Duke Nukem

Duke Nukem began in 1991 as a side-scrolling platform game, but the series belongs to 1996's Duke Nukem 3D, one of the defining first-person shooters of its era. Built on the Build engine, it paired fast, secret-packed levels with a deliberately crude action-hero mascot whose one-liners and attitude were half the appeal.

Most entries here are re-releases of that landmark: the Atomic Edition, the Megaton Edition and the 20th Anniversary World Tour, each keeping the original alive for new hardware. Duke Nukem Forever, infamous for spending more than a decade in development, finally arrived in 2011 to a far cooler reception. The franchise now reads as much as a piece of gaming history and a cautionary tale as it does a living series, but that 3D peak still hits hard.

The Duke Nukem franchise spans 6 games in the CrossBinge catalog.