Pre-order-pushing GameStop takes down payments and reservations on video games while developers are still working on them, so sometimes customers — who are free to cancel reservations and apply their credit to other purchases — end up putting $5 or more down on games that never come out. Some true believers hold out hope that their pre-ordered vaporware will someday see the light of day, as is the case with Duke Nukem Forever, which has been in off-and-on development for 14 years. The game will finally hit shelves June 14.

GamePro reports the loyal customers who grew old with hopes that the game would one day become reality will still be able to claim their product, provided they kept documentation.

Says a company spokesman:

“With a long-anticipated release like Duke Nukem Forever, we encourage customers who pre-ordered more than a year ago to verify their reservation with their local store prior to launch. Provided the customer has a receipt, we will honor even those pre-orders taken long ago. At this time, we expect that all pre-order customers will receive Duke’s Big Package at time of purchase, regardless of when the reservation was made.”

Do you find it reasonable or disappointing that customers will need ancient receipts to claim their game, and that the company apparently doesn’t keep long-term records of pre-orders?

GameStop Will Honor All Duke Nukem Pre-Orders — Even Decade-Old Ones [GamePro via Slashdot]

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