.: Register | Login Now :.
 
Top Xbox 360 Game of February 2010?
Bioshock 2
Risen
Aliens vs. Predator
Dante's Inferno
 
 
 
    follow me on Twitter




    Unreal Tournament III - Review

    by Chad Grischow

    360 owners not familiar with the Unreal franchise but experienced in Gears Of War will feel right at home. The baddies look like Locusts with longer snouts and the heroes look like tattooed and pierced versions of Marcus Phoenix and 'Cole Train', with some feminine charm tossed into the mix. The game also has the same biting 'prison-yard charm' to the smack talk the characters spout at each other and the enemies. The levels themselves even look vaguely similar to the washed-out grey and brown landscape of the first Gears title, albeit with better design and variety. With how similar the games look to each other, comparisons are inevitable. Sadly, despite being the newer title, Unreal looks like the older of the two, and lacks the visual 'wows' Gears provided when released.

    This release marks the first time the franchise has offered a story, but Unreal has its roots so deeply set in the multiplayer world that they struggle to provide a decent one. While the campaign does not lack depth in terms of how long it will take you to conquer it, the flimsy story and the gameplay itself is disappointing. You are in charge of a small unit mounting an assault on the Necris, as well as other 'teams'. The levels are your opportunity to brush-up on your skills before taking on oxygen-breathing competition over Live, as each level is essentially the same you will face online. The start of each mission gives you a briefing that amounts to a lame excuse to play the online modes against bots. Unreal has an even less compelling storyline than Gears, if possible.

    They explain Capture The Flag by claiming that stealing their flags will shut down their 'respawners'; which is a whole other bit of hilarity on its own. Team Deathmatch contests are delivered with the concept that you just need to hold off the other team until they run out of respawns. The levels so mimic the online version of the game that you see a scorecard at the end of each, showing each npc's performance with your own, along with individual names for your enemies. The advantage of so closely shadowing the online modes is that the campaign serves as better training for the Live community than most titles.

    Thanks to some occasionally shoddy A.I., that training includes dealing with stupidity; a rampant issue in online games. Both your team and enemy computer-controlled characters seem to have lapses of intelligence in the midst of otherwise smart play. Your teammates will occasionally call out for help when there is nobody remotely close to them, and certainly no gunfire going off. It makes it hard to tell when your team is crying wolf versus when you really need to assist. You eventually learn to follow the action on the mini-map as a guide to the real action, rather than relying on the audible chatter. The enemy characters will occasionally stand still in one spot until you begin shooting at them, or just run away from your fire as if you are not shooting them. Since the A.I. is mostly solid, especially when covering the flag-carrier in Capture The Flag mode, it is a relatively minor complaint.

    The game occasionally awards 'cards' to give you an advantage in later battles. The cards are a nice boost, offering bonuses like additional members on your squad or offering additional health when you respawn. Once you earn a card, you have the opportunity to play it just before selecting your next mission. When played, cards are gone for good, so saving up the more powerful cards for the more difficult missions is a good idea. The game does an excellent job of balancing even the bonus cards, so levels never feel like a complete cakewalk, unless you ratchet the difficulty all the way down and play a powerhouse card on a simple level. It is entirely possible to loose a level where you played a card, if you do not play wisely.

    The biggest issue with the campaign mode is the use of 'respawners'. Early on, the story explains that 'war has not been the same since'. That is putting it lightly. They work much in the same way you are used to in an online multiplayer game, though it makes a little more sense in that context. In a campaign mode, it feels strange to have death no longer burden you as a deterrent for your stupidity. They keep you in a full-seed-ahead pace at all times, which keeps your heart pounding in an effort to get the objective completed first at all costs, but removes most of the strategy from the game. There is also an 'Instant Action' mode, though it is more of the same in a less-structured environment. You set these games up much in the same way you would set up a new online match, selecting the map and mode to play.


    page 1 2 


     
     
    Gameplay: 8.5 Graphics: 7.5
    Sound: 7.7 Controls: 9
    Replay: 8.4 Live Play: 9.1
     
     
    General rating:
     
     
     
     
    Related Games
    2010-10-01 Medal of Honor
    Publisher: Electronic Arts 
    Developer: EA Los Angeles 
    2010-09-07 Brink
    Publisher: Bethesda Softworks 
    Developer: TBA 
    2010-06-01 Singularity
    Publisher: Activision 
    Developer: Raven Software 
    2010-03-02 Battlefield: Bad Company 2
    Publisher: Electronic Arts 
    Developer: Digital Illusions 
    2009-12-01 Rogue Warrior
    Publisher: Bethesda Softworks 
    Developer: Zombie Studios 
    Related Articles
    2010-01-28 Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Multiplayer Demo is Now Online
    By: Eric Bush
    2010-01-26 Medal of Honor to Use Both Unreal 3 and Frostbite Engines
    By: Eric Bush
    2010-01-26 Bungie Releases 30 Direct-Feed Screenshots of Halo: Reach
    By: Eric Bush
    2010-01-25 Battlefield: Bad Company 2 - New Trailers and Screenshots
    By: Eric Bush
    2010-01-25 Just Cause 2 Pre-Order DLC Trailer Reveals Lots of Goodies
    By: Eric Bush
    Member Comment
    No comments have been posted for this article
    Register now to post comments on Planet Xbox 360. Otherwise please login.
     
     
    Unreal Tournament 3
    Publisher
    Midway 
    Developer
    Epic Games 
    Game Genre
    First Person Shoot... 
    Release Date
    2008-08-03 

    Silver
     
    total images available: 14
    08/02/10 BioShock 2
    02/02/10 Dante's Inferno
    30/01/10 Divinity 2: Ego Draconi...
    26/01/10 Mass Effect 2
    22/01/10 Dark Void
    .: Home| Contact Us| Advertise with Us| Terms and Conditions| Privacy Policy :.