Unreal Tournament

Infobox VG| title = Unreal Tournament


developer = Epic Games, Digital Extremes
publisher = GT Interactive
designers = Cliff Bleszinski, James Schmalz, Steve Polge
engine = Unreal Engine
version = 436
released =PC

November 30 1999cite web
title = Unreal Tournament (1999) (VG) - Release dates
publisher = IMDB
url = http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0284592/releaseinfo
accessdate = 2008-05-04]
PlayStation 2

October 23 2000
Dreamcast

March 14 2001
genre = First-person shooter
modes = Single player, Multiplayer
ratings = vgratings|ELSPA=15+|ESRB=M|OFLC=MA15+
platforms = Dreamcast, Linux,
Mac OS, Mac OS X, PlayStation 2, Windows
media = CD-ROM (2)
requirements = see System requirements
input = Keyboard, Mouse

"Unreal Tournament" is a first-person shooter video game co-developed by Epic Games and Digital Extremes. It was published in 1999 by GT Interactive. Retrospectively, the game has also been referred to as "UT99" or "UT Classic" to differentiate it from its numbered sequels. The game is based on the same technology that powered "Unreal", but the design of "UT" shifted the series' focus to competitive multiplayer action, a trend at the time: id Software's "Quake III Arena" was released only ten days later.

Gameplay

"UT" was designed as an arena FPS, with head-to-head multiplayer deathmatches being the primary focus of the game. The game's single-player campaign is essentially a series of arena matches played with bots. For team matches, bots are again used to fill the roles of the player's teammates. Even on dedicated multiplayer servers, bots are sometimes used to pad out teams that are short on players.

"UT" is known and widely praised for its bot A.I., the product of programmer Steve Polge who had earlier risen to fame by designing the Reaper Bot for "Quake", one of the earliest examples of an effective deathmatch bot. The player can choose a bot skill level (anywhere from "Novice" to "Godlike") or set it to automatically adjust to the player's performance. Bots can be further customized by changing names, appearance, accuracy, weapon preferences, awareness, and so forth.

Game types

*Deathmatch: A classic every-man-for-himself player vs. player combat. The objective is to finish the map with the most kills, or frags.
*Team Deathmatch: Teams compete together to out-frag the opponent team.
*Capture the Flag: Classic Capture the Flag. Players compete to capture the other team's flag and return it to their base. Competitive teams must use a great deal of teamplay. Both teams must defend the base from incoming attackers and get into the other team's base, take their flag and return to base. This requires that the team protect their flag carrier very well from enemies in order to complete their objective.
*Domination: Teams compete to control various control points to earn points and win the map. Standard maps contain three control points. Control of these points can be accomplished either through occupation (physically occupying the space) or from a distance.
*Last Man Standing: Similar to Deathmatch, the objective here is to remain alive longer than your opponents, putting an emphasis on number of deaths rather than kills. Players have a set number of lives and once they run out of lives they lose and have to wait as spectators till match end.
*Assault: This game type is played with two opposing teams, one assaulting a "base" and the other defending it. The map is set up with a number of objectives which the attacking team must complete (usually in sequence) such as destroying something, entering an area, triggering a button, et cetera. The team who first attacks then defends, and attempts to defend for the entire time they attacked. If they can accomplish this, they win the map. If the team defending first assaults the base faster than the other team, they win the map. If both teams defend for the maximum amount of time the map is a tie.

Pre-Release Version

A few months before the release date, in March 1999, to be exact, a pre-release beta version appeared on the internet. It was an unofficial leak. The build, based on Unreal Engine version 222, contained a large part of the maps that later shipped with the game, sometimes with different item placement and various other differencies. There was no mutator menu, of all mutators only JumpMatch was available. Voice messages included callsigns, that were later scrapped. Last Man Standing and Assault were not fully implemented, Domination had slightly different rules of point acquisition. There was an additional game type in the practice session menu, Tournament DarkMatch, with only a single classic Unreal map available, namely Night Op. This gametype remained hidden in the retail version but is unlockable by a simple tweak. Still, to use it, one requires Unreal DarkMatch levels with the prefix changed from "Dk" to "TDK".

An unusual situation about this beta version occurred shortly after the leak, in April 1999. The game has been bootlegged and was in regular sales on various bazaars in Russia, Poland and other East-European countries. The trade was obviously illegal, but still the beta was selling itself pretty well. It started to disappear soon after the retail version release.

Reception

VG Reviews
state = collapsed
EuroG = 10/10cite web | url = http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=98 | title = Unreal Tournament PC Review | publisher = Eurogamer | first = Gestalt | accessdate = 2008-05-04 | date = 1999-12-04]
IGN = 9.6/10cite web | url = http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/160/160821p1.html | title = Unreal Tournament Review | publisher = IGN | accessdate = 2008-05-04 | date = 1999-12-06]
GSpot = 9.5/10cite web | url = http://uk.gamespot.com/pc/action/unrealtournament/review.html?mode=gsreview | title = PC Unreal Tournament Review | publisher = Gamespot | accessdate = 2008-05-04 | date = 1999-12-09]
GameRev = 9.1/10cite web | url = http://www.gamerevolution.com/review/pc/unreal_tournament | title = Unreal Tournament review for the PC | publisher = Game Revolution | accessdate = 2008-05-04 | date = 1999-12-01]
GSpy = 94/100cite web | url = http://archive.gamespy.com/legacy/reviews/unrealtournament_a.shtm | first = Fargo | title = Unreal Tournament review for the PC | publisher = Gamespy | accessdate = 2008-05-04 | date = 1999-12-01] |
compilation = yes|
GR = Mac: 96% (1 review)cite web | url = http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/576063.asp | title = "Unreal Tournament" Reviews (Mac) | publisher = Game Rankings | accessdate = 2008-05-04 ]
PC: 94% (22 reviews)cite web | url = http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages4/191945.asp | title = "Unreal Tournament" Reviews (PC) | publisher = Game Rankings | accessdate = 2008-05-04 ]
Dreamcast: 88% (23 reviews)cite web | url = http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/369548.asp | title = "Unreal Tournament" Reviews (DC) | publisher = Game Rankings | accessdate = 2008-05-04 ]
Playstation 2: 77% (46 reviews)cite web | url = http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/913963.asp | title = "Unreal Tournament" Reviews (PS2) | publisher = Game Rankings | accessdate = 2008-05-04 ]
MC = PC: 92/100 (21 reviews)cite web | url = http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/unrealtournament | title = "Unreal Tournament" (PC: 1999) Reviews | publisher = Metacritic | accessdate = 2008-05-04 ]
PS2: 77/100 (23 reviews)cite web | url = http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/unrealtournament | title = "Unreal Tournament" (PS2: 2000) Reviews | publisher = Metacritic | accessdate = 2008-05-04 ]
Dreamcast: 90/100 (17 reviews)cite web | url = http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/drm/unrealtournament | title = "Unreal Tournament" (Dreamcast: 2001) Reviews | publisher = Metacritic | accessdate = 2008-05-04 ] |
award1 = Computer Gaming World Game of the Yearcite news
title = GT Interactive and Epic Games Earn Coveted 'Game of the Year' Honors for 'Unreal Tournament'
pages = 1261
publisher = Business Wire
date = February 17, 2000]
award2 = GameSpy: Game of the Year
award3 = Gamespot: Action Game of the Year
award4 = CNET: Multiplayer Game of the Year
award5 = Macworld: Game Hall of Fame (1999)Citation
last = Breen
first = Christopher
title = Unreal Tournament (Software Review)
newspaper = Macworld
pages = 46
date=May 2000]

"Unreal Tournament" received wide critical acclaim from the press. Mainstream press reviews praised the graphics, gameplay, maps and multiplayer capabilities of the game. "Computer Shopper" concluded "Quake may have spawned the online deathmatch, but Unreal Tournament has taken it to the next level with its amazing graphics and fast-paced action. Online or off, this game rules!"{Citation
last = Vega
first = Peter
title = Unreal Tournament: A Blast That Will Last
newspaper = Computer Shopper
pages = 139
date=April 2000] In March 2000, Unreal Tournament was second on a list of best-selling games in "Computer Dealer News" trade magazine, behind Quake III Arena. [Citation
title = Off the Shelf Best Selling Titles.
newspaper = Computer Dealer News
pages = 43
date = March 10, 2000]

At Game Rankings, the Windows version of "Unreal Tournament" holds an average review score of 94%, making it the eighth highest rated Windows game released to date.
Gamespot praised "Unreal Tournament"'s graphics, noting "As good as the original Unreal looked, Unreal Tournament looks even better. The character models and skins look excellent, and there are quite a few choices to make when designing your character." Gamespot also praised the multiplayer gameplay, weapons and level design: "The first-person shooter genre is fiercely competitive. But Unreal Tournament rises above the rest with its solid multiplayer performance, from its good weapon balance to its great level design." The game was similarly reviewed by GameSpy, who concluded: "Unreal Tournament raises the bar for first person teamplay games. This game is stuffed with content and polished until it gleams."

The Macintosh version of "Unreal Tournament"' was equally praised. "Macworld" dubbed it the "Best network shooter for the Mac", and gave it the Game Hall of Fame award in 1999. In its review, Macworld editor Christopher Breen stated: "If the violence and hardware requirements don't unsettle you, you'll find Unreal Tournament nothing but unwholesome, bloody fun."

The Playstation 2 and Dreamcast releases did not fare as well as the PC versions. The PS2 version has an average review score of 77% at Game Ratings. GameSpy criticized the graphics of the PS2 version, saying "Graphically, the PS2 version of Unreal Tournament seems uninspired.".cite web
title = Unreal Tournament Review (PS2)
work = PlanetPS2 (GameSpy)
publisher = IGN
date = November 22, 2000
url = http://www.planetps2.com/features/reviews/nov00/unrealtournament/index2.shtml
accessdate = 2008-05-06] Its conclusion stated "Sluggish gameplay, somewhat washed out colors and textures". The Dreamcast version has an average review score of 88%. GameSpy's review said: "Well, believe it or not, there are lots of annoying features that drag the game down".cite web
title = Unreal Tournament Review (Dreamcast)
work = PlanetDreamcast (GameSpy)
publisher = IGN
url = http://www.planetdreamcast.com/games/reviews/unrealtournament/index2.shtml
accessdate = 2008-05-06] GameSpy cited both slow framerate speeds and low sound quality as problems with the Dreamcast version.

Competition

"Unreal Tournament" was played at the World Cyber Games in the years of 2001 [ [http://www.worldcybergames.com/6th/history/WCG2001/wcg2001_overview.asp WCG Official Website ] ] and 2002 [ [http://www.worldcybergames.com/6th/history/WCG2002/wcg2002_overview.asp WCG Official Website ] ] where the title was contended for in a "deathmatch" 1 vs 1 environment. This is where "UT" was played on an international scale, where players from all around the world went head to head to see who would be crowned world champion. [ [http://www.worldcybergames.com/6th/match_2002/full_league.asp?i_itemno=211&i_seq=1 WCG Official Website ] ]

Modifications

As "Unreal Tournament" is a popular game, many fans have taken the liberty of creating mods for the game. These range from slight changes on some aspects of gameplay (such as map voting) or to total conversions. One modification ChaosUT became popular enough that it was included with the 'Game of the Year' edition of the game, while Tactical Ops was released as a standalone retail product.

As with the original "Unreal", the ease with which players can create and release mods to the core game is a key factor contributing to "UT"'s longevity. "UT" improved upon the mod-friendly nature of its predecessor with support for mutators such as Sniper Arena, Instagib, JumpMatch, Low Gravity and more. Further, "UT" clans, or gaming teams, and a score of "UT" dedicated clan and fan community sites continue to sustain "Unreal Tournament"'s popularity years after its initial release.

Music

Listen
filename=Unreal Tournament music sample.ogg
title=Unreal Tournament theme
description=The Unreal Tournament theme music written by Alexander Brandon
format=OggThe soundtrack for the game was primarily written by Alexander "Siren" Brandon, Michiel "M.C.A." van den Bos, Andrew "necros" Sega, and Dan "Basehead" Gardopée, the same music artists who wrote the Unreal soundtrack, although only Brandon and Van Den Bos remained credited for it. The game (in contrast to Quake, which used CD audio) employed tracker music, which resulted in a considerably good sound quality with very little size trade-off.

Two additional tracks were contributed: one ("firebr.umx") by Tero "Teque" Kostermaa and Kai-Eerik "Nitro" Komppa, and one ("razor-ub.umx") by Peter "Skaven" Hajba. These, however, remained uncredited for reasons unknown—Hajba's credits are in fact still intact in the instrument data in the file itself, and the original version of Kostermaa's song is available from his website [http://teque.planet-d.net/mod/MULTI/KHARISMA.ZIP] , although there are various differences.

System requirements

VG Requirements
useminandrec=yes
caption=Official system requirements
platform1=Windows [cite web | url = http://uk.pc.ign.com/objects/010/010821.html | title = Game Details for Unreal Tournament (PC) | publisher = IGN | accessdate = 2008-05-05]
os1=Windows 95, 98, 2000 and NT4.0 or XP
cpu1=Intel Pentium 200 MHz
cpu1rec= Intel Pentium II 266 MHz
memory1=32 MB
memory1rec=64 MB
network1=Internet connection required for online multiplayer
hdspace1=120 MB of free space
hdspace1rec=605 MB of free space
platform2=Macintosh [cite web | url = http://uk.mac.ign.com/objects/013/013664.html | title = Game Details for Unreal Tournament (Mac) | publisher = IGN | accessdate = 2008-05-05]
os2=Mac OS 7.6 or higher
cpu2=PowerPC 603e 200 MHz or faster
memory2=64 MB
hdspace2=120 MB of free space

References

External links

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