Duke Nukem 3D On Unreal Engine 3

Julefrokost writes "While we're waiting patiently on Forever, there's some real news in the Duke Nukem realm. Ars Technica has a story about a fan-made Duke 3D project on Unreal Engine 3. There's an awesome demo video up on YouTube. Created by hardcore fan Frederick 'fresch' Schreiber, we can hopefully expect to see an upgraded Duke 3D in the near future." The article also notes, "Gearbox ultimately decided to support the project, and gave Schreiber a personal, non-commercial license to Duke Nukem 3D. He can't sell the work or profit from it directly, but he can use the characters and design of the game without fear of being shut down."

Comments

Awesome.

[boarder8925]

This is how you get people to like your company. Instead of suing or shutting them down, or both, let them enjoy your work.

Re:Awesome.

[tucara]

We should try to compile a list of a gaming companies that have shit on their fans when trying to add something to their community... I'll start with Games Workshop

Re:Awesome.

[hansamurai]

Add Square Enix for their treatment of Chrono Trigger Resurrection and Crimson Echoes.

http://www.opcoder.com/projects/chrono/
http://crimsonechoes.com/

Re:Awesome.

[Hylandr]

So we have a list going for people *not* to buy from, how about a list in the other direction? Where should I buy my next game from?

- Dan.

Re:Awesome.

[AndrewNeo]

Valve is on the short list of developers that still release tools (and super-encourage) the community to mod and make content for their games.

Re:Awesome.

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, I also think that wannabe knockoff creators should learn a thing or two from this guy. He reached out to the IP owners before he started making anything. This allowed him to talk to the people who actually run the company and make games. If you just go ahead without talking to anyone, the only people you end up talking to are lawyers who don't give a fuck about what you're trying to do.

Re:Awesome.

[lattyware]

Not to mention Black Mesa, which they havn't stopped.

Re:Awesome.

[CAIMLAS]

Gearbox, and Valve, have both benefited greatly from user-generated content. If it wasn't for Counter-Strike, it's questionable whether Steam and other Half-Life/Steam franchise games would have ever come to be, nevermind seen the distribution width that they have. Seems Steam was originally conceived to speed the distribution of things like CounterStrike add-ons and updates.

Re:Awesome.

[lennier1]

On one hand there's well-known content that doesn't earn money anymore but has a large following, on the other side there's free publicity for their upcoming game.
Unfortunately it's rare for executives to actually connect the dots.

Re:Awesome.

[Anonymous Coward]

The funny thing is that someone tried this before (as a quake 3 mod, back when that was top of the line) and 3DRealms shut them down when they were a few levels into it.

George Broussard even went on a rant about how all gamers where thieving irresponsible brats who need to learn to keep their mits off his IP. It's nice to see that Gearbox are a little cooler. (Especially since the DNF release might actually let them profit from owning the rights to Duke Nukem 3D). They're betting on goodwill instead of IP ownership, that's pretty rare. Let's hope it pays off.

Re:Awesome.

[hedwards]

GoG That's probably the best bet. Although some people do whine about that PR stunt and some of their bugs.

Re:Awesome.

[hedwards]

I'm not sure on what basis the permission was given. Take 2 as far as I know only had rights to DNF not the back catalog. And Gearbox is just involved with polishing and finishing DNF for sale.

As far as I can tell the IP belongs to 3D Realms until such a time as the bankruptcy proceedings are finished and it's sold.

Re:Awesome.

[bryce1012]

I've been following that project for at least five years. I think they've done a damn good job of stopping themselves, TYVM.

Re:Awesome.

[Aquina]

Imagine a 3D version of Terranigma. God tham that would be awesome!

Re:Awesome.

[JohnFluxx]

Does that mean we can't expect them to ever release?

Re:Awesome.

[Pharmboy]

I do everything I can to buy games via Steam, including those that are available in the box as well. First, it is easier to install a game via Steam (two clicks), and second, I like to put my money where my mouth is and support the good guys.

And to further prove your point, it would be easier to create a whitelist of great game developers rather than a black list of crappy companies. At least the list would be shorter.

Re:Awesome.

[Aquina]

Damn right! I'm really lookin' forward to play the final game.

Re:Awesome.

[Cryolithic]

Gearbox now owns all IP related to ALL things Duke. http://www.google.com/search?q=gearbox+duke+nukem+ip

Re:Awesome.

[Pharmboy]

Oh ok, as long as it was compiled by an objective team with no financial incentive...

Re:Awesome.

[Pharmboy]

That is very good news! Now we can look forward to a sequel of Duke Nukem Forever in a year or two! ;)

Re:Awesome.

[Barny]

They could rename the project "Black Mesa Forever"...

Re:Awesome.

[Tim MacDonald]

I'm with you on nailing GW: their treatment of the Damnatus film and crew were despicable.

Re:Awesome.

[LBt1st]

How could you guys leave out Fox Interactive?

Re:Awesome.

[tehcyder]

Duh, you should write it yourself, then you won't have to worry about copyright infringement.

The cake...

[TrisexualPuppy]

...is a lie. And so is *any* Duke Nukem-based franchise, fan-made or not. It is the secret Curse of Monkey Island which keeps Duke Nukem products from being developed, I say!!

Cool

[MBGMorden]

Kudos to Gearbox for seeing this as a fan project that will only help publicity rather than something that must be stomped out.

I'm sure it probably doesn't hold up as well as my memory sees it, but Duke3D *when it came out* was actually kind of cool. Considering that the last FPS I'd played when I seen it was Doom, the capabilities of that engine seemed to be a lot better. Sure Quake with it's actual 3d had something going for it, but Duke's engine was much more interactive and the graphics, though sprite based, still seemed to be higher in quality than Quake's at the time (considering that I was running Quake using the software renderer).

Re:Cool

[DeadPixels]

Major kudos indeed. I've never played anything by Gearbox but I'll be sure to check out what titles they sell as a way of saying thanks. When companies do things like this, I have no problem supporting them with purchases or at least a nice note and a recommendation to friends if their games aren't for me.

Re:Cool

[retchdog]

Duke still has that half-parody/half-serious "macho" charm going for it. Playing Duke3d is like re-watching Commando; maybe you don't admit it, but it's a lot of cheesy fun. Also the real-time scripted deformable environments (like the earthquake level in mission 3 I think) still hold up on their own, let alone how impressive they were back then. It was a very impressive feature which they didn't trumpet as a breakthrough, but just quietly used to increase immersion.

Duke3d had heart; since they had reached basically the limits of the Doom-type rendering technology, they were free to focus on gameplay elements, and it paid off greatly.

Re:Cool

[Monkeedude1212]

Sure Quake with it's actual 3d had something going for it, but Duke's engine was much more interactive and the graphics, though sprite based, still seemed to be higher in quality than Quake's at the time (considering that I was running Quake using the software renderer).

That also ties into the whole timeless classic where gameplay over compensated for graphics, like when people hail Dwarf Fortress or one of the Super Mario Bros titles.

Quake's graphics were actually pretty good at the time (I remember playing it without the software rendering necessary) - but the gameplay was definately not parallel to Duke 3D. Quake was more parellel to Doom, where it was more about getting the good guns and power ups and just rolling through opponents in a big bloody mess. Duke 3D was, in my opinion, far superior with its use of Pipebombs, holograms, Cameras/Screens, and all the little things about its gameplay, like being able to quickly look over your left and right shoulder while moving. It was less about getting the best gun for the level and owning it up and more about getting what weapons were best for your style of play - and owning it up.

And the single player - is there really any contest? Strippers make everything better.

Re:Cool

[Low Ranked Craig]

Your face, your ass, what's the difference?

Re:Cool

[rm999]

It's tough comparing quake/doom with duke. Quake was designed to scare you, duke was designed to make you laugh (and sometimes scare you). It's like the difference between a serious horror movie and a campy evil-deadish one.

All three games were ground-breaking in their own way.

Re:Cool

[twistedsymphony]

check out Borderlands... seriously one of the more interesting games I've played in a long time... Imagine Fallout 3 but with a jump-in/jump-out co-op system and characters/storyline with the kind of humor you'd expect from Portal or Team Fortress. Gearbox just released a "Game of the Year" edition that includes all 4 expansion packs... and it also includes the Duke Nukem Forever demo from PAX.

Re:Cool

[h4rr4r]

Does it have turn based combat?

I was hoping for more of that in Fallout 3.

Re:Cool

[pandrijeczko]

I don't think that you can make that level of comparison.

The Quakes have traditionally only ever been "reasonable" single-player FPS games but bloody fantastic multi-player games - Duke 3D stood on it's own as a great single-player FPS game but was only okay as multi-player.

I think the award for best "all-rounder" (great single- AND multi-player) FPS games of the time has to go to Shadow Warrior & Blood. Both of them were also on the Build engine but had enough "wacky" weapons (like the "sticky bombs" in Shadow Warrior and the "flaming aerosol" in Blood) to make them both a real hoot for network play.

Re:Cool

[BlackSnake112]

Shadow warrior:

Wang: You wanna wash wang? Or watch Wang wash wang?
Girl in bath: You pervert! *pulls out guns and shoots Wang*

I sort of thought Shadow warrior and Duke were the same engine and written by the same people. Both games can be played for the humor aspect.

Re:Cool

[lattyware]

Gearbox did Half Life: Blue Shift and Half Life: Opposing Force games, and also did the port of the original Halo to the PC. They are a pretty good Dev. They generally used to do other people's stuff, but are branching out a bit now. I'd call them the HTC of games companies.

Re:Cool

[somersault]

Blow it out your faaaace.. no wait..

Re:Cool

[pandrijeczko]

Shadow Warrior was also done by 3D Realms and was technically a better game than Duke 3D because it was released on a later version of Build - I recall it had better DOS VGA modes & had some 3DFX support with a patch that got released a bit later.

I really should dig it out again and give it a play through, it's been a long time! Something tells me it also had more weapons than Duke 3D and also had some dual fire modes on some of them - but don't quote me on that.

Blood was done by Monolith with (I think) some input from 3D Realms & had some additional little features (like being able to play soccer with zombie heads) with many humourous references to movies. It wasn't quite as graphically good as Duke 3D or SW but many people reckon it's the best game of the Build ones because of the combination of lots of humour, neat weapons (including a pin & voodoo doll) & just good design.

There were 3 or 4 other Build engine games, the Redneck Rampage series is probably the best known of those - that also had it's moments but the Build engine was really showing its age by the time they were released.

Re:Cool

[retchdog]

It's time to chew bubblegum and troll slashdot! And I'm all out of gum.

Re:Cool

[snuf23]

Duke 3D stood on it's own as a great single-player FPS game but was only okay as multi-player.

Personally I don't agree with that. Back in my LAN party days Duke Nukem became the multiplayer game of choice because of all the unusual power ups. Rocket packs, shrink rays, fooling someone with the holo-duke = good times.

It didn't hurt that the system requirements were less severe than Quake either.

Re:Cool

[Labcoat Samurai]

Nah, it's real time first person shooting. The "RPG" elements are in the level-up mechanics (and related talent trees) and the loot grinding. Imagine a first person shooter version of an MMO set in a Fallout-like wasteland, without the persistent world and with a max of four player simultaneous play. The whole thing can be soloed, as well.

And while that may be an accurate description, it's better than that makes it sound

Re:Cool

[pandrijeczko]

A lot of the popularity with multi-player Quake was that there was a Windows version quite early on its life and networking was a lot easier to set up in Windows 95 than it was in DOS - and Duke Nukem 3D was always a strictly MS-DOS game, even the Build engine had pretty much hard-coded DOS audio drivers such that even if you got it running in Windows 95, there was usually no audio.

Also bear in mind that there was no concept of player skins in Duke 3D - I seem to remember the best you could do was opt for a different shirt colour (or something similar) to distinguish your Duke Nukem from everyone else.

The other thing Duke 3D didn't have that Quake did was different weapon graphics depending on the weapon you were using - it always looked like you were carrying the rocket launcher; you can even see this in the single player game when you look in mirrors.

With that said, I played Duke 3D far more than I played Quake - and although I could be wrong on this, Duke 3D had a co-operative mode for the single player levels which was quite fun and which Quake lacked (from memory).

Re:Cool

[complete loony]

I might consider buying it from steam... When they remove their 30% markup for people living in Australia.

Re:Cool

[Barny]

The whole thing can be soloed

Yeah, try getting the "vincible" achievement solo without using the wall bug, and not playing a siren.

Re:Cool

[Barny]

It was up for $10 or so the other month.

Also, its not valve who put the Australia tax on there, its the publisher of the game.

Re:Cool

[pandrijeczko]

By the way, setting up networking in DOS was FAR easier than the nightmare "plug-n-pray" crap that Win95 offered at the time. In DOS it was as simple as adding a single line in your config.sys to load the network driver.

When I made the comment, I was talking about general users, not the likes of you and me that used to do this level of stuff in config.sys and autoexec.bat. But you still had to free up a certain amount of memory below 640K for some programs to run, set up himem.sys & all that good stuff; it DID need a lot of fiddling to sometimes get programs to run AND load in drivers for networking, audio, joysticks, mice, etc. and that was beyond the skills of most people.

Windows 95 was a GUI shell that ran on top of DOS, so DOS programs that you ran either worked fully (with a significant performance hit of Win95 being resident in memory) or didn't work because Win95 used too much memory or it needed real mode or something. There is no reason that sound would not work for a DOS program under Win95 that otherwise fully works, so I'm calling bullshit on your claim.

Yes, I stand corrected. Windows 95 was effectively only a DOS GUI, it was when NT and the later OSes came out that you only had an "emulated" MS-DOS mode that some games, including Duke 3D, didn't have sound.

Re:Cool

[RichiH]

> Shadow Warrior & Blood

Fuck yeah.

Though dm142 for Duke 3D made for awesome multiplayer, as well. (Hey, I still know the level name by heart after, what? More than ten years?)

Re:Cool

[Fumus]

Thank you for reminding me the name of this game. I was searching for it for a long while. I knew it was Shadow something with ninja stars, but I never could find the full name.

The big question

[0123456]

Will it be released before Duke Nukem Forever?

Re:The big question

[Shikaku]

s/before/instead of/

I will believe it

[Chas]

Only after it actually ships.

Re:I will believe it

[Desler]

Exactly since is the same person who promised to remake another video game using a newer engine and that was never released either.

Re:I will believe it

[somersault]

Yeah, so far all I see is.. a roof. Wow. When I was moderately interested in mapping 10 years ago I could have "remade" Duke 3D as well using the Half-Life engine, in 10 minutes.

Re:I will believe it

[hedwards]

Two other games. Daikatana and Sin. He did receive permission IIRC from Romero to do Daikatana, but got a cease and desist order covering Sin. If he doesn't finish it, perhaps he could hand over the assets to Gearbox and make it a part of the DNF GOTY edition.

And yes, whatever year sees the shipment of DNF will be the same year it wins the GOTY for finishing it. Even if it isn't that great.

How's this more "real" than Forever?

[JSBiff]

Ok, so we've got a project which we're being told is under development and which will be released "real soon", along with an "awesome demo video". This is sounding just . . . so familiar.

Re:How's this more "real" than Forever?

[gmuslera]

The needed technology is already there, apparently.. To release the Forever one, at least this demo (skip to 5') seem to require a bit more time yet.

Coolest game evar!

[null etc.]

Wow, this is the coolest rooftop simulator I've ever seen! If you ask me, this game is ready to ship.

Re:Coolest game evar!

[rs1n]

I didn't realize Square-Enix's MMO developers posted here.

Re:Coolest game evar!

[ElectricTurtle]

Yes, I have not been this impressed since the release of Derek Smart's Desktop Commander.

Re:Coolest game evar!

[jdevivre]

Yeah! I count like, what, 6 textures! 7? Wow! At this rate, he'll have the whole game done by next Tuesday!

Re:Coolest game evar!

[bigstrat2003]

How does he do it, folks? Simple! He's fueled by the souls of the damned!

Re:Coolest game evar!

[BigJClark]

Give the guy a break. Honestly I think the big win here is not the simplistic level design, its the fact that Gearbox has allowed the guy to develop using the digital property (likeness of Duke). Its still worth a lot of money.

In the meantime

[Anonymous Coward]

You can enjoy an updated DN3D with the help of EDuke32 and the High Resolution Pack. Be sure to grab the HRP preview for the new Polymer renderer if you want all of the latest visual goodies.

Re:In the meantime

[pandrijeczko]

I agree.

The demo video is a very pretty proof of concept but Eduke32 brought DN3D natively to Windows, Linux, etc. and the HRP with Polymer replaced the sprite-based graphics with proper 3D whilst preserving a considerable amount of the original game's play and feel. That, in itself, was a fairly major update that turned the game into far more of a "modern" architecture.

The problem with any remake or mod is that very few of those that start off as good ideas actually get to the point of completion - and I predict that even if they make some headway with this project, by the time DN4 comes out next year (if we can finally believe what we are told) then the modding community will no doubt be writing new levels and mods for whatever engine that is on.

I do both play & enjoy modern FPS games as well as the PC classics and welcome any effort to port older games to newer platforms - but a version of Duke 3D with much prettier graphics that still has the original level layouts & objectives seems pointless.

But I wish them every success anyway.

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[Cwix]

I'm a big supporter of linux, but this is the type of whining that gives linux fans a bad name.

I run Linux on my desktop, laptop, and now that I think of it my phone. Perhaps you could either fix it yourself, or offer some sort of support for the authors of wine. Perhaps throw a few bucks in their paypal, perhaps sit on their forum and help newbs, perhaps write documentation, or find bug fixes. Coming to slashdot and whining about it isnt gonna get you anything, but mocked by the /. crowd, and earn disdain from the developer.

Uh...

[Anonymous Coward]

He made a 10x20 box map and played some Duke Nukem 3D sound effects... Why is this news? Most amateur level designers could accomplish that in a weekend.

Re:Uh...

[hedwards]

He did accomplish that in more or less a weekend. And he's got screen shots indicating that he's got more than just that. Of course he hasn't released it so we're just speculating, but it's likely far more substantial than just what you see in the video.

What you should realize is that he's been at this for a bit now, and the point in progress referenced in the article was from a couple weeks back. Meaning he hadn't been working very long on it at that point IIRC.

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[Lumpy]

So run the UT I II and III games native in linux. you can still download the binaries.

open source

[emkyooess]

Considering that 3D Realms, long ago, released the source code to the build engine and we long ago had alternate engines coded running, using the official resources (.grp and .map files), this is not a big deal. We've already had plenty of high-res texture and model packs. This is just the same thing, taken to the next step.

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[pandrijeczko]

Erm... Unreal Tournament and Unreal Tournament 2003/2004 have native Linux binaries that, in my experience, run as well on Linux with NVIDIA drivers than they do on Windows.

They were also done by Epic, not id - id did the Doom & Quake games.

Eduke32

[Chelloveck]

Just one word: eduke32.

Oh yeah. That, and "groovy".

Dukeworld - Realistic Disneyland TC for Duke3d!

[Anonymous Coward]

They should "hire" the individual or persons behind the Duke Nukem 3d Total Conversion called, "DukeWorld". It was one of the best Total Conversions, mapping out with sound and vision parts of Disneyland. You could ride some of the rides (Star Tours, Pirates ride, Haunted Mansion with stretching room, more!) complete with the sounds from the theme park. If you have Duke3d, try DukeWorld TC, you may download it here:

http://dukeworld.duke4.net/classic%20dukeworld/tc/disney/

and read the ReadMe File before you download it. I would love to see this TC remade, it's worth buying Duke3D just to play this TC. Yes, it even has People Mover!

Someone please post this to the Gearbox site forums so they can have a look at it.

Re:Dukeworld - Realistic Disneyland TC for Duke3d!

[pandrijeczko]

I need to go back & check through my old games disks but I'm sure one of the "official" Duke expansions (Duke It Out In D.C, Duke Nuclear Winter & Duke Caribbean) had a theme park area in it.

Again, it's a long time since I played it but I remember a ride with a pirate ship that was shooting cannonballs as you climbed round a pirates castle - there was also a boat ride through pirate scenes which was a definite homage to Disney's "Pirates Of The Carribbean ride".

Re:It will never happen

[BlackSnake112]

Duke Nukem 3D will never happen, stop fooling yurselves it anit going to happen
they are just trying to feck with your minds and drive you cookoo dont let them do it

Duke Nukem 3D will never happen? I have had the CD of the game since like 1998.

Re:Saddens me to see...

[somersault]

There is a lack of badassery in gaming these days, actual badassery, not all this pretentious teen crap we see every generation.

O RLY? Next you'll be saying that Sean Connery was the best Bond, and Twilight isn't a real vampire movie! Hah!

Nobody steals our chicks and lives!

[bradgoodman]

$10 says it'll be done before Duke-Nukem 4Ever...

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[Real1tyCzech]

*laughing*

"Shut up...or *pay* for it!"

Gotta love the free-software folks. They're so silly...

Re:It will never happen

[Ant P.]

How did you get here, Youtube commenter?

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[pandrijeczko]

I know original Unreal didn't have native Linux binaries though I recall there being a mod for original Unreal Tournament that had the Unreal levels converted across to it - never played the mod so don't quote me on that.

Didn't Unreal 2 have Linux binaries? I know it was a particularly unremarkable single player Unreal game but wasn't it on a very similar engine to UT 2003?

I agree about not whining about cross-platform support though. I'm mostly a Linux user & yes, it would be nice to see Linux ports of a lot more games but neither is it a big deal to keep an XP installation to hand to run games on either.

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[pandrijeczko]

He wasn't talking about getting the OS to work, he was talking about running a game on the OS which is completely different.

I'm a mainly Linux user myself & I would love to see more commercial games being released natively on it. But the fact is we're in a "chicken and egg" situation because until Linux gets more popular, games companies won't port to it; likewise gamers won't turn to Linux without there being more games on it.

Personally, I'm fairly happy with the Linux gaming scene - there are a lot of native games, a lot of free games and a lot that work well under WINE. Plus there are some good looking independent games projects doing Linux ports that deserve our support - Oil Rush and Steel Storm are just two that spring to mind.

Re:Saddens me to see...

[Labcoat Samurai]

not all this pretentious teen crap we see every generation.

Like what? I think there's tons of genuinely badass stuff out there. In fact, games today are overflowing with hyped up machismo. Some would say this isn't a good thing, but we have our Gears of War, our Halo, our Resistance, and tons of other games with big burly manly badasses. Gearbox has a game (Borderlands) where you can play a dude who can get so pissed off that he puts away his gun and instead just punches everything to death while screaming crazily. I guess you could always say they aren't *actually* badass somehow, but you've completely lost me if you call Master Chief, Brick, or Marcus Fenix either pretentious or a teen.

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[Cwix]

1. Author writes a program not for sale
2. Author allows program to be used and modified by whoever wants to use it.
3. Author is then pestered incessantly about this feature or that bug.
4. Author now needs to spend more time to fix the program for YOU, even though it meets his own needs.

Do you see the issue. Its like the author is being punished for his previous gift. Its like if a dad gives his teen son the family's old car. Then the son wont leave the dad alone about the stereo not playing burned cds, it pulls slightly to the left, the drivers power window doesnt work, or whatever. The proper response to any of these comments is get a job and pay for it yourself.

Beggars cant be choosers.

Re:Saddens me to see...

[billcopc]

Machismo is not badassery.

Badass, to me anyway, is a "fuck everything" attitude where you're so confident that you don't care what happens, you'll just deal with whatever comes up, keeping your cool throughout. No pretentiousness, no showboating, just a frank ass kicking in the name of personal freedom. It's not about roid-raging up and down the street while holding your crotch. A badass is someone you know not to mess with. A macho is someone you feel compelled to mess with, because they're all bark and no bite.

Duke, in that sense, was badass. He saw aliens, he didn't like them, so he killed them all. Problem solved. Cool maintained. Back to hookers and booze.

Marcus Fenix is a douchebag with a do-rag, not badass. Master Chief ? He's a cyborg carrying out his orders, not badass. Brick ? Roid-rage, not badass. What they need to make is a Machete game: alpha-badass.

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[Cwix]

How have I attempted to piss off the users. Im just telling the users to quit bitching about every little thing, and expect it to be handed to them on a silver platter.. these users did not pay for the software.
Ergo Beggars should not be choosers. Or perhaps dont look a gift horse in the mouth. Or even dont bite the hand that feeds you. Its just common sense.

If you don't give back to the community in some way don't demand things from the authors.

Hell start a bounty system.. people pay 2 bucks towards their bug getting fixed.. enough users want the bug fixed the bounty will grow. First developer that fixes it wins the bounty. Developers will be getting something for their work that YOU want. Judging by how many people will get pissed off at the buttons being on the wrong side in Ubuntu, or how wine wont run their favorite game Im willing to bet that it would work just fine.

Re:Saddens me to see...

[Labcoat Samurai]

Let me start this off by saying that I do, in fact, think Duke is extremely badass. He has some great one-liners, and his general attitude is fantastic. With that in mind, I do think there are some inconsistencies here, and I also think you're a bit unfair to some of the characters in question.

Machismo is not badassery.

Perhaps not.... but Duke is dripping with it. Duke is the poster child for manliness. Cigars, alcohol, women, big boots, giant guns, one liners... can you imagine Duke ever crying or sharing his feelings? He's an over the top action stereotype. Schwarzenegger from the 80s.

Badass, to me anyway, is a "fuck everything" attitude where you're so confident that you don't care what happens, you'll just deal with whatever comes up, keeping your cool throughout. No pretentiousness,

Pretentiousness? Were any of the guys I mentioned remotely pretentious? "10 shitloads" Fenix? "Thought I'd try shooting my way out" Master Chief? "RRARAGH BWAAAA BLOOD!!!" Brick? Honestly, I can't think of any action characters who are both supposed to be badass and are pretentious.... James Bond, maybe.

no showboating,

What, like kicking an alien's eyeball through the uprights? Don't get me wrong, it was totally awesome, but Duke showboats all the time... Not like Dante from Devil May Cry. That guy is all showboating, but Duke does it more than the other guys I listed.

just a frank ass kicking in the name of personal freedom. It's not about roid-raging up and down the street while holding your crotch.

Except.... Duke pops steroids. Explicitly. As a power up. They make him run faster, apparently.

A badass is someone you know not to mess with. A macho is someone you feel compelled to mess with, because they're all bark and no bite.

Well, every one of the guys I listed is much more bite than bark. Brick is maybe the most bark of all, but he's punching you in the face repeatedly with an exploding fist while he's shouting, so I give him a pass.

Duke, in that sense, was badass. He saw aliens, he didn't like them, so he killed them all. Problem solved. Cool maintained.

Mostly. He was supposedly pretty damned pissed to find that our chicks had been stolen. And actually, it's better/funnier that way, that Duke gets pissed at those sorts of things.

Back to hookers and booze.

Marcus Fenix is a douchebag with a do-rag, not badass.

Well, he has the do-rag, yes, but he keeps his cool for the most part. He yells and screams occasionally, but no more than Duke does when he's getting shot. And his actions speak pretty loudly. Fenix delivers a high ass kicking quotient in those games.

Master Chief ? He's a cyborg carrying out his orders, not badass.

Even when he gave the Covenant their bomb back? Come on, he totally Strangeloved them. If that's not badass, nothing is.

Brick ? Roid-rage, not badass.

Well, he may or may not take steroids, but Duke definitely does. But what makes Brick badass as a play experience is the fact that you, as the player can get really pissed at the enemies shooting you, and you have an option that's utterly unheard of in shooters. Don't run away like a pussy and go find some health or wait for your shields to recharge. Hit the "I'm pissed off" button and have your character go totally apeshit on them.

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[Cwix]

A lot of users seem to forget the world doesn't revolve around them.

If you don't like the incomplete garbage.. don't use it. You seem to forget the author receives nothing from your usage. Why would they care?

Re:Bye-bye cross-platform Duke...

[Cwix]

Somehow I doubt that AC is a big name developer.

Re:Saddens me to see...

[Labcoat Samurai]

Duke *does* scream and yell. Maybe you were so awesome at the game that you never got shot.