Duke Nukem Forever

[GamerMan316]

According to the official Duke Nukem Facebook page, "Duke Nukem doesn't stay down for long." Or so a newly released screen shot of something labeled "D-Day" would imply.

That screen shot of a character who sure doesn't look like Mr. Nukem taking aim at a beast that looks Duke universe appropriate was spotted by Shacknews earlier today, leading to speculation that yet another Duke Nukem project is in the works in some capacity and that it could one day actually be released.

Or not. The "D-Day" information offered by the official Duke Nukem Facebook presence doesn't offer any further details about what the "preview pic" is for. It could be a snap from the on-hold Duke Begins from Gearbox Software or from the purportedly still in development Duke Nukem Forever from 3D Realms.

Who wants to place some bets?

[Failed]

what about S3-Day ?

[nCogNeato]

I have no idea what's happening in that pic, but I want to fight whatever the hell that big thing is!   

[Failed]

looks like it's in some big stadium.

[AchyHippo]

I'm so fucking tired of Duke Nukem, either release it or don't, I'm just tired of hearing about it.

[GamerMan316]

New Duke Nukem vid emerges

[GamerMan316]

Gearbox making Duke Nukem – Report

Borderlands developer Gearbox has picked up where 3D Realms left off on development of Duke Nukem Forever, according to a new report.

A playable demo of the game may even be released later this year, according to Kotaku.

In June last year Gearbox was named as the studio behind spin-off title Duke Begins. This latest rumour puts the release of that game in doubt.

3D Realms went bust in 2009. Publisher Take-Two sued the developer for failing to deliver the game in a reasonable time frame. They settled in May.

Gearbox Software president Randy Pitchford told Kotaku "he may be able to better clarify the situation further at this year's Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle".

[nCogNeato]

Gearbox making Duke Nukem – Report

I could see that.  Gearbox does have a great sense of humor.

[GamerMan316]

Gearbox to talk Duke Forever at PAX?

Gearbox Software's panel at next week's Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle will include "juicy exclusives, surprising disclosures, unbelievable scoops and behind the scenes access on what Gearbox is up to", according to the official site.

Earlier this month rumour spread that the studio had picked up development on troubled first-person shooter Duke Nukem Forever following the demise of 3D Realms last year and the conclusion of Take-Two's lawsuit against the studio.

Gearbox boss Randy Pitchford had told Kotaku "he may be able to better clarify the situation further at this year's Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle", which takes place at the end of next week. The Gearbox panel is on Sunday 5th September at 3pm PST.

"Gearbox Software, developers of Borderlands, Brothers in Arms, Aliens: Colonial Marines and others, appear once again to candidly talk with PAX about everything they are involved with!" the description reads.

"Jump in for juicy exclusives, surprising disclosures, unbelievable scoops and behind the scenes access on what Gearbox is up to - straight from the source. Have a first hand look at live presentations and never before seen footage of upcoming Gearbox releases!

"A question and answer session will give YOU the chance to address the rumors and tell the team what you want to see from Gearbox next!"

Pitchford is on the panel along with executive vice president Brian Martel and creative director Mikey Neumann.

[Handshakes]

Randy Pitchford is an idiot. Duke is dead and Randy is using the corpse to drum up interest in his crappy studio.

[GamerMan316]

Duke Nukem Forever getting unveiled today?
2K's 'big reveal' is Gearbox-fixed shooter

The rumours would appear to be true. Borderlands dev Gearbox IS working on Duke Nukem Forever - and the reborn game is set to be unveiled at Seattle event PAX today.

US dev sources have indicated to CVG that the game will get a "grand demo" at the show - and will be built upon what 3D Realms has already created, rather than a completely fresh project. We're hopeful it will be playable.

Shocked? Of course you're not. It's hardly as if this is the best kept secret in games.

Publisher 2K last night said that "something big is going to happen at the 2K Games Booth this PAX".

The tease follows last month's rumours that Gearbox had taken over development of DNF. Boss Randy Pitchford reportedly intimated that something may be coming at PAX.

2K's PAX conference will be available via live stream at 6pm UK time through the link below.

Duke Nukem Forever has suffered a famously patchy history. Original developer 3D Realms filed for bankruptcy last year, after 12 years working on the game.

Check out the latest gameplay video to emerge below. Looks a bit ancient. We're very keen to see what Gearbox has done with the old girl.

[Handshakes]

*sigh*

Always bet on Duke.

[Handshakes]

Some of the worst shaky cam of your lives:

Not really worth watching, but it is the best we have right now.

For my 2 cents (that you didn't ask for): Gearbox tends to be mediocre incarnate. Still, 3DRealms made at least some of the game, and they <strike>are</strike> were fairly decent and ambitious. Could the fusion of the ambitious buggyness of 3DRealms and the cookie cutting abilities of Gearbox come together and make something beautiful?

... No. Not at all likely.

For some context on what you are seeing in the vids and what they let people play at the demo (based on what I know of the game from reading some of the leaked design docs after 3DR closed): They are showing the very beginning of the game. You can see duke picking up a marker and drawing on a whiteboard, this is one of the ways they are incorporating quicktime events into the gameplay. Yes, that gimmicky crap that God of War and Resident Evil popularized has made its way into the FPS genre. You see Duke pick up a marker here, you can also expect him to dispatch bosses with quicktimes as well as do puzzles with it here and there. Anywho, you can also see the football field alien boss in the vids. You might recall him as being the big baddy at the end of the first episode of the original Duke Nukem 3D game.

Some speculation on my part: The design docs told of this part of the game actually being a video game that Duke was playing. Yes, you would be playing a character in a videogame... Who was also playing a videogame. Trippy. This is the first level of Duke Nukem Forever, meaning you think that you are actually playing the real game from the start. The idea was that once you beat the football boss the camera would pan out a bit and reveal that Duke was only playing an old video game, and the graphics and everything would then be ten times better and it would be a real "wow" moment. The boss is obviously still there, but they may have scrapped the ambitious "game within a game" idea, as I haven't heard anything about it yet. Or they could just still be holding on to it as a secret. Who knows.

[Handshakes]

Yet ANOTHER update:

According to a Shacknews preview... Basically everything I said was right. The demo was of the videogame within a videogame thing that I was talking about. Unfortunately, they say that the game looks kind of dated now. Ah well.

Stuff I didn't talk about that was apparently in the demo: An uninspired driving section.

[GamerMan316]

I played Duke Nukem Forever today.... WTF!