This is Duke Nukem Forever, the sequel to the 1996 PC FPS Duke Nukem 3D in the PC FPS franchise "Duke Nukem" 
It's been in development for over 10 years, there was a lot of studio drama involved, the times have changed and it has now come out, bewildered by the video game mechanics and approaches of today, and also by the platform popularity changes. 
  
 

• Why did I think it's ugly at first? because console-based reviewers led me to believe that it is. This game was ported to consoles, and therefore the console version is not the ideal version to review. The PC version looks great . I don't see anyone basing their GTA IV verdict on the ugly PC port, so why are we basing our opinion of DNF's visuals based on the console port ?
• Why did i think the gameplay sucked? because console-based reviewers said so. Playing it on M+KB now, i'm having a total blast with these controls!
• Why did i think the game is so shitty it takes 40 seconds to load up? because console-based reviewers told me so. It takes 10-15 seconds max on my PC.  
• Why did i think that Duke sounded pathetic and is trying too hard in this game? because the short QL/review footage led me to believe that. Now that i'm playing it in real time, I find myself chuckling every now and then, or thinking "Duke is still as badass!"

Pro-tip for those who don't like it:  

Where's the option for stopping people making threads about DNF?

The worst 360 game this year its fucking horrible only people with bad taste in games or rednecks would have any form of fun playing this shitty game

This is not my opinion this is FACT!!!

Where's the option for stopping people making threads about DNF?

@Chabbs0: Exactly. It's done. Let's all please forget about it.

I played it on PC and while I felt guilty about enjoying it in places and didn't find it particularly funny, I had a really fun time playing through it.

Played on the 360. It was adequate.

Haven't played it, and never will.

This is the thread to end all threads. Look at the title- "The verdict". The game has been out for a week, what the hell is "done" about it? Had it been done, i wouldn't have changed my opinion completely after playing the game. But here you see me praising the game after i harshly criticized it during the last week.  Nothing is done. tons of people are yet to play the game, and tons of people are yet to realize that lazy ass reviewers based their reviewers on a console port, rather than the lead version. 

Decent enough on pc.

Terrible on 360

Played it on 360. Liked it well enough. Looking forward to what Gearbox can do with the IP in the future.

@Chabbs0 said:

Where's the option for stopping people making threads about DNF?

@BrockNRolla said:

@Chabbs0: Exactly. It's done. Let's all please forget about it.

This is the thread to end all threads. Look at the title- "The verdict". The game has been out for a week, what the hell is "done" about it? Had it been done, i wouldn't have changed my opinion completely after playing the game. But here you see me praising the game after i harshly criticized it during the last week.  Nothing is done. tons of people are yet to play the game, and tons of people are yet to realize that lazy ass reviewers based their reviewers on a console port, rather than the lead version. 

I miss the jokes. Half-Life Ep. 3 doesn't have such an exploitable acronym.

Played it on 360. liked it

I saw the Quick Look, and watched the ending on Youtube. I don't want to play it.

Despite having enjoyed the demo on PlayStation 3, I've quickly come to the conclusion that Duke was meant to be enjoyed with a proper keyboard & mouse setup; no exceptions! Admittedly--prior to the release of Killzone 2, I used to be one of those guys who refused to play FPS on consoles, and Duke Nukem Forever hearkens back to those days in the most unapologetic way possible. At this point, I'm not sure if I can even finish the game.

I'm afraid Jeff Gerstmann is exactly correct in his assertion that this game would had to have come out before Halo to be considered any good.

@Ahmad_Metallic said: 

This is the thread to end all threads. Look at the title- "The verdict". The game has been out for a week, what the hell is "done" about it? Had it been done, i wouldn't have changed my opinion completely after playing the game. But here you see me praising the game after i harshly criticized it during the last week.  Nothing is done. tons of people are yet to play the game, and tons of people are yet to realize that lazy ass reviewers based their reviewers on a console port, rather than the lead version. 

Yes, you've made your "pro-pc, pro-duke" campaign painfully clear. I'd say that it's "done" because after a week, it sits at an average metactitic score of 49%. You, and every person, is welcome to their opinion, but the general concensus is that Duke isn't any good. Stick a fork in it.

@Ahmad_Metallic said:

@Chabbs0 said:

Where's the option for stopping people making threads about DNF?

@BrockNRolla said:

@Chabbs0: Exactly. It's done. Let's all please forget about it.

This is the thread to end all threads. Look at the title- "The verdict". The game has been out for a week, what the hell is "done" about it? Had it been done, i wouldn't have changed my opinion completely after playing the game. But here you see me praising the game after i harshly criticized it during the last week.  Nothing is done. tons of people are yet to play the game, and tons of people are yet to realize that lazy ass reviewers based their reviewers on a console port, rather than the lead version. 

Dude...seriously? I played through the demo and then through a couple hours of the full retail version on PC...and honestly, it is one of the most pitifully mediocre (at times downright shit) FPS' to have come out in recent memory. I fail to see how anyone could say this game is good in any way.

I played it on the 360.

I think some of the criticisms that Jeff may have said in his are fair, but don't think it's as awful as some people are making it out to be. If this game would have come out 12 years ago, everyone would be talking about how ambitious it is, but since it didn't - it's simply a mediocre shooter with stale dialogue. Truthfully, the only thing unbearable about the game was it's load times.

I rented it from Red Box and beat it in 2 nights and would recommend it to anyone who is willing to play under two conditions. The first is that they have at least an appreciation of the games storied development history. The second being they play with the understanding that it's not a finished game by today's standards and can overlook the graphical shortcomings and substandard gameplay.

I will continue to not like Duke Nukem...Forever

Dog shit.

Duke Nukem on the consoles is kind of a terrible game. I enjoy parts, most of it, I don't like. But I gotta admit, I'm still a fan of the character & I can't wait to see what they have in store for the next game.

I took a Crap and went to the hardware store... then i bought a hammer and smashed this awful turd

Cool rent, but after that sorry no.

I played about 5 hours of it before shutting it off. I loved all of the parts where Duke is actually speaking, but every other part is too boring to make me want to keep playing.

I have never played a Duke Nukem game, but I'd rather buy and play Duke Nukem 3D instead.

The way i see it, there are two kinds of video game players in the world: The ones who base their opinions on metacritic scores and reviews (and their comment boards) and the "general consensus" (Everyone thinks it sucks, and therefore it sucks). And those who are here because they want to play video games and enjoy them. Sure, they consider the opinions and reviews of professionals, and they keep the general consensus in mind, but they also realize that video game enjoyment always differs from one person to another.  

Clearly you're from the first group, and just like you respect my opinion, i'll respect yours. But don't have the nerve to tell me or any laid back gamer who wants to try video games and see whether they click with him/her or not, to stop talking about said video game. I expect several hundred people to try the game in the next couple of yours and realize that it's simply fun, are you gonna be there to tell all those people to not talk about the game they're enjoying because it's been decided that it sucks? Who the fuck are you, or any reviewer for that matter? As long as the game is being played and enjoyed, people are gonna discuss it, nothing died and nothing ended, I've never heard of these rules that forbid discussing a game based on a metactiric score.

Porting it to consoles was a mistake. The game is pretty good on PC, and should've been a PC exclusive.

Porting it to consoles was a mistake. The game is pretty good on PC, and should've been a PC exclusive.

The game was a lot of fun.

@BrockNRolla said:

I appreciate your passion for the issue, though not your generalizations about people who find criticism as whole to be an important tool to vet the good from the bad in the video game industry. For the record, I do not begrudge your playing or enjoyment of Duke; my only desire is to stop hearing about the game.

If you want to stop hearing about the game, then you should probably stop reading forum threads about it. Let's break this down:

1. Someone starts a thread titled "What do you think of Duke Nukem Forever?"
2. You click on that link and see the posts in the thread
3. You write a post stating that you are tired of reading about DNF and you want everyone else to move on.

This thread is about people's opinions of the game. So, for him to make a post stating he enjoyed it is absolutely on-topic for this thread. Likewise, you stating that you didn't enjoy it is also on-topic. But when you then say that people should stop making forum threads or discussing the game in any way, that is unreasonable. There are many old games that have been out for a long time, yet people still enjoy playing them --- and still enjoy discussing them --- much like movie fans still enjoy discussing The Godfather or Manos: The Hands of Fate.

Duke has had 15+ years of video game coverage and development,

That is a fact.

and the product that was delivered, regardless of your personal opinion about it, was not worth that wait.

That it was "not worth that wait" is an opinion and not a fact. Just putting that out there.

I believe the game mechanics and level designs feel uninspired and out of touch with the evolution of the fps. But more than that, I think Duke is poorly written, poorly delivered, and generally offensive to my sensibilities.

Fair enough, that is your personal opinion of it. These opinions are what this thread is about.

That isn't to say someone couldn't see it differently, but just because my opinion falls in with the crowd at large doesn't make it less valid.

I completely agree.

It's great that you enjoyed it, but the same as you're allowed to proffer your opinions, allow others like myself to offer our own; mine being that Duke is played out and we should move on with our lives.

Nobody has told you not to proffer your opinion, the very title of this thread asks for your opinion about the game. What's hypocritical about your post is that you are the one telling everyone else in this thread they should not offer their opinions about the game but should instead "move on" with life, as if that were some sort of dichotomy.

For the record, I haven't played DNF so I don't personally have an opinion about the game. I started reading this thread because I want to find out the general consensus about it among Giant Bomb community members.

@Legend said:

Porting it to consoles was a mistake. The game is pretty good on PC, and should've been a PC exclusive.

Do the better textures really make up for the poor design, dated gameplay and unfunny humour?  I'll never understand the elitest PC gamer mind.

@Ahmad_Metallic: I've never seen anyone complain about the controls, infact I played the game on the PC using a controller. Slow load times are an issue on the 360, I hear.. but not a complete game killer. The core problems with the game (i.e. terrible design, mish-mash of development styles and dated gameplay) aren't any better on one platform over another.

And yes, I generally use my PC to play games, I use it a lot more than any other system, so if you want you could label me a PC gamer. But I'm very much against the attitude of "PC = best and anything on the PC is automatically superior", which is very obviously what certain users are intending. If you don't want to be stereotyped, don't be a fanboy.

I'll admit that Duke seems like a very interesting character I'd enjoy playing as, having said that, I didn't and probably won't play the game.

I'll admit that Duke seems like a very interesting character I'd enjoy playing as, having said that, I didn't and probably won't play the game.

this games sucks ass 
this is THE verdict

This thread is about people's opinions of the game. So, for him to make a post stating he enjoyed it is absolutely on-topic for this thread. Likewise, you stating that you didn't enjoy it is also on-topic. But when you then say that people should stop making forum threads or discussing the game in any way, that is unreasonable. There are many old games that have been out for a long time, yet people still enjoy playing them --- and still enjoy discussing them --- much like movie fans still enjoy discussing The Godfather or Manos: The Hands of Fate.

Nobody has told you not to proffer your opinion, the very title of this thread asks for your opinion about the game. What's hypocritical about your post is that you are the one telling everyone else in this thread they should not offer their opinions about the game but should instead "move on" with life, as if that were some sort of dichotomy.

I really liked it.   It has flaws but  just because a game is "bad" on the technical side doesn't mean its not "fun" to play.   Fun is subjective and I thought this game was fun.

What part did you enjoy so much? The platforming? The one-liners? The ugly graphics? (Yeah they might look sharp on your high tech million dollar PC but the game just looks a dirty shade of poop overall)
 
I've watched PC LPs on youtube, and all I got from them was the stuff I mentioned and lame encounters against space pigs....I haven't played it but I want to know, I want to know why you like it but your poll says otherwise.

I haven't played it

I like that there are wall-mounted boobs in it.

....I haven't played it but I want to know, I want to know why you like it but your poll says otherwise. 

Nothing is done. tons of people are yet to play the game, and tons of people are yet to realize that lazy ass reviewers based their reviewers on a console port, rather than the lead version. 

@Napalm: so....other than being a dick, could you answer my question? Sell me on this game because apparently the "reviewers" can't seem to do the job.  
@blacklabeldomm said:

....I haven't played it but I want to know, I want to know why you like it but your poll says otherwise. 

Maybe you forgot to read this part of my comment?

@Ahmad_Metallic said:

Nothing is done. tons of people are yet to play the game, and tons of people are yet to realize that lazy ass reviewers based their reviewers on a console port, rather than the lead version. 

Most were only given the 360 version.  They aren't lazy they did their jobs and your mad because the don't agree with you (the old cliché)  or because they couldn't play the version your playing.