Duke Nukem Forever

I really, really thought... here it is, a FPS Duke Nukem with new 2010 graphics, I thought, let's take a look at it, why not. And I was disappointed. By much of it. Graphics were good, but not that great, some of the ideas where Duke can interact with other objects like in mini-games to upgrade your health... actually, your ego. So, instead to look for medkits around you look for some "manly" stuff to boost Duke's ego... kinda ideal. But still, the old look for medkit idea was better. Other ideas were taken from the 1996 game and just enhance it. The new thing is that Duke can drive a car. Why? and he can carry only two weapons. Why? Why driving and carrying two weapons. I think that they were trying to imitate Halo. The game that also move standards. Why do I feel that they spiced it up with the reality in a way? The game play could be much more better. Duke could be more agile, but here, he is just clumsy, he is stiff as a board, you can barely move! You really get your butt kicked on multiple occasions and when your, here I dare say it "ego" is low, you don't have a medpack and you can't move. You are really easy target, and you are pretty easy to kill, or to get hit, no matter the difficulty. I heard that PC version is better than XBOX or Playstation... I played it on PC, and I gotta tell you... It's not that much of fun. This game repels you. It really does. You are just not that happy to go back to it. Jon St. John is still here as Duke, well they kept that element right and he did a good job as always. Duke is a real badass. But, the humor is basically old and not that rich, also, the Duke's character is also pretty dry and outdated. Duke is pretty much... an a-hole. He is one big egoistical jerk and you just don't feel connected to him. He is loved by all people and they are all in shock and awe when they see him. OK, it's not supposed to be taken serious, but they could have make him more richer and more developed character. In the 1996 game, it was simple, and it was obvious, and it was cool in controversial way. Wall boobs? What a hell? Your opponents returns as enhanced, more powerful than ever, I don't recall seeing any new one... maybe a few. And also what I find irritating... is politics. President is more often here than before. That was not necessary. Game levels looks pretty cool, weapon design is also good, the idea that Duke can go around do some macho stuff as taking leak, playing pool, basketball, pinball and other "manly" activities. It has some good fun, but still, it's not that playable, if you ask me...

I don't even know who Duke Nukem really is back then as a kid but I saw this game from an old magazine that I read. Once I bought this game I decide to try it out.

To be honest I really absolutely fun on playing this game. As usual I did alot of the shooting and I get to trigger short kill animations. It's pretty fun to do about the many ways to kill. But the story in this game is absolutely absurd. I thought the Saints Row or Postal has weird over-the-top stories, but I didn't expect this game to be that much. And I did not expect to have nudity appear out of nowhere. Plus one thing that frustrated me is the animation which one evidence is the drawing scene for a plan and signing autographs.

Duke Nukem Forever did not make me hail to king for him and Duke may act like a rude guy for no reason but this game is still fun to play.

3D works quite well to the point where you don't have to download any patches a la Helix or others. NVidia (sorry I don't do A.M.D)suggest you go to advanced video options and turn off "post special effects". Though 3D is great it isn't superb like some earlier games like Crysis 3 with full area 3D. Depending on the game not only is your hand piece - (that with which you kill enemies) at the front of the screen and quite pleasantly 3D to the point where it protrudes out from your monitor and hangs above your keyboard! but you can look out into the distance quite literally in full 3D!Like you are standing in a hallway and looking way down into it. OK that's enough for my attempt at 3D worthiness. Sadly you only get partial 3D depth as to distance perspective. Graphically the Devs have done well to present shiny textures and lots of fun via nude X rated CGI. AS to the story and re-playability well, This is definitely worth playing once only for the length of time waited since Duke version one. There are plenty of gags, tits, and puns but nothing to make the mature gamer want to come back for more.

Email me if you would like a game reviewed for its 3d worthiness - ratcat17@hotmail.com

That is the question that's been on my mind ever since I bought the game from day 1.

After 12 years in development, and a record sum of money that was used in that development process(details of which remain unknown to this day) Duke Nukem Forever has seen the light of day. From the looks of it, it's a fun game to play and has the attitude and action that made Duke famous since his first 3D outing.

But sadly this is where the game reaches it's peak in awesomeness. While that game does offers some very nice and creative action-set pieces, they are too few and far between. In Duke Nukem 3D, it was straight-up balls-to-the-wall action that never skips a beat; even when pummeling pixel aliens and bosses. That with the exploration of secret rooms and levels with quips to popular culture made the game a classic and more enjoyable.. In DNF however, there's very little of that in the game. You never get the sense that the levels are grand in scope and clever sophistication. That is one of many of the problems that plague this game, which I will get into in more detail.

The first sign that this game isn't going to live up to the hype is it's infamous development cycle. As a direct sequel to DN3D, the game is undeniably average looking; both in it's content and overall design. Unlike the original game, where often the puzzles became more complex, intuitive, and creative; giving you the satisfaction of completing them, DNF's puzzle sections feel too simplistic and generic. It's a terrible waste because not only does the game suffer for it, but the player as well who likes a stiff challenge on a mental level. It's like the developers didn't have a clear sense on how to immerse players in the game like several other games of this caliber does and afterwords, the player is left with barely anything to chew on.

Another one of DNF's weaknesses is how cheap it looks. For all the time spent on development, DNF looks painfully average. I'm not talking just the visuals(which in some spots look really nice)but also some of the animation. Some of the animation is really impressive; especially the boss characters, but the character animation on the aliens and shockingly, humans, is robotic and stiff. It is simply inconceivable that a game such as DNF could be of this poor quality;even by today's standards where cutting edge game design and smooth game-play is the rule. Add to the fact that characters barely interact with the main protagonist, let alone in an entertaining and clever way, and you have characters that are equally lifeless as the game's atmosphere.

The most important aspect of any game's success is it's playability. DNF does not have this nailed down in any way. It takes forever(pardon the pun) to perform an action; particularly in interacting with the games environment. Why you have to press a button to open a door, flip a switch, pick up a weapon is beyond me. DN3D didn't have any of that so why was it not implemented in this latest release of the titular hero? Even the driving sections are generic. There's no real tension or sense of excitement when mowing down aliens with a monster truck. It would'v been more exciting if Duke was able to take a vehicle(be it land, sea, or air) in the game and use it against his enemies in much more creative ways. THAT is the biggest problem with DNF. There's too little ingenuity and creativity. Bulletstorm, Crysis, and to a greater extent, Halo, gave you the option of engaging your enemies in creative and exciting ways that were never before seen in gaming. In DNF where there are few moments of creativity here and there, it's too little and too late in immersing the player in the game's environment and as a result, the end experience leaves the player cold.

One thing that this game has right is the multi-player. All the modes are there from Capture the Flag, Dukematch, etc. There is a neat twist where(I kid you not) you slap a babe on the rear end. A tasteless treat for the raunchy side of things, but it does little to save what is at best an average game.

Honestly, this game was not worth the wait. There was simply no way the game could live up to the hype. 12 years of development and this is the end result? Instead of trying to build on such outdated game design, they should'v started over from scratch or at the very least, strive for innovation that some games have done in this day and age of gaming. For such an anticipated game that was decades behind in design, DNF disappoints on every level. I admit I enjoyed some parts of it but in the end I have no choice but to give my grade for this game and it's a C.

A shame. Such potential utterly wasted.

Going into this game with low expectations, I expected a first-person shooter game with, of course, the man himself Duke. What I actually found while playing this game is that it reminded me of Half-Life a lot more than any of the classic 90's shooter games. While the combat can feel a bit clunky at times (like Half-Life), and sometimes the puzzles can be too tricky to solve without referring to a guide (like Half-Life), I have so far enjoyed playing this game, with the Duke Nukem humor being one of my favorite aspects.