Duke Nukem 3D, the game that spawned the greatest Ventrillo prank on the planet with it’s oh-so-memorable bile-spitting quotes, is now free on the iPhone and the iPad [Free / HD] for an unspecified amount of time for an unspecified reason.

When we talk about DN3D, it’s usually in the context of early shooters like DOOM [$6.99] or Wolfenstein 3D [$1.99]. The Duke represented a change of pace, as well as a dramatic shift in tone and style. DN3D for iOS is a very faithful port of that original PC version, so you’ll probably be able to come to understand what all the brouhaha was about — if you decided to give it a download.

Just as a minor note here: the game still suffers the same problems we complained about in our write-up back in August 2009. Simply put, the controls suck. I would normally use words like “unacceptable" and “cringe worthy" to describe them, but those seem a tad too critical considering DN3D‘s current price of zero dollars.

Need a bit more Duke in your life? Require a refresher before Duke Nukem Forever hits other platforms in 2011? Might as well give this a try. In the words of the Duke: “What are you waiting for? Christmas?" Indeed, sir. Indeed.