Fans Are Restoring Duke Nukem Forever

In my last article, I presented the bitter saga of Duke Nukem Forever. The fall of a defining character in the history of video games. But fans will be fans forever, and a couple of days after someone leaked a game build from 2001, a squad of modders decided to make it playable. Hence the DNF Restoration Project came to life.

It all started on May 9th, 2022. A user named x0r_jmp leaked allegedly the iteration of the version that was shown at E3 2001. The 4chan post was deleted since then, but a website, duke4net saved every detail of it. Some days later the leaker(s) released the editor files, and the source code too. A huge chunk of the leak was playable, and almost every weapon was useable. All of the content seen at E3 is available in the build, and almost every chapter was included.

This resulted in a flurry of renewed interest in Duke and the game itself; and quickly attracted both vets and new blood alike interested in modifying the game’s source code.

– DNF Restoration Project

The team grew quickly. Modders joined from every part of the world, so the remote work is 0-24 due to different time zones. There are industry experts, hobby developers, and well-known community figures in the mix, hoping that every one of the members can make this game finished, polished, and enjoyable. The DNF Restoration team is also working on a new storyline for the game and custom music. They also record new voice lines for Duke, voiced by Gianni Matragrano, who is known for posting Duke Nukem memes on youtube.

The work done is incredible already. This small-sized “studio” is really passionate about this, after all, it’s Duke Nukem! They always looking for helping hands, so it’s safe to join their Discord Server. Better yet, the first slice is already downloadable here. This download includes the first chapter of the game with all of the 9 levels.