gearbox-software posts

Duke Nukem Forever delayed to June 14

Duke Nukem Forever is still coming, after 14 years of development. But it's apparently not coming on May 3 anymore. In a new trailer (which you can see after the jump) Gearbox Software's Randy Pitchford is pretty much blindsided with the reveal that the long awaited first person shooter is now due for release on June 14 in the US (with a June 10 release date in other parts of the world).

While no reason was given for the delay we actually think this is a good thing since Duke Nukem Forever was originally being released in a very crowded month of May for new game releases, especially for first person shooters (both Brink and F.E.A.R. 3 are also due out that month). The new June date will be relatively free of new game releases.

Duke Nukem Forever's multiplayer features revealed

duke nukem forever
While the revival of Duke Nukem Forever has mostly concentrated on the single player campaign, the long awaited first person shooter will also have multiplayer modes. The official Xbox Magazine has the first details about multiplayer for DNF (supplied by developer Piranha Games) and the fan site Duke4.net has posted up some (most likely illegal) scans of the magazine's story.

Much like the recent Call of Duty and Battlefield games, multiplayer matches in Duke Nukem Forever will allow players to have persistent stats and leveling up of their player characters. Unfortunately the player cap for the Xbox port is 8 players (it might be bigger for the PC version)
Multiplayer will include access to the jetpack which won't be in the single player campaign. There's all the old favorite weapons from Duke Nukem 3D including the HoloDuke which adds one neat feature; while using HoloDuke your character is now cloaked.

There will be 10 maps at launch and four modes: Dukematch, Team Dukematch, Hail to the King (basically King of the Hill mode) and our favorite Capture the Babe. Yes, it's CTF with the flag turned into a lady who can sometimes freak out while your player character is holding her. The maps will include a revival of Duke Nukem 3D's Duke Burger level, except that the players appear to be miniatures running around in a giant world. A multiplayer demo is planned for release before the game ships in early May.

Duke Nukem Forever wants to give you some credit

duke nukem forever
Duke Nukem Forever is a game that's been in development for over 14 years. Yes, it's been that long since its original developer 3D Realms started working on the first person shooter that will finally be finished and released to the world on May 3 by Gearbox Software and publisher 2K Games.

Naturally there's been a lot of people who have contributed to the game at one time or another during the past 14 years. So Gearbox Software has launched a web site that will allow anyone who believes he or she has had something to do with the game to submit their name to a special web site. There are several different listing available from working on the game itself to being a prominate community member or fan or even a member of the press.

The site also has a survey asking the person how much their truly contributed to the game's development. If your contribution is deemed worthy enough, Gearbox and 2K Games may put your name in Duke Nukem Forever's credit when it's released.

Duke Nukem Forever PC to use Steamworks

The PC port of Duke Nukem Forever is the latest game to officially announce its support for Steamworks. Valve's game development tools will be a part of the long awaited first person shooter when the game is released on May 3, according to message board posts on both the Gearbox Software and 2K Games message boards.

That means that the PC version will require a Steam account and that Duke Nukem Forever will also like have other Steamworks features like matchmaking. achievements, automatic patch updates. Steam Cloud game save support and more. It also likely means that the PC demo for the game will also be released via Steam.

Duke Nukem Forever gets "big package" of pre-order bonuses

Duke Nukem Forever fans will be able to get their hands on some pre-order bonsues if they put down their money early for the upcoming and long awaited first person shooter. Developer Gearbox Software announced that GameStop and Wal-Mart stores will offer different pre-order bonuses for people who buy the game before its release on May 3.

GameStop pre-orders game some extra downloadable content for the game including a EGO boost, a t-shirt pack and (our favorite) a 'Big Head" mode. Wal-Mart pre-order buyers of the game will be able to get a real world Duke Nukem Forever trucker-style cap to wear proudly while they shop at their local store.

Duke Nukem Forever video chats with Gearbox Software's VP


Duke Nukem Forever is finally just a few months away from release and now the development team at Gearbox Software is showing off the near final version of the long awaited first person shooter to the press. In this new video we get to see some gameplay from the latest adventure from Duke along with interview footage of Steve Gibson, formerly the head of the Shacknews web site and now the VP at Gearbox.

Gibson points out that the 2001 trailer that was released for Duke Nukem Forever had a list of people who worked on the game while it was at 3D Realms. Now nearly all of them work at Gearbox. That and other factors really make the game a labor of love for the developer to complete. The final product will be presented to everyone to judge on May 3.

Download the Duke Nukem Forever Steve Gibson Interview Video at Big Download

Gearbox: Duke Nukem Forever single player campaign as long as "three or four Call of Dutys"

First person shooter fans have become used to playing through short single player campaigns in the last decade or so but that won't be the case for Duke Nukem Forever. The long awaited and long-in-development game will have an average play time of about 16 to 18 hours, according to what Randy Pitchford, the head of the game's developer Gearbox Software, stated in the most recent episode of Spike's GTTV TV series. He added, " "It's like three or four Call of Dutys, right?"

In this week's press event, members of the media along with a few lucky fans only got to play the first six levels of the game. But will the final version of the game be consistently good with all of that single player gameplay? Pitchford says simply, "The game will speak for itself. I love it." We will find out if we love all that gameplay when Duke Nukem Forever comes out on May 3.

Duke Nukem Forever Balls of Steel Edition announced [Update]

Duke Nukem Forever is due out on May 3 but today members of the upcoming first person shooter's First Access Club got word that a "Balls of Steel" Edition of the game will be released alongside the regular edition. Balls of Steel, by the way, is the name of a Apogee/3D Realms game made before Duke Nukem 3D.

The Balls of Steel Edition will be filled with extra content including a bust of Duke himself, a 100 page art book, a collectible comic book, a postcard series, a emblem sticker, paper craft, poker chips, a mini-card deck and dice. It even comes with a numbered certificate of authenticity. Pricing for the Balls of Steel Edition has yet to be announced.

Update: 2K Games has just announced that the Duke Nukem Forever Balls of Steel Edition will cost $99.99 and will only be available at GameStop and Amazon.com

Duke Nukem Forever press event photos include Hail to the King musical poster

Duke Nukem Forever, as we reported earlier today, had a big press event last Monday in Las Vegas. The 2K Games community blog and the Twitter page for Gearbox Software posted up pictures from the event which, naturally, took place in a real Vegas strip club. One of the cooler pictures of the event is a poster for a Duke Nukem Broadway musical. Hail to the King, which you can check out after the jump. We think that would be at least as good as the Spider-Man musical if someone were to make one for real.

In the meantime our sister site Joystiq has posted up a new chat with Gearbox Software's Randy Pitchford from the event where he says that even though Gearbox is working hard to complete the game he adds, "It would be irresponsible for me to take anything away from 3D Realms, this is their game."

Duke Nukem Forever shows off his "stuff" in new screenshots and preview

Duke Nukem Forever has had been plenty of leaked screenshots and over-the-shoulder Shaky Cam footage over the years but today developer Gearbox Software and publisher 2K Games finally released some real, official, honest-to-goodness shots from the near-final version of this long awaited first person shooter.

The screenshots are part of the latest media push for the game which included a big event held in Las Vegas earlier this week. Our sister site Joystiq got to play the first few levels of the single player game (no multiplayer content was provided) and its verdict is that so far the game lives up to all we would expect from the Duke Nukem franchise. The interactive elements are all there (we especially like being able to sign the cover of Duke's auto-biography "Why I'm So Great") and at one point you as Duke get miniaturized in a sequence where you have to drive an RC car. While the preview event didn't show everything at the moment Duke Nukem Forever sounds like it's going to be a fun ride when it finally shows up in early May.
Advertisement

Our Writers

Steven Wong

Managing Editor

RSS Feed

John Callaham

Senior Editor

RSS Feed

James Murff

Contributing Editor

RSS Feed

Learn more about Big Download