*=Video
^=Music
All Caps=Recommended
Hover mouse over screenshots for commentary.
 Nukem, indeed! |  The series' logo. |  Graphics! |
|---|---|---|
 These cop-pigs (get it?) are on of the main enemies in the game. |  Bazooka vs. chain-gun. |  |
 |  This gun shrinks enemies and then you can go up and stomp on them. |  This gun freezes enemies, and then you can go up and kick them to break them into a thousand pieces. |
 |  I'm about to stomp this guy. |  |
 A mirror. |  You can drink the toilet water to very slowly recharge your health. |  Firing a chain-gun down a hallway of enemies. |
 You can kick - no matter how unrealistic the spacial circumstance! |  |  |
 |  |  An end-of-level summary screen. |
 |  Most levels have security cameras you can see through if you find the right terminal. |  Dead! |
 |  This guy is a big meanie head. |  |
 A hyper-realistic cutscene. |  |  |
 |  Getting some health back at a drinking fountain. |  You fight this boss on a football field, which is pretty cool. |
 In a cut-scene you kick it's head through a goal post. |  Sadly, this game was made before mirror technology could replicate a kick. |  |
 |  After you die you can choose when to re-spawn, which is nice. |  |
 |  |  |
 |  One of the DLC packs is based in Washington DC. |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  Another DLC pack is Christmas themed. |
 |  Mario playing Mariokart. |  I've set up some laser-trip mines to foil an ambush from some enemies. |
 Santa's garage. I thought this was a pretty funny gag. |  |  |
 Some beach-themed DLC is pretty detailed, right down to Duke's footwear. |  Another mirror. |  |
 |  You punch these at the end of each level. |  |
 |
March 2015
Duke Nukem 3D
Duke Nukem 3D came out in the late 90's but was ported to the PlayStation Vita in 2014, which is the first version I played. I'd heard of this game as a teenager but never played it - I'm more of a Doom man. In recent years I've heard about this game as being The Greatest Game Ever and the reason why the next Duke Nukem game would be The Even Greatest Game Ever. All in all, I would say that this game was probably pretty great for it's time and is still quite fun today.
One thing I appreciate about this game (and Doom I and II) is that it has a variety of weapons and monsters. Modern shooters seem to have more complex story lines and objectives, but basically a few guns and only one or two enemy types. Perhaps there is a sweet spot in the middle of these two extremes, but it was a nice change of pace to play Duke Nukem 3D.
Certain aspects of the game did not age well, most notably some obscure methods of progressing through the game. For example, I recall being stuck on one level for what felt like at least an hour until I finally noticed a tiny crack on a wall in a cave behind a restroom. A Tiny Crack. I needed to use an explosive, which I didn't have, in order to blow open the wall and get to the end of the level. Even though this was tedious and annoying, I did appreciate that the game didn't constantly hold my hand like in modern games. But maybe that's just nostalgia talking.
This game is known for it's humor, specifically with Duke being a parody of 80's action heroes. On the whole, I would agree with this assessment, but acknowledge that some people will not find the humor in this game to their liking. Having humor laced throughout a game is always welcome.
This version of the game had a nice feature (even though it cheapened the experience a bit) where you could "rewind" your gameplay when you died. In the original version of the game you had to start the entire level over, but this version allows you to go back a few moments before your death and try again. It was helpful at times and is totally optional, so purists need not crap a brick.