3D Realms Renames ‘Ion Maiden’ to ‘Ion Fury’, Resolving Trademark Dispute

DALLAS, TX – JULY 11, 2019 – Ion Maiden, the old-school first-person shooter developed by Voidpoint and published by 3D Realms and 1C Entertainment, will release under a new title to avoid legal issues with a certain popular heavy metal band.

The newly retitled Ion Fury fires out of Early Access and 1.0 bursts onto PC August 15, with Nintendo Switch™, PlayStation® 4 and Xbox One coming later. To celebrate, PC Big Box-style physical copies are now available for pre-order.

Shelly “Bombshell” Harrison finally has a deadly date on her calendar with Dr. Jadus Heskel and his army of cyber-cultists. With signature weapons including her Loverboy revolver and Bowling Bombs, every cyborg she sees is about four seconds away from being nothing but gibs n’ gore.

Lovingly crafted in the Build engine which powered ‘90s classics such as Duke Nukem 3D, Blood and Shadow Warrior, Ion Fury fuses nostalgic looks with today’s technology to create the ultimate shooter. Modern features like auto-saves, improved physics and map interactivity, headshots, and widescreen functionality simply weren’t possible back then, but Ion Fury brings the best of both worlds. To celebrate the sheer madness of a modern shooter made in the Build engine, Shelly’s getting the Big Box she deserves.

This edition includes a Bowling Bomb-shaped USB Drive loaded with a DRM-Free version of the game and Soundtrack, a poster, a keycard based on the ones Shelly finds in-game, a making-of booklet, a Bowling Bomb sticker set, and of course Ion Fury itself, all for $59.99. Haven’t played yet, and find that trigger finger is getting itchy? The Digital edition of Ion Fury is available now on Steam Early Access in English, for $19.99.

As the game has doubled in planned scope since its unveiling, the price will rise to $24.99 a bit less than one week from today on July 18. Now’s the perfect time to pick it up and start blasting.

“After careful consideration, we’ve decided to rename our first-person-shooter ‘Ion Maiden‘ to ‘Ion Fury,’ said Mike Nielsen, CEO of 3D Realms. “A lot of thought went into this, but most importantly it would be a disservice to our loyal fanbase and the fantastic developers, to drag out a long lawsuit. The amazing gameplay, interactivity and pure fun, is what makes ‘Ion Fury’ a great game. Not the title.”

It wasn’t Iron Maiden itself that had brought the $2 million law suit against 3D Realms back in May, but rather its holding company, Iron Maiden Holdings Ltd. The band members may or may not even have been aware of the suit at the time of filing. It is also unclear as to whether or not Iron Maiden Holdings might have prevailed had the law suit been allowed to proceed, given that the band itself is named after a medieval torture device, and that the phrase itself is in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as part of the English language. Regardless, 3D Realms has apparently done the math and realized that simply rebranding the game is a far more viable option than going toe to toe with a famous rock band in court.

For more information please explore the official websites for 3D Realms, Ion Fury, and 1C Entertainment.

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[Reprinted with permission via SKNR]

Gareth Von Kallenbach

Gareth is the mastermind behind the popular pop media site Skewed and Reviewed. He lives in Arizona with his wife Em McBride.