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Box Art
Duke Nukem Forever
Developer: 3D Realms
Publisher: Microsoft
Platforms: X-Box
Release Date: May 20, 2004
Voice Cast
Duke Nukem: Jon St. Jon
Ex-General Graves: Bruce DuBose
General Har Dass: Christopher Sabat
Major Lieutenant: Steve Blum
President Hue Maan: JK Simmons
Mary Holsom: Jennifer Green
Kate Holsom: Jennifer Green
After their loss of Rareware Microsoft sought out various series to bolster their library of X-Box exclusive games. While Microsoft bought Vivendi Universal Games to gain beloved platforming mascots Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon. Microsoft sought and managed to receive an exclusivity deal with 3D Realms for the upcoming Duke Nukem Forever which Microsoft was impressed with the E3 2001 trailer for the game. In this deal Microsoft would provide funding for Duke Nukem 3D. This drastically altered the “When it’s done” attitude as Microsoft became involved in the games development and gradually became frustrated with the lengthy development. Although he agreed to the exclusivity deal George Broussard would abandon the development team in late 2002 due to pressure from Microsoft to hire more staff, repeated inquiries as to when the game would be complete, and even threatening to sue 3D Realms for failing to uphold their deal. Eventually, he would tell Microsoft “Do whatever the hell you want. I’m sick of your shit.”. Microsoft’s meddling seemed to only help the game as not only did Microsoft provide funds to hire a bigger team, but Microsoft wanted the game to stand out from Halo helping keep the game to stay true to the traditional gameplay of previous games. These new hires we’re adamant about completing the game and took what was turning into a mess into a masterpiece. Shortly after the games release George Broussard left 3D Realms and Microsoft bought the development studio, giving them the Duke Nukem IP.
Plot Synopsis
Aliens once again threaten Earth and it’s up to Duke Nukem to blast them all to hell and back! Although it seems times have changed as Duke Nukem has fallen out of favor with the Earth Defense Forces as General Graves has been replaced with new General Har Dass. The Earth Defense Forces call in a new character named Major Lieutenant, a no-nonsense military man in power armor to fight off the aliens and even arrest Duke Nukem for violating their new No Smoking Policy. With only his wits, his guns, his adoring fans, the hot babes he rescues, and an empty pack of bubblegum. Duke Nukem now goes up against both the invading aliens and the Earth Defense Forces. Spouting witty remarks and one-liners the whole way through and making sure everyone understands why you always bet on Duke.
Gameplay
The gameplay is the same classic gameplay typically found in the Duke Nukem series specifically Duke Nukem 3D. Duke Nukem can carry as many weapons as he can find, levels are non-linear in design with checkpoint areas for cutscenes. The game features a variety of on minigame sections such as an on-rails shooter section where you water ski on the coast of Los Angeles, Snowboarding down the Rocky Mountains, and racing on Route 66. There’s even a parody of a fishing minigame with Duke Nukem even mocking Sonic the Hedgehog’s Big the Cat, a character that Jon St. Jon also voices. Duke Nukem completes the mock fishing minigame by blowing up the fishing pond and grabbing the biggest fish that’s blasted onto shore.
The game features a multiplayer mode that can be played locally and online. Various gamemodes include.
Deathmatch – A standard deathmatch mode. The player with the highest score wins. The game manual explains that a mad scientist has cloned Duke Nukem and now the original Duke has to prove himself over all the “Copycats”.
Snowboarding – A multiplayer version of the snowboarding mission.
Alien Hunter – One player plays as Duke Nukem. 5 other players play as fairly weak aliens. The one player wins if he kills all the aliens. The 5 aliens win if they survive for 5 Minutes or manage to kill Duke.
Reception
The game was universally praised for its gameplay, humor, and voice acting. With many critics saying it was worth the wait. Though some flack was given for a lack of multiplayer modes. Duke Nukem Forever sold over 3 million copies, becoming the 3rd Best Selling game behind Halo 1 and Halo 2. Duke Nukem Forever was a major boon for the X-Box. Along with Halo 2 in November, 2004 was the X-Box’s best year sales-wise.
Metacritic: 96/100
Edge: 8/10
EGM: 9.5/10
Eurogamer: 7/10
Game Informer: 9.75/10
GameSpot: 8/10
IGN: 9.2/10
This Game contains example of:
Paper Thin Disguise: While the actual disguise itself is flawless President Hue Maan moves and speaks in odd ways. Making it obvious to the player that he’s an alien in disguise. Many in game characters notice this but, these oddities are chalked up to him being a politician.
The Rival: Major Lieutenant, an obvious parody of Master Chief and other modern shooter protagonists. His personality and design are in direct contrast to Duke Nukem.
- Excerpts from TV Tropes
“Always bet on Duke!” – Games Tagline. Used frequently in Advertisement.
“He’s a politician Duke. They’re not really human, but they’re still technically human.” – A scientist’s response to Duke pointing out that President Hue Maan acts strangely.
“Fishing? What do I look like? Some fat cat with a dumb voice?” – Duke’s reaction to the fishing section of the game.
“First the Aliens, now the damn Military! Can’t I have a car that lasts more than a week?” - Duke’s reaction to the destruction of his car.
“You're a real stick in the mud. Guess I'll have to wash you out!” – Duke Nukem before fighting Major Lieutenant
“Nothing like a joy ride down Route 66.” – Duke Nukem in the racing mission.
"Looks like that plumber ran out of extra lives." - Duke's reaction to seeing a charred red hat and overalls laying on the floor.
Duke is a Devilish Delight! – Excerpt from Game Informer’s Review
"Microsoft bet on Duke and they won big." - Excerpt from IGN
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