It looks, sadly, as though Duke Nukem developer 3D Realms has shut its doors.

After nebulous forum and Twitter reports the closure was apparently confirmed by the developer's webmaster, Joe Siegler, saying in a 3DR forum post. "It's not a marketing thing. It's true. I have nothing further to say at this time", he wrote.

The news was also apparently confirmed to ShackNews by "a very reliable source close to... 3D Realms". The source said that the closure was due to funding issues - an assertion supported by a statement from Take-Two, which had a publishing arrangement with 3D Realms for the looooonnng awaited Duke Nukem Forever.

"We can confirm that our relationship with 3D Realms for Duke Nukem Forever was a publishing arrangement, which did not include ongoing funds for development of the title", said Take-Two VP of communications Alan Lewis. So, no money coming in there...

There has, as yet, been no official statement on the news from 3D Realms.

While 3D Realms would appear to be dead, however, there's a ray of hope for Duke Nukem Forever. "In addition, Take-Two continues to retain the publishing rights to Duke Nukem Forever", Take-Two's Lewis also said. Whether that means Take-Two is able to develop its own version of Forever or holds the useless rights to an uncompleted game is unclear.

It would appear that the recently-revived Apogee, developer behind the handheld Duke Nukem Trilogy and sibling studio to 3D Realms, is unaffected by the closure. While SkackNews' source claimed that staff from both 3DR and Apogee have already been sent home, a statement released by Apogee and Trilogy's publisher, Deep Silver, reads, "Deep Silver and Apogee Software are not affected by the situation at 3D Realms. Development on the Duke Nukem Trilogy is continuing as planned."

While saddening, the news of 3DR's closure is not altogether unexpected. The development of the latest console outing for the developer's biggest franchise, Duke Nukem Forever, has been in development for some 12 years.

^{Sources:
3D Realms
ShackNews}