The last Duke Nukem game came out in 2011 after over a decade in development, and while it was well-received by many fans and turned a profit, it’s now more commonly known as a flop. This was greatly down to the time taken to get Duke Nukem Forever over the line and how much people craved a sequel to the groundbreaking Duke Nukem 3D of 1996.
Since 2011, Duke Nukem has only really been mentioned jokingly, until now. While in 2016, reports murmured of John Cena playing Duke Nukem, in June of this year, much more serious reports kicked up of the Cobra Kai creators producing the film for Legendary Entertainment. Whether or not Hollywood should go through with another video game adaptation is beside the point: Duke Nukem suddenly has some momentum again.
Interest in the Duke Nukem leak
It’s not just the announcement of movie plans that has gamers talking about Duke Nukem again. It just so happens that shortly before the movie announcement, an anonymous developer leaked an early version of Duke Nukem Forever. There are guns, mini-games, casinos galore, and even wild goats. News of this even had Vice musing over why the game still matters to so many people despite its legacy.
While Duke Nukem and Duke Nukem II were fine games for their time, Duke Nukem 3D really put the series on the map, with expectations being exceedingly high for Duke Nukem Forever. So, perhaps that fact alone is enough to keep fans wanting more. As is often the case with these kinds of leaks, those who felt the 2011 release didn’t live up to expectations can at least see what could have been for the beloved franchise.
Capitalizing on the Duke Nukem headlines
If there was ever a time to get a once-beloved franchise back on the map, it’s now, with the leak and movie announcements setting the stage very well. The quickest and clearest course of action is to get Duke into a popular entertainment medium that he surprisingly hasn’t ventured into in his 31-year existence – despite visits to such venues in the games.
Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, and continually Tomb Raider have all been in casino games, but Duke Nukem is yet to do so – he doesn’t even have his own quip-loaded video slot game! Right now, online casinos are more popular than ever, with the advent of Google Pay casinos enhancing accessibility to the gaming platforms tremendously. Now, with the trusted and popular Android payment system, players can claim welcome bonuses, make deposits, and withdraw winnings.
As Google Pay casinos notoriously put their newest and best slots front and center on their homepages, bringing out a Duke Nukem slot would immediately expose the brand to a huge audience. Very quick to make by comparison to video games, a slot loaded with exciting features, funny lines, and some action sequences would easily showcase the allure of the classic franchise, and maybe even get it featured for one of the no-deposit bonuses that some Google Pay casinos offer.
Finally, in what is becoming a theme for most classic games: create a remastered box set of everything Duke Nukem to date. Give an update to the first two games, include the Duke Nukem 3D World Tour remaster but with the Nuclear Winter, Duke in the Caribbean, and Duke it Out in DLC expansions that the 2016 release skipped, and see if Forever can be spruced up or improved – make it the game it should have been.
A plan for a movie, a leak of what Forever could have been, and an increasing interest in the classic games: now is the time to get Duke Nukem pumped once again!