Here's an honest, in-depth review of this relic of the past.
First and foremost, if you're expecting a 2011 game by standards, whatever they are from graphics to gameplay, well you're going to be disappointed. Duke Nukem has nothing modern, except the resolution and quick time events. That said, is the game worth 12 years of waiting? Of course not, nothing is, except maybe your own time in prison.
Duke Nukem comes back to our PC's and consoles with a dated engine, dated gameplay and especially dated humor. On a gameplay standpoint, it's anything but refined. Most of the guns lack of oomph and are visually unimpressive. Especially the shotgun's almost compressed blast that sounds always the same. Still, I'd be lying if I said that I didn't enjoy it. Why? Because you fight hordes of space aliens that blows up just right under your assault, and it's good fun to realize that any gun is good, not only rifles or RPG's. This means that you can actually carry your golden pistol the whole game because it's that useful.
I enjoyed the fact that the levels were very original and well designed. There is, maybe one or two parts in the game that falls in the corridor shooter genre, but most of it is similar to what you've seen in Half-Life 2, without the elegance. That is actually Duke Nukem's strongest point. You won't get bored of the levels presented to you, because there's always some kind of new twist to them. Actually, I'd say that Duke brough something very refreshing in a crowded genre of military shooters that are the prime example of corridor shooters. They should really take a page or two from Duke Nukem Forever's book in term of designing levels and interactivity.
One of the things I found odd was the fact that during the single player game, the jetpack was no-where to be found. There isn't any jetpack part, and I must admit that I was kind of waiting for it to show itself, until the credit rolled. I guess it'll be kept for the Multiplayer, which is trash and should be avoided at all cost. But then again, I don't know a single sentient human being who'd actually play Duke Nukem Forever for it's multiplayer.
As for the graphics, well, they're not very good. Are they BAD? No, I don't think so. Most indoors levels are okay, with low-but-still-present lightning effects. The only bad looking level is the bigfoot section, which lacks a lot of detail and has really horrible backgrounds. Still, that gameplay part is fun, and that's mostly what matters most.
Duke Nukem Forever comes from an era of stereotypes, one-liners and movie quotes. He has a very immature, crude humor that would appeal to any 12 year old boy and to tell the truth, I was around that age when I experienced my first Duke Nukem rides ( a bit late thought, considering it released a couple of years earlier ). It was with pure delight that I found Duke to be unchanged, ready to party like it's 99 once again.
You'd have to be dead inside or a real grinch to not have a good time with the humor, jokes and one-liners from this game.
So, is Duke Nukem Forever a good game? Yes, it is. When you see it for what it really is ; a flashback to early 90's shooters. I enjoyed my time with the game because I set my mind to the fact that I was experiencing a '' concept '' from 3d Realms Studions. I was experiencing a ride through their ideas from ten years ago, and I'm glad that I did. Every now and then I would stop and say '' man, they thought of that back then? Wow. Great stuff. ''
On the other hand, if you dive in Duke Nukem Forever expecting to find a modern shooter with high-end graphics and heartpumping firefights with headshots, scopes, Micheal-Bay scenes and explosions, well you're going to hate it to death. And if you saw it that way, you'd be wrong. Because we're getting a chance to play something that was buried.
For a current-gen game, Duke falls short. But for an experience coming straight from the past, it's a blast to play. I wouldn't say it's a must-buy, but definitly a rent. And bring friends along, you'll laugh until the credit rolls. Thank you, Gearbox Studios.
8/10.