Funny really... bloody massacre, rampant swearing, torture, racial and sexist humor... Teen Rating! T&A and it goes straight to the AO section...
No kidding, that drives me nuts. I think the problem is that a lot of people have been desensitized to violence, but sex is just getting more prevalent in video games over time, so people tend to notice it more. This subject alone is too complex to discuss in a simple thread like this though... I could almost write a book on my feelings on the matter.
marfig said:
Balanced review. It's nice to see something that isn't "this sucks" or "this rocks". I can't agree with all that has been said, though. But this is so much about personal preferences or even the mental predisposition at the time, that I think it would be futile to debate the details.
I can agree that a lot of people won't like this game, and I don't have a problem with that. But what I do have a problem with is some outlets going on a free-for-all and bashing the game for the fun of it, and then giving out inaccurate scores. One site, as mentioned, gave it a 30/100. REALLY? Another site gave it an F. REALLY? An F?
In the 10 or so hours that I played the game, I didn't encounter a single bug... not one. No crashes, no show-stopping glitches... nothing. That's a lot more than can be said about any other launch game I've played in recent memory. At the same time, the game is very, very playable. You can complete it without much getting in your way, and most of it is fun. ANYTHING positive about the game should have awarded it better than an F. Again, a lot of sites, to me, are being more sensationalist about this game than they ought to be, giving out quotable quotes and ridiculous ratings to get attention. I think it's unfortunate.
I don't like to bash the methodologies other websites have, but come on. If I pulled off the same sort of stunt, I'd deserve to be called out on it as well.
marfig said:
The "shrink ray" was always fun, even though I agree often it just felt like more an out-of-the-blue game imposed gimmick, instead of something being introduced within a context.
I agree, though I guess the same could be said about DN3D, where the shrink ray was never a "required" gun. That's one aspect that disappointed me about this game though, thanks both to its length and the fact that only two weapons could be wielded at one time. There was no real such thing as swapping weapons to change things up, but rather you are basically forced to stick with one of your favorites, and then one on the side.
In DN3D, the game was so long that there were a ton of instances where you could haul out the shrink way one minute, a shotgun the next and then the ripper. There were constant opportunities to use whatever weapon you want, but here, that's been thrown out the window.
marfig said:
For any of you you used a monochrome CGA card for a length of time, you can imagine the impact this had on me.
Going from CGA to VGA is about as major a jump as you can get. Was this before Duke Nukem 2 was even available? If so, DN1 might have looked good, but DN2 would have blown your socks off back then, haha. Oh, and Halloween Harry, can't forget him.
marfig said:
In short, I was hoping for the DNF to be what was first announced 14 years ago.
This is a big problem to overcome, I admit. After you beat the game, you unlock an extra that shows off the E3 demo from 1999, and wow, was the game different back then. It STILL looks like a ton of fun. But given the (unfortunate) progression of FPS titles, DNF never had a chance to truly stick to its roots this late in the game.
As a side note, does there exist a single FPS game anymore that sticks to that old-style of gameplay? I'm talking corridors, keycards, overhead maps where you can see the entire dungeon, et cetera. I guess there are good and bad about current FPS, but given this was a direct follow-up to DN3D, it did leave a lot to be desired.
I should also note that I'm experiencing the same sort of problem with Half-Life 2: Episode Three. The game is taking -so- long to get here, that I'm starting to lose interest over time. By the time it gets here, it's hard to tell if I'll even be THAT excited, even though I still love the previous games a ton. Delays don't do any game good, I'm afraid.
marfig said:
And DNF was the perfect tool for the job.
What I found depressing was the Hollywood level in multiplayer. What could have been an ideal throwback... wasn't. We have the exact same layout, but instead of the same sort of graphics, the entire level is made to look like a broken down Hollywood set. Why, did they need to do that?
marfig said:
Instead they gave me a game that can't even compete with modern FPS titles. Where DN3D make Duke into a star, DNF turned him into a loser begging for some attention and trying to live off his past fame without making so much of an effort to become grandiose again. It's, for all that matters, a mediocre game compared to what it was in the past. It's how you kill a series. If DNF was a TV show, it would be right now on the director's table up for a review for a quite possible cancellation.
The problem is, I think after all this time, making DNF an unbelievable game was just impossible. 3D Realms dragged things on forever, and then Gearbox was handed a half-finished game and had to go through the task of both finishing it and making it as good as can be. And trust me, if there's a developer that can do this, it's Gearbox. We're talking about the people responsible for Half-Life: Opposing Force, Brothers in Arms and of course, Borderlands. The people there, like Randy Pitchford, have also been involved in a countless number of classic games as well (such as Shadow Warrior).
I am of the belief that if Gearbox couldn't take this game and turn it into a masterpiece, then it was an impossible task from the get-go. That's the reason I mentioned in the conclusion that it'd be a good idea for the company to build a brand new Duke Nukem game from the ground up, and hopefully make up for this one. I -still- play Borderlands regularly, and it to me is one of the best games ever produced. There, the gameplay is truly excellent, as is the dialogue. I think Gearbox could have created a far better DNF game had it been built from the ground up rather than inhereted.
marfig said:
But I didn't see Duke Nukem in this game.
This might be where we might not agree. I -did- feel like I was playing a Duke game, although it helped that the vast majority of the enemies were pulled straight out of DN3D, and as I mentioned, even some levels had similarities. Plus, the music on top of things was just great. Sometimes even while subtle, a lot of the music in the background was again pulled straight from DN3D. I got instant flashbacks to classic levels from that game on multiple occasions.
If there's one thing DNF did though, it's that it's made me want to go install 3D again along with the HRP and go through it once again. While playing Forever I couldn't help but picture how epic it would have been if DN3D was brought to the same exact engine. It would be a blast.
Optix said:
This is easily the best review of the ones that I have read and I'm not just saying that. I'd call Rob out if I thought it weren't and I'm sure he'd expect it.
Woo hoo, "Optix-Approved!".
Optix said:
I'll probably grab the demo if time allows just so I can see what the fuss is about and draw my own conclusion but I expect it to be much the same here. I'm extremely immature at times and am a HUGE Duke fan to begin with so this game should be perfect for me. No gum here!
I hate to say it, but I wish Gearbox chose a couple of better levels for the demo than it did. A portion of the Duke Burger level would have been a lot better than the one based deep in the Nevada desert. Still, trying the demo is a lot better than writing off the game entirely.
Kayden said:
I agree with many of the points you have made here Rob. I am not done with it yet however, but I leaning in the same area for final review score.
As we were talking while we were both playing, I could tell I wasn't alone in digging the game. Another friend of mine is a couple of hours in and is really enjoying it as well. It really seems to be a hit-or-miss game, where most people don't like it but some do. It's unusual for me because most often if a game is widely disliked, I tend to agree. This is the first time in a while where that's not the case.
