Duke Nukem 3D 30 Years On

Duke Nukem 3D turned 30 years old back in January, and although I missed the celebrations (unfortunately, by several months), I've arrived fashionably late, nonetheless, to talk about it.

For those not in the know (as the franchise has languished in obscurity for over a decade), Duke Nukem 3D follows titular character Duke as he rids Earth of its babe-stealing alien invaders. After his ride is shot up, Duke is left stranded with only one intention: alien genocide. And being a mid-'90s shooter, there's really nothing more to it than that; the guy kicks ass and he chews bubblegum (and he's all out of gum).

Now, I was, quite frankly, astonished by just how well the game holds up in 2026 — it's aged like a fine wine, and it shows no signs of spoiling. I had assumed that much of the game's charm would be borne by my nostalgia for the title, but this was not the case, and the gameplay is boomer-shooting at its absolute finest!

The floaty movement inherent to ‘90s blast-em-ups is perfectly balanced, affording Duke some speed and slickness, which do well to aid the game's action focus. It's a fast and visceral shooter whose gameplay loop, although small, never wears out its welcome; it's fun!

So, it's obvious that Doom was the main inspiration behind Duke Nukem 3D (as it had been for so many titles around that time), at least, from a mechanical standpoint. However, the team at 3D Realms clearly had no plans to copy said inspiration verbatim because they went out of their way to add in some pretty neat features.

Firstly, the verticality added to levels is a nice addition — though it may sound somewhat innocuous by modern standards. Giving players the means to so easily access higher or lower portions of a given map allowed 3D Realms to be more creative in the implementation of secret areas — a mechanic rife in games of this ilk. This simple improvement thus deepens the game and gives players extra to chew on, making more out of what would otherwise primarily be a bare-bones FPS.

Building on their newfangled notion that players can now go up and down, 3D Realms also added a swimming mechanic. This obviously gives players the means to head off in any direction with ease — truly groundbreaking for the time! Underwater exploration and combat, once again, do wonders to help broaden gameplay, being adequately sprinkled throughout the many levels.

Duke "the character" is also brilliant — truly, one of the great protagonists of all time. Though not exactly what the modern world would deem appropriate, he does tick all the boxes of a solid ‘80s action hero: he's boisterous, bombastic, and built like a brick shithouse. All the guys want to be him, all the women want to be with him, and all the aliens want to kill him. What more could you want from your boomer-shooter hero?

Duke's charm is cemented by his iconic voice actor, John St. John. He does a genuinely superb job of putting some meat on the character's bones, especially when you consider Duke doesn't really say much overall; he mostly quotes movies, but he does still have a handful of unique, awesome one-liners. Ultimately, John St. John gave Duke a personality — something that Doomguy nor B.J. Blazkowicz ever had — which paved the way for upcoming protagonists in games like BLOOD and Shadow Warrior.

All this innovation, however, isn't to say that the core shooting element has been neglected. Far from it, in fact, as Duke has access to a wide array of alien ass-kickers! These do include the genre heavyweights, such as the pistol, shotgun, chain gun, and RPG, but there are a couple of unique additions, too.

The Shrinker is perhaps the most interesting (and hilarious) of the bunch, allowing Duke to shrink and then squash enemies beneath his “Might Foot”. Speaking of which, Duke also has a melee move available that is halfway decent (preposterous, I know). It takes the form of a good, strong kick, and that's spot on because literally mudhole stomping an alien to death couldn't be more Duke-esque.

To conclude, Duke Nukem 3D is a banger for the ages, ticking all the boxes of what it strived to accomplish: great protagonist, solid premise, rockin’ soundtrack, diverse episodes, and fun gameplay. It really doesn't put a mighty foot wrong, and it is just as entertaining as it was way back in ‘96. If you're a lover of shooters and still haven't given this one a go, then what in the hell are you waiting for?