Duke Nukem: Manhatten Project
Thirty years.
That's how long it's been since the release of Defender in 1980. That's how long side-scrollers have been a staple of the videogame industry.
In those thirty years we've seen more side-scrolling games than we can count, many of which have become some of our most beloved video games of all time. From Mario to Megaman to Metroid, Castlevania to Sonic, side-scrollers have seen more iterations than almost any other genre. Even now in the age of 3D, the two-dimensional gameplay of side-scrollers still continues to deliver with games such as Braid, 'Splosion Man and Shadow Complex.
It is no surprise, then, with this impressive history, that we as gamers are completely unwilling to play a mediocre side-scroller. It may possess one of the greatest stories ever told, it may be accompanied by a musical score like no other, but if a side-scroller doesn't play well... we don't want to have anything to do with it. Unlike most genres, a mediocre side-scrolling game is almost unplayable. I say all this because that is what 3D Realms port of Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project is today: a mediocre side-scroller.
Manhattan Project was originally developed by Sunstorm Interactive in 2002. At the time, it was praised for having a game engine that was fully 3D. In 2002, there wasn't much in the way of a 3D side-scroller, especially one that sported the masculine gun-shooting of the Duke, and the novelty of that alone was enough to gain interest. Unfortunately, when put into our more modern perspective, the 3D quickly loses its appeal and the gameplay's underlying flaws become readily apparent.
First of all: this is a port. This isn't a reboot, there is no attempt to improve the original game, there is no difference between this and the PC game that came out 8 years ago. Two Avatar Awards: a Duke Nukem t-shirt and a jetpack, are all that make it stand apart from its 8 year old predecessor. “Not new” doesn't just extend to comparisons between the PC and XBLA versions, the game itself no longer holds any appeal as a novel “3D side-scroller”; the term is now commonplace due to games like Shadow Complex. Without that novelty, the game relies solely on its gameplay which is depressingly lacking. The movement feels stilted, Duke Nukem moves across the screen with the grace of a muscle-bound rectangle. Shooting couldn't be less satisfying, the animation you get from firing a gun couldn't possibly have more than 3 frames. Duke can only shoot in whichever direction he is currently facing, meaning that firing up or down or any other direction other than “directly in front of you” is impossible. The levels repeat themselves and combat quickly becomes tedious. The game's sole source of enjoyment comes from the one-liners Duke delivers, but even these grow stale after playing for over an hour.
Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project has aged poorly. Perhaps it's simply shown me that I've moved passed enjoying shooting pig cops and making di** jokes, but I think there's more to it than that. Manhattan Project was good in 2002 for its interesting meld of side-scrolling and 3D, but little else. Now in 2010, it just isn't fun to play, and no amount of prostitutes, pig cops, male chauvinism and guns can mask that.
