Bulletstorm is a first-person shooter game from 2011, that was later remastered for the PC and PS4 Pro with support for higher frame rates and 4K resolution. The game also included all its previously released DLC and one of which was Duke Nukem’s Bulletstorm Tour. It was originally available only to those players who pre-ordered the title and was available for purchase and was a part of the Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition.
The style of a game like Bulletstorm matches perfectly with the tone most of the previous Duke Nukem games had. A real mayhem, with gore, blood, and dumb humor that is often funny when it had no right to be. In this article you will learn how it all turned out, what it changed and how it revamped and saved Bulletstorm.
What are the Odds?
This was a weird crossover DLC, and it had no right to be as good as it was. It was a real gamble, due to the long-awaited and poorly received Duke Nukem Forever game released around that time in 2011. The chances were that it could be a hit or miss, and it is not like you could predict that. Right now, you prepare yourself for various gambles in the gaming industry like following the esports betting odds, so you are not caught off guard. Back then it was not that simple, and even the developers had to gamble on the fame of Duke Nukem to make him a part of the Bulletstorm game.
In this case, it was a gamble that paid off, because even though Bulletstorm is a decent, classic shooter game, it lacked a bit of a soul, and the game is that much better with Duke Nukem as the main protagonist in place of the original one. The odds were not against them when Jon St. John recorded voice-over for Bulletstorm and it brought the attention the game of many new players, who were nostalgic for some good old Duke Nukem.
Duke it Out
All the changes that this DLC added are mostly related to the audio-visual presentation. Your character’s model is replaced with Duke Nukem with tons of new lines, voiced by the original actor. The storyline itself does not change, but it goes around that in a clever way. Duke is presented as someone who just woke up from a heavy hangover and had no idea where and why he was there.
However, as Duke Nukem does, he did not even question the absurdity of the situation but was on board for a crazy action-packed story that was about to unfold. Duke Nukem hits all his classic catchphrases, jokes around about everything and is enjoying the carnage.
Technical Chaos
There are some issues here of course, because there are instances where the subtitles do not match, the dialogue feels off, the characters refer to Duke as Gray (the original protagonist of the game), the lip-sync is off, and more. However, Bulletstorm does not aim to be a perfect game. It is chaotic, absurd and is all about killing enemies in the most imaginative way, so it is much easier to let some of this stuff slide, because it does not detract very much from the much more enjoyable times when it does hit, like Duke’s lines.
Iconic Quotes
Here are some of the quotes taken out from Bulletstorm that are specific to Duke Nukem DLC. Most of them are vulgar so consider yourself warned, however, it is Duke after all so nothing surprising to see here. Comparing it to the classic Duke, I would say it’s even much more grounded and less chauvinistic than his usual quotes.
- “It’s time to kick ass and chew bubblegum… and I’m all out of bubblegum.”
- “You cocksucker.”
- “We’re not going anywhere. Running is for pussies. Shoulda stayed in bed, shiteater!”
- “Blow up that porn machine. Computer. Whatever.”
- “Shut the fuck up. I’m not even supposed to be in this flashback, and you’ve got me killing innocents? Fucker.” (a great example of Duke breaking the fourth wall)
- “I’ve been saving the world since before you were born!”
- “It’s a murder party, starring the King, baby!”
- “Wrong name, but – almost friendly.” (a reference to Duke being referred as Gray, the original protagonist, by the side characters in the game)
- “You’re and inspiration for birth control.”
- “Bad juju. Got my keister in a pucker.”
- “Oh cock-fucker-rim job-piece-of-shit! We’re right back where we started!”
- “It’s okay if you wanna give me a spanking.”
- “Hashtag, busy killing.”
- “Kaboom, baby!”
All in all, it’s not the best game in the world, and it’s not the most technically impressive DLC of all time, but it fits here perfectly, and it added a lot of needed soul into the story and if you are into this type of humor it will definitely add to the experience, replacing the generic protagonist with the King himself, the icon, Duke Nukem baby.