Here's the score: Bethesda sued Interplay, claiming the Fallout Trilogy bundle it was selling and marketing through digital distribution services was "confusingly similar" to Bethesda's Fallout 3 products going out this year. Bethesda also wants to terminate Interplay's contract to develop the Fallout MMO, a deal signed when Bethesda bought the rights in 2007 - for $5.75 million - from Interplay, the series' original publisher.

But U.S. District Court Judge Deborah K. Chasanow rejected Bethesda's request for an injunction, without giving any reasons, in a ruling first found by Fallout fan Web site Duck and Cover, and reported today by Gamasutra.

Court Denies Bethesda's Motion To Block Interplay Fallout Activity [Gamasutra]

Fallout fan Wikia The Vault believes them to be, writing today that they were acquired from an "anonymous, but reliable source" and that they're a part of Interplay's defense in a lawsuit filed against the developer by Fallout-rights holder Bethesda.

The screens at least appear to be in line with what the Project V13 concept art hinted at, even if the purported in-game stuff looks like a very brown, very bleak place to spend one's online time.

The Vault blogger Ausir also has more PV13 concept art, should you be turned off by the reality of the in-development MMO. Thanks to Dmitriy for the heads up.

Over on the Interplay website, the development team posted that some of the concept art for the still-in-work MMO have been released due to the lawsuit. So they decided to post them in their forums.

"Keep in mind that this is concept art. It's not finalized art, but it will give you a feel for what we are aiming for with V13," Interplay's Chris Taylor wrote.

Welcome to the Concept Art Forum! [Interplay via Duck and Cover]

The details of that case come from a complaint filed in the District Court of Maryland earlier this week. That complaint alleges that Interplay did not seek approval for the sale of the Fallout Trilogy bundle, which features the original Fallout, Fallout 2 and Fallout Tactics. Bethesda claims that the title Fallout Trilogy is "confusingly similar" to that of Fallout 3 and takes issue with Interplay's marketing, sale and distribution of other Fallout packages named Fallout Collection and Saga Fallout.

Bethesda also takes issue with Interplay's licensing of Fallout games to digital distribution services Good Old Games (GOG), GameTap and Steam, which Interplay was said never to have sought approval or permission for. Basically, Bethesda takes issue with pretty much everything Interplay seems to be doing with the pre-Fallout 3 releases, believing they cannibalize sales of Fallout 3.

The Fallout 3 developer furthermore wants to officially terminate Interplay's rights to create a massively multiplayer online game with the Fallout license. Bethesda believes that Interplay has breached its trademark licensing agreement by failing to enter into full-scale development of a Fallout MMO.

Bethesda threatened legal action over the Fallout MMO earlier this year, claiming that Interplay was slow to develop such a game and had failed to secure the proper funding for the game code-named "Project V13."

In short, it appears that Bethesda wants Interplay to stop selling the Fallout Trilogy and pay up any profits it made selling the trademark infringing games.

Bethesda purchased the rights to the Fallout property for $5.75 million.

Most people will head straight for Fallout. Or Fallout 2. Or Fallout Tactics. Or even the Fallout Collection, bundling all three. That's cool, Fallout's all the rage right now.

Me, I'm heading straight for Kingpin. The ultra-violent FPS is a forgotten gem, and it's great more people will get the chance to try out one of gaming's most gratifying lead pipes.

Oh, Sacrifice is also available, if the above titles are a little too...dark for your tastes.

Earthworm Jim was winning the voting for the next Sega Genesis classic by a wide margin yesterday, when Interplay and Gameloft made their big announcement: Earthworm Jim was coming to all consoles in downloadable form. The bad news? Sega had to remove Jim from the poll. The good? We're getting Earthworm Jim anyway.

Unfortunately, due to a licensing issue, we are no longer able to offer Earthworm Jim as an option in our poll. It was announced earlier today that Gameloft will be bringing Earthworm Jim to Xbox Live Arcade along with several other platforms. We are excited that our fans will soon be able to play this game.

There's even more good news, as my second choice - Toejam & Earl - is currently leading the newly reset poll, so we're basically getting our two top picks instead of one. Everybody wins!

UPDATE: Genesis Poll [Sega America]

Interplay has granted Gameloft exclusive rights to develop, distribute, and publish Earthworm Jim as a downloadable title across the current crop of titles, as well as mobile devices, meaning an iPhone Earthworm Jim might not be out of the question. Gameloft is understandably delighted.

"We are delighted to partner with Interplay to bring Earthworm Jim to multiple downloadable platforms," said Gonzague de Vallois, senior vice president, Gameloft. "The game, with its humorous and edgy style, is a great fit for today's gamer who craves a fully immersive experience that is fun and easily accessible. We look forward to delivering a fantastic game."

It should be easy enough, seeing as the fantastic game already exists! And it shall exist again, sometime during the final quarter of 2009, with the Xbox 360 getting one-month worth of timed exclusivity.

All of the information we have on the event is translated from Russian via Google, so it could be completely wrong. From we understand, a workshop group called Albion organized the event, securing the setting and providing technical, medical, and rescue support. Around 300 players participated, creating their own costumes and modifying fake weapons until they looked as if you just plucked them from a freshly-killed raider's hands. The game followed a basic plot, which the organizers would change on the fly according to how the players reacted.

Say what you will about live-action roleplaying, or LARPing, but this actually looks like a great deal of fun. Unfortunately it also looks like a lot of work, so you won't catch my lazy ass participating in something like this anytime soon. Hit up the link below for even more pictures.

Fallout 2009 «Ничто человеческое» [LiveJournal via Polygamia]

Nothing says post-apocalyptic like Leningrad.

Slavery is serious business.

Looks like box art, doesn't it?

Working headlights.

Just a pleasant stroll through the woods.

They completely nailed the atmosphere.

Free agent.

Probably just a guy they saw on the way to the game.

Post-apocalycious!

Please stand by.

Nice hair.

The Brotherhood.

Over the shoulder view.

Ew. Ew. Ew.

The looming action (which has not yet been made official, but is still likely enough to warrant Interplay filing about it) stems not from the game's rights - which Interplay picked up fair and square - but from the game's progress. Or lack thereof.

Fallout IP owners Bethesda allege that, as part of the deal in which they bought the rights to Fallout (but left the MMO rights for Interplay), Interplay were supposed to have commenced "full-scale" work on the title by April 4, 2009.

Interplay were also supposed to have secured funding for the development of the game. Bethesda claim that neither of these conditions have been met.

As a result, Bethesda are seriously considering "[terminating] the trademark license agreement" currently in place between the two companies.

If Bethesda choose to go ahead with all this, and win, Interplay would lose their rights to produce a Fallout MMO, which may explain why an Interplay MMO is sticking with a "Project V13" code name instead of officially coming out with Fallout MMO branding.

For what it's worth, Interplay "adamantly disputes these claims". We've contacted Bethesda for comment, and will update when/if we hear back from them.

Interplay Entertainment Form 10-K [Edgar Online, via NMA]

Interplay announced their intentions to create a massively multiplayer online game based on the Fallout property back in December 2006, having retained that particular portion of the rights to the franchise after selling the rest to Fallout 3 creators Bethesda Softworks. Now they've teamed up with Masthead Studios, the team behind post-apocalyptic MMO Earthrise to complete work on the mysterious Project V13, which Interplay has been designing and developing since November 2007.

If we had to guess, we'd say V13 stood for Vault 13, which is where the Vault Dweller from the original Fallout originated. Not enough to say that they are official working on a Fallout MMO, but come on, what other MMO would Interplay be working on? Earthworm Jim?

Interplay and Masthead Studios to Jointly Develop Massively Multiplayer Online Game [Yahoo! via MMORPG.com - Thanks Connor!]

The Fallout Retrospective [Gametrailers, thanks reader dayeight]

You will have to sign up with GameTap to get at the goods, and you can expect they will probably ask if you want to start paying for their premium service at some point.

There is a slight bug in GameTap's implementation of the game that means the screen will occasionally go blank (fixable with a few key presses) but whaddaya want? Its free, and its one of the games you need to at least pretend that you have played to avoid embarrassment at dinner parties.

Fallout [GameTap via Shacknews]

If you aren't familiar with Taylor's work, you've never played Fallout or Star Trek: Starfleet Command. (He's not to be confused with the more casual Chris Taylor, creator of titles like Dungeon Siege and Supreme Commander.) Interplay says that bringing Taylor back on board is just one of the additions to its "growing development studio."

As long as we just leave Clayfighter alone, Interplay, remembering it was a cute curiosity for its time, we're on board with this whole shoring up thing you're doing.

Interplay launches new web site; adds Chris Taylor to growing development team [Interplay - thanks, Mr. Blah!]

GameTap to Offer Classic Interplay Titles [Shacknews]

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., April 22, 2008 — Interplay Entertainment Corp. (OTC Bulletin Board: IPLY) announced today that the company signed a partnership arrangement with Earthworm Jim creator Douglas TenNapel to relaunch the videogame icon.

TenNapel will serve as a creative consultant on Earthworm Jim 4, and will simultaneously develop an animated series and feature film to expand the well known brand.

TenNapel created the original Earthworm Jim character, which Interplay developed into a video game with Shiny Studios for the Sega Genesis console in 1994. The game became an immediate hit, and later spawned sequels on various computer and video game platforms, including Earthworm Jim 2, Earthworm Jim 3D, and Earthworm Jim: Menace 2 the Galaxy.

The iconic character became a virtual hero whose popularity took him far beyond video games into TV and toys. An animated Earthworm Jim television series, produced by TenNapel, aired for two seasons from 1995 to 1996, on The Kids WB! with Dan Castellaneta of "The Simpsons" providing the voice for the title character.

During their annual earnings report the company said that their net revenue for last year was just over $6 million, with a net income of $5.86 million, most of which came from the sale of the Fallout IP.

The company also went over what they called a two-pronged strategy for 2008. Prong one: Secure loads of money to turn Fallout into a money-printing MMO. Prong two: create sequels, lots of sequels.

At the same time, the company will leverage its portfolio of gaming properties by creating sequels to some of its most successful games, including Earthworm Jim, Dark Alliance, Descent, and MDK.

Interplay says they want to do all of this in-house and is currently on a hiring binge.

Massively Multiplayer Online Game, Sequels Seen as Key to Resurgence

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., April 8, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Interplay Entertainment Corp. (OTC Bulletin Board: IPLY - News) recently announced its earnings for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2007, and its plan for the company going forward.

Net revenues for the year ended December 31, 2007 were $6,001,000, an increase of 520 percent compared to the same period in 2006.

The Company reported net income of $5.86 million, or $.059 per basic share and $.057 per diluted share, compared to net income of $3.08 million, or $.032 per basic and diluted share, in the same period last year. The net income reported in the twelve-month period of this year was primarily the result of the recording of $5,750,000 in income from recognition of the sale of the "Fallout" intellectual property.

In addition to reporting the annual results, the company also pointed to its two-pronged growth strategy. First, management is working to secure funding for the development of a Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG) based on the popular "Fallout" franchise. Interplay sold "Fallout" in 2007 while obtaining a license back, under certain conditions, to create and develop a "Fallout" MMOG.

At the same time, the company will leverage its portfolio of gaming properties by creating sequels to some of its most successful games, including Earthworm Jim, Dark Alliance, Descent, and MDK.

The company has recently reinitiated its in-house game development studio, and is hiring game developers.

Interplay Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Herve Caen said, "2007 set the foundation for our growth strategy. Going forward, we have the vision, unique intellectual property, and low debt and operational costs to help us pursue financing for our various projects. Our new Website will streamline our ability to communicate development progress with the public, share brand information with the fans and support our customers."

About Interplay

Founded in 1983, Interplay Entertainment is a developer, publisher and licensor of video game software headquartered in Southern California. Interplay is best known for its successful titles in the Role-Playing Game (RPG) genre with hit series like "Fallout" and "Baldur's Gate." The company has produced and licensed titles for many of the most popular interactive entertainment software platforms in the action/arcade, adventure/RPG and strategy/puzzle categories. Its portfolio of well-recognized Intellectual Properties includes Battlechess, Clayfighter, Dark Alliance, Descent, Earthworm Jim, Freespace, Giants, Messiah, MDK, Run Like Hell, Sacrifice and others.

Interplay.com [Official Website - Thanks Patrick!]

Right now it is only a proposal, but Interplay predicts 1 million subscribers globally within the first year and revenue of $160 million after its first year in operation.

A Fallout MMO would be absolutely awesome. Just what the MMORPG market needs to escape the tried and true medieval setting and start fresh. Unfortunately it isn't up to us gamers, and Interplay's track record could very well drown out the fans' cries of joy in the ears of investors. Michael Fahey

Interplay Proposes $75M Fallout MMO?
The US Securities and Exchange Commission Filing

Geek.com reports that GameTap will see a significant jump in the number of available games with the new publishers it added to its roster. Interplay, SNK Playmore USA and Riverdeep all signed on with GameTap bringing the online subscription service new titles like Earthworm Jim and Where in the World is Carmen San Diego? And no, the singing guys from the coffee commercials are NOT involved.

GameTap Boosts Its Gaming Library [Geek.com]