Duke Nukem Forever ® for the Atari 2600


Well, we've said for a long time that we would not release any info on Duke Nukem Forever until it was time.  Well, it's time.  We're proud to announce the release of Duke Nukem Forever for the most classic of gaming systems - the Atari 2600!

Duke Nukem is a classic game, and what better system to release it on first than the most classic of consoles?  Sure, you have your Xbox, your PS2, and other modern era consoles, but for true gaming fun, you'll want to play Duke Nukem Forever on the Atari 2600 - a console exclusive to boot!

Many folks have wondered why it's taken us so long to get any information out on the game.  Well, the reason for that is that we've had to spend an enormous amount of time and effort figuring out how to make the Unreal engine work on the Atari 2600 system. 

Here's a partial list of features unique to the Atari 2600 version of the game:

  • Multiplayer - Link together your Atari 2600 system with your friends' 2600 system by use of the special included DukeLink™ attachment.
  • Unique ragdoll physics system - you've never seen blocky pixels move like this.  UT2K3 has nothing on this game!
  • Plus much much more we can't reveal at this time.

In addition, we spent a lot of time simplifying the game interface so it works with just the Atari 2600 joystick and a single fire button.  You'll be amazed at how cool the new interface is - and you'll wonder why you ever bothered to play with a keyboard/mouse combo - the PC port of the Atari 2600 version will also feature this new interface.

For now all we've been able to cram onto the cartridge is the title screen (see video below).  Don't worry, though - we figure we have plenty of time to do this right, so no matter how long it takes, or how much money we have to spend, we will cram 2 gigs of info onto a 2600 cart.  In fact, in our programming tools, we found that the bank switching techniques of the 2600 have allowed us to do some really special things with this platform - especially the strippers! 

A stripper!The release date of this game is still "When it's done", but we felt it was time to share some information with you.   In addition to the cartridge scan above, we have some pictures and a video for you to check out.   All the materials are below. Click here to discuss this cartridge port on our web forums today!

 

Image Gallery

 

 2600 Silver label prototype 2600 end label graphic 2600 Red label prototype

 

 2600 DNF Title Screen 2600 DNF Title Screen in B/W mode DNF running on Atari 2600 system
 

DNF demo video

 
Got doubts?  Watch this video and see the cartridge in action.

 Download File: 1.5Mb avi file

 

Links

 

  • Atariage.com - One of the best resources for Atari 2600 games.
  • Atariprotos.com - A great source for Atari prototype games.
  • dnf2600.zip - Download the rom used for this.  Requires a 2600 emulator.  You can get one at Atariage.com.
 
This was an April Fool's Joke from Apr 1, 2003.