Duke? Is that you? – review of the game “Ion Fury”

Bombshell

Engine build an engine which created much appreciated shooter type i.e. FPS . Duke Nukem 3D  or Shadow Warrior . Technology stopped being used twenty years ago. This year, however, he returns with the game Ion Fury . In 2019, the creators decided to use old technology in a way we have not seen yet. At the beginning of the game, we can observe a skyscraper collapsing. There has not been any greater destruction of the environment in productions based on Build Engine. It is also a great achievement to force such an old engine to work well in high resolutions (4K) and on monitors with a refresh rate of 144 Hz. The protagonist of the production is Shelly “Bombshell” Harrison, which was originally supposed to be part of the Duke Nukem brand. However, the ownership changed hands, so we got the female version of it instead. The plot is definitely not a great driving force for the game. The evil doctor releases representatives of a cult fond of cybernetics onto the streets, and the heroine is the only hope to stop them. Almost everything is reminiscent of the cult game about the adventures of the Prince.

A breath of nostalgia

In the game, we deal with shooting at everything that moves, and traversing extensive locations, often hiding a lot of secrets to find. We need to accurately target the enemies with the mouse, so playing only the keyboard, as was the case in Duke Nukem 3D , is impossible. For the locked door, we need to find access cards of the correct color to be able to proceed. During the game, we will not experience cutscenes, and from time to time there are scripted events, e.g. exploding bridges. This does not mean that Ion Fury  is a Duke Nukem 3D carbon. At certain times, you can return to previously completed levels, and we can see the boards with a summary of our achievements only after the chapter is finished. The game looks very nice, it is a demanding shooter for retro fans, who will also be pleased to be able to save and load it with one button. Ion Fury is  not an easy game – I often ran around the map on the verge of death. Therefore, it is worthwhile to use the option of saving frequently at any time.

What didn’t work?

Ion Fury  pays tribute to older productions, but there were some glitches. The range of available weapons is very limited: revolver, shotgun and rifle. Later there is also a crossbow. There were some crazy ideas for eliminating enemies that would diversify the game. It is similar in the case of opponents, for most of the game we deal with the same enemies. The levels are well designed, elaborate, and yet monotonous. There is also a typical retro shooter level in the sewers, which is the longest and worst stage in the entire game.

Summary 

In Ion Fury you can  feel the atmosphere of older productions using Build Engine technology. Despite the small variety of the arsenal, shooting hordes of enemies can be satisfying. There were no more diverse enemies and bosses, and some of the levels are boring. Even so, I had a pretty good time. I recommend it especially to fans of old school FPS games. Not a very successful tribute, but quite competent nonetheless.