While somewhat lackluster, the game is far from being terrible.
A decade has passed since Duke had his last "true" game (Operation Manhattan doesn't count), but times have changed for the once truly hilarious parody of a manly and charismatic hero.
The review will begin by pointing out it's biggest flaw: the formula has been done before. Call of Duty, Halo, and a slew of other first-person shooter franchises have done more than Duke Nukem Forever could have done in a single game, but this doesn't automatically mean that Duke Nukem Forever is bad.
Aside from some texture issues, the game's graphics are a bit outdated, but they aren't so offensive that it makes your eyes vomit. "Samey" would be a good word to describe the graphics, as they are often bleak and tasteless.
The gameplay, however, is solid and can lead to some interesting moments where the player can perform unique executions on enemies if their health is low enough. Boss fights are also fun and unique, ranging from a giant cyclops to a massive... octopus... thing. The levels are also unique as Duke travels from his luxurious casino to the city streets, to an alien-infested stadium to the Hoover Dam. One problem, though, is that the difficulty level can be a bit unforgiving, making what should be simple gunfights on Easy mode turn into bashing a controller through a television screen in frustration.
The sound also takes a hit here, as the soundtrack is comprised of all the other kinds of music you would hear in a Call of Duty game. Voice acting took an especially large hit here as the characters sound dull, uninterested in the story at all, and curse more than the characters of Bulletstorm.
Speaking of story, the game fools the player into thinking that it would be a well written epic by making it seem like Duke restarted the war with the aliens from 3D and him having to deal with the consequence, but it only leads into yet another story of government conspiracies and aliens sucking and America kicking their behinds.
Despite all the negative, the game does have some memorable moments, such as traversing the Duke Burger tower or storming the Hoover Dam or seeing virtual bosoms. If you don't mind some crumby graphics and laughably embarrassing voice acting interfering with solid and sometimes intense gameplay, at least rent the game, but otherwise, don't waste your money on it and play something like Halo.