Duke Nukem 3D's Lunar Apocalypse is easily the best episode in the game. Other episodes have a few good levels (great, even, in some case), but Lunar Apocalypse is consistently well designed and great for moody play.
It's the part where I always quit playing every time I tried to finish the game. Fuck those self destruct drones.
>>11843315 (OP)I like Lunar Apocalypse for how drastic of a theme change it is, but my favorite parts of Duke 3D were always the familiar locations. There's a time and place for the terrible and alien but I prefer it interspersed with the mundane and cinematic.
What I'm saying is, I'd like to swing by more crew quarters and dining areas in this episode. Maybe a space babe or two.
>>11843406Yeah, after going thru 100 gazillion levels with a "techbase" theme or something similar in most other fps games from that period one does end up looking at the "sleazy downtown places" more fondly.
But honestly, the real distinction for me regarding the game's levels is that of the ones made by Allen Blum vs all the other designers.
It's become my favourite episode over the years as well, it has the best and most imaginative layouts, like how the first level is 4 floors each above the other (in b4 "akkthsually", yes I know, it's still 4 floors above each others as far as the gameplay is concerned), Dark Forces may have had a couple of levels with floors above each others but Spaceport is a much tighter design with interconnectivity between the floors.
It also has the best effects, there are imaginative and awesome effects everywhere, like the giant window blinds that open to light the room and give a view of space and earth.
The gameplay is tight as fuck as well with never a dull moment, EP1 is too easy and limited by its enemy/weapon roster, and EP3 has a couple of lesser levels in the middle and generally even beloved levels like Hotel Hell just don't have as much thought put into the combat as in EP2.
The episode is also dripping with atmosphere, the lighting, musics, locations
I'll never understand people calling it "generic", there was nothing quite like it at the time and for me that just sounds like super shallow taste
I like the episode, but I always miss the pig cops and I'm always glad they're back next episode.
>>11843990My thoughts as well. EP1 is cool but too short and EP3 starts great but later levels feel empty, undetailed and unfinished.
EP2 is long and great from start to finish.
