Duke Nukem is a big name in gaming; any story we write about the upcoming Duke Nukem Forever is almost sure to be one of the week's most popular. The interest in the character and the game has never been higher, and the reason is simple: Duke Nukem 3D was a classic in the world of PC (and now console) gaming. One fan has taken his love of the game to the next level by beginning the process of updating the experience with the Unreal Engine 3, but his story is a unique one. You see, he has been given a non-commercial license to update—and then release—his version of the game.

A formative experience

"Duke Nukem 3D was the first multiplayer FPS experience I had," the man behind the project Frederick "fresch" Schreiber told Ars. "Back when I was a kid, I was a huge Schwarzenegger and Stallone fan, and Duke was the Schwarzenegger of gaming."

He played Duke all day, "raping" his mother's phone bill while playing over a modem. "Duke3D was also my first entry into level editing and modding, so it has a very special place in my gaming history," he explained.

Schreiber hasn't had the best luck with these projects. An update to Daikatana was abandoned due to lack of interest. An update to SiN: Reloaded was shut down by MumboJumbo, which owns the rights to the game. For Duke Nukem he took a different tact and contacted Scott Miller from 3D Realms, and was asked to create some screenshots to show how his version of the game would look. The screens he created got everyone's attention.

"I contacted George Brussard and Scott Miller, to start a conversation about the project—the shots managed to convince Scott Miller to a certain degree—but the project was only doable if Take-Two would approve it," Schreiber wrote.

He decided to go through Gearbox first, thinking that would increase his chances at an official blessing. "I contacted AdamF, who passed me through to PJ Putnam, Vice President and General Counsel of Gearbox Software." Gearbox ultimately decided to support the project, and gave Schreiber a personal, non-commercial license to Duke Nukem 3D. He can't sell the work or profit from it directly, but he can use the characters and design of the game without fear of being shut down.

The project is currently still looking for qualified individuals, but it's moving along. "Planning is everything. I can honestly say that I havent done any mapping in the last two weeks," Schreiber told Ars. "Getting everything together, team members, project management systems, forums, SVN, webhosting, filesharing, To-Do lists, the game design document, applications, etc. is extremely time consuming."

Schreiber's role is currently more management, but he's hoping to get back to mapping once the final team is in place. He also said that a multiplayer test should be available before the end of the year.

"We want to do everything we can not to end in an "endless cycle," as other projects do," he said, perhaps referring to certain other Duke Nukem projects. "We want to play this as much as you do."

Using the Unreal Engine

For someone familiar with creating Duke Nukem content, the world has certainly changed for the better. "To create a game in the [Unreal Development Kit] is a huge and fun process," Schreiber said. "Game development is very different today than it was back in the Duke 3D days. We have all the tools to basically create what we want."

What has changed is the size of the team it takes to create something this ambitious. "From the first concept art, to the final in-engine model, is a long process. But the team is working harder than you can imagine, creating amazing results every day." Schreiber also claims to have some industry professionals helping with the project, due to the high level of interest in the original game.

The game is now using the same engine as Duke Nukem Forever, so there will soon be a way to play Duke Nukem 3D in a way that won't be so hard on modern eyes. The ability to work in the open, knowing that the project won't be hit with a cease and desist letter, is a huge advantage when it comes to recruiting talent and getting the community organized in support. We've all had our hearts broken due to fan-made projects never reaching completion, and that's still a possibility here. The good news is that all signs point to a high-quality experience--one we will hopefully be able to try very soon.

"I hope you'll follow the project, and I'm looking forward to the frag-fest once the multiplayer test is released," Schreiber said. So are we, my friend. So are we.