Duke Nukem Advance
Score: 90% ESRB: Teen Publisher: Take 2 Interactive Developer: Torus Media: Cart/1 Players: 1 - 4 Genre: First Person Shooter
Graphics & Sound: Impressive. Most impressive. The game engine that the developers were able to put together is very, very impressive. The scrolling is smooth, crisp and detailed. I was especially impressed with the amount of interactive elements in the game. Plants catch fire when you shoot them, computers smash, barrels explode, toilets become geysers, and walls show damage. At times, you can even look at camera monitors to see into other rooms. Of course, all of these details are displayed in a very low resolution and come off as muddy and pixilated, but when you consider the system, I don't see how anyone could be that disappointed. Considering the limitations of a cartridge, Duke Nukem Advance does a great job of cramming as much sound as it can into the game. Most of Duke's sayings are present, although toned down a bit, as well as some great weapon effects and nice music.
Gameplay: Duke Nukem Advance is a solid FPS. In fact, it is the best FPS available for the GBA. One of the first things you'll notice is the incredibly campy story line. Aliens are invading, and its up to Duke to follow them around the world and destroy them. Really folks, this thing has all the depth of an Ed Wood movie - but that's a good thing. I liked that the game took itself seriously without taking its story seriously. In particular, I liked the one liners and American pop-culture references. On the downside, Duke has all the replay value of flipping a coin. Once you beat it, there is nothing available to make you want to play it again unless you are trying it on a harder difficulty level. Unlike Ecks vs. Sever, Duke presents players with a series of objectives in order to complete his mission. This gives the game that added bit of 'umph', and adds some depth to the game. Instead of running around looking for a yellow key for the yellow door, you have to do things like find a secret disk or agent, rescue a hostage, or shut down the environmental systems. Some levels are even giant puzzles or have a time limit. As an added bonus, Duke also offers multiplayer options over the System Link function. What would an FPS be without some really over the top weapons? Duke offers a vast array of weapons including freeze beams and a shrinking ray. Of course, for those of a less civilized or cultured pallet, there's the standard selection of machine guns, rocket launchers and shotguns.
Difficulty: When first starting your mission, Duke Nukem Advance offers four difficulty levels: Piece of Cake, Let's Rock, Come Get Some, and Damn I'm Good. Even when playing on the easier of difficulty levels, Duke offers a nice challenge while keeping the game fun.
Game Mechanics: Again, I am impressed. As if configuring an FPS to work with the controller of a console wasn't hard enough, imagine doing the same thing for the GBA. I was amazed with how well laid out the controls were in Duke Nukem Advance. The D-pad moves you around while the A and B buttons shoot and jump. The shoulder buttons are used for strafing, while pressing both at the same time enables the 'Look' feature. Holding Select and pressing one of the shoulder buttons cycles through your weapons. If nothing in the configuration suits you, Duke offers four configurations, so I'm sure there's something there for everyone. FPSs are a rare thing for the GBA. Even with some of the amazing advances developers have made on the system, this is about as good as things are going to get (at least until the next generation of handheld systems comes out. Duke Nukem Advance is a fantastic FPS and well worth a play, especially for FPS fans.
-Starscream, GameVortex Communications AKA Ricky Tucker
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