Mario "128" is ... a ways ... off.

[A Black Falcon]

I'm not sure when they started Duke Nukem Forever... was it mid '96? Early '97? Somewhere around there I think... anyway, that's 7 or 8 years into development now, at least. With no end in sight, really... 3D Realms has no timetable since they are self-funding the game (yes, they do have income -- think all those console Duke Nukem games (not developed by them, but they make money from it...), and the Max Payne titles (that they didn't make, but they helped that developer make)...) so their publisher has no leverage over them and can't make them keep a schedule...

And the result is this. A game which has become a joke... not in a Daikatana way, but in a 'does it actually exist' way. And it's anyone's guess how good it'll be once it finally DOES come out... games that are long-delayed often fail to keep up with the ever-changing competition.