Late May, 2025: Duke Nuke Forever

Beat this in a day if that says anything about the game. For starters, Im playing with a mod that removed some of the bad choices they made with the game. No 2 weapon limit, no sprint, and faster general movement speed to be more akin to the predecessors. From what I played, Forever is fine - in the most mediocre of ways. Do I think people were maybe a bit to harsh on the game in total, perhaps. But if I spent 60 bucks on this back in 2009 I would be pissed too.

The gunplay is fine, the voice acting is okay at best (the cheesy one liners are here to stay), the music is forgettable, and the overall plot is very simple. I would love to see the modding community take this game and use its gunplay to transform it into something else, but no one will do that when 3D exists. When you think of a truly mid game, this is a game that should come to mind. Was it as bad as some people made it out to be, no...is it anything special or deserving of the Duke Nukem name, no again.

What could have helped this game, aside from a shorter and more clear development, would be to lean into the camp that is Duke Nukem. The fans know what he is, lean into the "America fuck yeah" that his character embodies, and lean into a faster paced, item based gameplay of the past. I know its been over a decade since Dukes last game, and frankly I dont blame the IP owners after this release, but I think Duke as a character deserves some love, and a team of caring individuals could bring him to a new audience as a Doom 2016 like revival. Id have hopes out for that, but until then...I guess Ill keep playing 3D.

C

Early May, 2025: Duke Nuke 3D

I was originally putting this game off as another Doom clone of the late 90's, and in a way I was right. But what sets Duke apart from other clones of the time is the use of equipment that really opens up the gameplay to experimentation.

The sandbox is typical, 0-9 has all the weapons you could ever need, and the different chapters in the game you search and find all your weapons again in classic fashion. The equipment however, includes the likes of distracting enemies with the Holo-Duke, Jetpacks that got you to crazy areas, Health packs (these I was quite fond of) that healed you mid battle (no more looking for health around the level), and Steroids that increased your movement speed. Duke also famously (or infamously) chatters throughout the game with cheesy 90's oneliners in classic action star fashion. Some were hilariously dated, and some like "blow it out your ass" played on repeat so much I could almost feel it coming.

Overall, I think this is a game worth playing to understand how the FPS genre evolved over the years, taking a formula like Doom and making something completely unique from it. I enjoyed my time through and through and I would definately replay, or at least mod, in the future.

A