THE BUZZ: After a long drawn out battle between Bethesda and Interplay over the rights to a Fallout MMO, it appears that Bethesda has come out on top.

The settlement was reached last week and gives Bethesda the exclusive rights to develop a MMO based on the Fallout universe, after paying an additional $2 million for the rights. Interplay sold the franchise t Bethesda back in 2007, but then licensed back the rights to develop a Fallout MMO under set conditions, it’s these conditions that were under dispute by the two companies.

“Fallout is an important property of ZeniMax [Bethesda's Parent Company] and we are now able to develop future Fallout titles for our fans without third party involvement or the overhang of others’ legal claims,” said Zenimax CEO Robert Altman. ”While we strongly believe in the merits of our suits, we are pleased to avoid the distraction and expense of litigation while completely resolving all claims to the Fallout IP.”

EGM’s TAKE: This is a major blow for Interplay and for fans who were looking forward to a possible Fallout MMO, which may now never happen. Although, if Bethesda does pursue it, likely the end result will fit in with the last two games better.