2K Games to hunt Prey on PCs, next-gen consoles

After weeks of rumors and Web-based teases, 2K Games today made it official: It will publish Prey, the revamped version of the long-thought-dead shooter. A statement from the publisher, a division of Take-Two Interactive, confirmed many details about the game previously discussed only on the forums of its onetime developer, 3D Realms.

First, it was confirmed that Wisconsin-based developer Human Head Studios has taken over development of the game from 3D Realms. The latter shop began work on the project in 1995 but put it on indefinite hold in 1998 to focus on the still-incomplete Duke Nukem Forever. According to the release, 3D Realms would still have "direct supervision" of work on Prey.

Second, it was confirmed that Prey has been reworked with the Doom 3 engine. An enthusiastic Timothy Gerritsen, CEO of Human Head Studios, said, "Prey is sure to breathe new life into the first-person shooter genre with a compelling story, innovative gameplay mechanics, and dazzling imagery, which is powered by our significantly enhanced version of id Software's original Doom 3 engine."

However, the Prey announcement did contain a few surprises. First was the fact that Prey is coming not only to the PC, but also to an unnamed "next-generation console." The fact that Doom 3 has already been successfully adapted for the Xbox makes it likely that the Xbox 360 is the platform in question. However, nothing is official...yet.

Last but not least, it was confirmed that 2K Games' did reveal a wide release window of 2006 for Prey. The game will be on display at the ATI booth at next month's E3 in Los Angeles.