749: Duke Nukem 3D

Retronauts

Games, Leisure, Technology, Video Games

4.5 • 2.3K Ratings

🗓️ 16 February 2026

⏱️ 101 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

As the sun was setting on the 2.5D FPS, one game emerged to pull out all the stops: Duke Nukem 3D. While Duke 3D was mostly known for its brash main character and his many violent acts, those who actually sat down to play it realized that 3D Realms' creation actually contained some extremely clever level design and a variety of player interactions that just weren't seen in the mid-90s. Duke Nukem Forever might have left a stain on the legacy of Duke, but we're here to remind you that, even 30 years later, his initial 3D outing still kicks ass.

This week on Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Stuart Gipp, Dominic Tarason, and John Linneman as the crew hails to the king and replenishes their supply of bubble gum.

Retronauts is a completely fan-funded operation. To support the show, and get two full-length exclusive episodes every month, as well as access to 100+ previous bonus episodes, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	I can't believe it.
0:03.6	Max has asked me to move in with him.
0:06.0	I mean, you practically live with each other already, but that's great.
0:09.9	Did you hear that, Joe?
0:11.5	Yes, thanks for letting us know.
0:14.3	I see you've updated your universal credit claim.
0:17.1	Now you're going to be living together.
0:21.4	If you're telling other people about a change in your circumstances,
0:25.4	tell us too to avoid a penalty.
0:27.8	Search Tell DWP.
0:30.1	This week on Retronauts. I'm your host for this one, Bob Mackie. And this week, we are talking about a subject previously untouched by Retronauts, the extremely innovated 1996 first-person shooter, Duke Nukem 3D. This game arrived just as the genre was making a full transition
1:11.4	into fully polygonal 3D, but Duke more than made up for it with its personality and sheer
1:16.6	variety of interactions and a lot of attitude as well. So unfortunately, the well has really
1:21.3	been poisoned by Duke Nukem Forever, that 2011 abomination. But on this episode, we can at least
1:25.8	remember the good times because Duke Nukem 3D is an amazing game. So yes, I'm Bob Mackie. Who else is here with me today on the podcast? Hi there. I'm Stuart Jop and I don't have time nor inclination to play with myself at this moment. And Stuart's camera is off so we can't be sure about that. Oh, God. I just want I want to note that to the listener. Who else is here with us today?
1:52.3	Hi, I'm Dominic Harrison. I'm a regular at PC gamer and many other sites, and retro FBSs are a passion. Excellent. And who else? Who's our final guest? Yes, and I'm John Lenneman
1:57.2	from Digital Foundry, who a known lover of retro style shooters.
2:01.5	So I am happy to be here. Yes, thanks, Stuart. Obviously, I've worked with you before. But Dominic and John, you are new to one of my podcasts, at least. So welcome. It's great to have John. Thank you. And before we get started here, I want to ground a discussion in our own experience. So let's go around this virtual room here. What is our history with Duke Newcomb in his 3D world?
2:20.1	Let us start with Stewart. our own experience. So let's go around this virtual room here. What is our history with Duke
2:18.6	Newcomb in his 3D world? Let us start with Stewart. Well, when I was a kid, my first PC had the
2:24.0	shareware version of the 2D Duke Newcomb. Though I think my first encounter with it was a friend who
2:30.1	owned the shareware for Duke Newcomb 3D, which I found to be astonishingly scandalous.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Retronauts, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Retronauts and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.