There is definitely something going on in the world of Duke Nukem. The 20th anniversary of the release of Duke Nukem 3D is in just over a week's time, apparently. On the official Duke Nukem website you will find a simple page with an anniversary banner, a headline stating something is "Coming Soon", and a countdown timer with just over a week left on the clock. Meanwhile Mr Nukem has opened his own Twitter account, and we are warned that "some people may find Duke's Twitter posts offensive." To top it all off we have some "official screenshots" of a game purportedly called 'Duke Nukem 3D: World Tour' circulating on the internet.
So the official information on any new possible Duke Nukem game release is purposely thin on the ground. Gearbox wants to tease the anniversary celebration game but just enough to build interest until the expected reveal / launch in a week's time. As it’s the 20th anniversary of Duke Nukem 3D, it is this particular game that will be the focus of any remake / redux / tribute game that may emerge. Remember Duke Nukem first arrived as a DOS-based 320×200, 16-color EGA shareware side scroller in 1991.
Looking at the leaked info and screenshots is a more interesting but less reliable pursuit. In the reddit post by Tezla55 the new game is said to be called 'Duke Nukem 3D: World Tour' and is being developed by Nerve Games. According to PCGamesN, Nerve were behind the likes of Doom 3 expansion Resurrection of Evil, and helped with some recent Call of Duty titles.
Among the linked images are plenty of screen shots, said to be from a press-pack in preparation. The in-game graphics mix up the original old Duke Nukem 3D (2D) sprites with new / improved / remastered 3D assets and new game content and modes. Purported new modes include Co-Op and deathmatch. Many reddit comments seem to reckon the screenshots are fakes. Furthermore, while in 2D gaming the pixelated revival has won some plaudits, people don't seem to appreciate this graphic style in 3D games. We shall see next Friday night...
