Even the best-laid plans can slip by a month or two. Duke Nukem Forever has been pushed back to a later June 14 release in North America and a June 10 release (a whopping four days earlier) elsewhere. It was supposed to hit worldwide shelves in early May, but something, obviously, got in the way of that.
What’s forcing Gearbox Software and publisher 2K’s hand in this postponement is unknown, but the reason must have been significant. Upon picking up Duke Nukem Forever, Gearbox was firm about not discussing possible release dates or launch windows for the shooter. Delays, much like engine swaps, are a legacy issue for DNF. Gearbox just wanted to make absolutely sure that whatever date was set, was the date the game would hit without a shadow of a doubt. Whoops!
At least the Texas-based developer has the right kind of attitude about all of this. In the following video, Randy Pitchford pokes some fun at himself and DNF about this delay.
Duke Nukem Forever was scheduled to hit in the mid-‘90s. A couple of engine swaps, a studio closure, and more than a decade later, Borderlands developer Gearbox stepped in to piece together the game and get it out of the door. It was revealed in a playable form to the public for the first time at PAX Prime.