The battle between Bethesda and Interplay over the Fallout MMOG has taken another interesting turn. Speaking with Eurogamer in an interview last Friday, Interplay President Eric Caen told the gaming news site that Interplay is ready to fight Bethesda for years if needed and that his company sold the rights of the Fallout IP to Bethesda for a certain amount of money and rights to develop the Fallout Online MMOG. Caen argues that by Bethesda interfering in the Fallout Online development that they (Bethesda) are breaching the agreement of the sale and notes that the courts could decide to void the initial sale of the Fallout IP to Bethesda that took place back in 2004.

href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/94481"
title=""> src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/94481" alt="Double Facepalm" width="250" height="197"
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 250px; height: 197px;" /> href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/91542"
title="">

style="font-style: italic;">What more needs to be said about this whole situation that this image doesn't?

"We sold the Fallout IP to Bethesda in exchange for a certain amount of cash and the right to do the Fallout MMO," he said. "If they refuse to let us do the game, then the sale of the IP is terminated, and they will be allowed to do only one more Fallout, 5.

But Bethesda isn't holding back their claim to all things Fallout. In a statement to VG247, Bethesda's VP of Public Relations Pete Hines clarified Bethesda's view on the rights of the Fallout IP.

We own the rights to everything Fallout. The license is ours. Fallout belongs to us."

Caen later responded to Hines' comments and offered an explanation about what has happened since Interplay received a unilateral termination letter from Bethesda following the sale of the Fallout IP.

The only thing that is truly clear out of this legal train wreck is that we won't be seeing a Fallout MMOG anytime soon.

Sources

Eurogamer

VG247