller and Apogee dealt with trademark issues: first renaming the game to Duke Nukum to avoid conflict with a Captain Planet character, then later registering the Duke Nukem name after discovering it was not registered. They also successfully fought a trademark claim from Duke University. Miller estimates the game sold between 60,000 and 70,000 copies. In 1995, Flux magazine ranked the game 39th on their Top 100 Video Games, calling it "Without a doubt, the best platform game for the pc ever created."

Did You Know?

• Scott Miller hated the original title Heavy Metal and renamed the game after the lead character, similar to comic books.
• Miller proposed the name Duke because he felt it sounded strong.
• After the game's release, Apogee briefly renamed it to Duke Nukum to avoid a lawsuit over the Captain Planet character of the same name.
• Apogee received a legal letter from Duke University alleging trademark violation, but successfully fought back.
• Miller estimates the game sold between 60,000 and 70,000 copies.