Unreal Tournament 3

You know that feeling when other consoles get that amazing console exclusive that you are dying to play but cannot since you don’t own that particular console? It hurts, doesn’t it? What hurt Unreal Tournament fans was the sting of being left out of Unreal Tournament III that debuted on the PlayStation 3 and the PC a year ago. Well, it’s better late than never and finally the Xbox 360 gets a good taste of the highly-addictive shooter sure to light up Xbox Live for a long time to come.

Xbox owners are not new to the Unreal games seeing as Xbox Live gamers have been diving into 2002’s Unreal Championship and 2005’s Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict. It’s great to see the Unreal Tournament series back to the basics and on the PS3, it brought all the elements that made the series such a smashing success on the PC.

The game, of course, comes with a single-player Campaign mode that actually contains something of a story. While Campaign doesn’t weave an intricate and deep tale, Unreal Tournament III contains a somewhat interesting plot nonetheless. A human settlement is viciously attacked by an alien race known as the Necris and a war is sparked. Among the human survivors are James “Reaper” Hawkins and his feisty sister Sarah “Jester” Hawkins who join Team Ronin to destroy the Necris and their leader known as Akasha. In order to exact vengeance, Reaper is sent into hostile enemy territory that is designed as a battle arena. In order for Team Ronin to continue the battle, you must win against various other teams as well.

Of course, Campaign mode plays like the multiplayer portion with computer-controlled bots taking the place of real players. Players control Reaper while the AI controls your two other comrades such as Jester and the Bible-quoting Bishop. The only thing that makes you feel like you’re playing a story-driven game are the beautifully handled cut scenes and the fact that your teammates will chime in now and then during a match. Other than that, you’re basically going up against bots in various arenas throughout the globe. You are offered a few advantages during Campaign that come in the form of “cards” you earn along the way that tilt the match to your advantage by adding extra firepower for your team or removes an opponent’s teammate from the lineup. There are also side objectives tossed in to keep things interesting.

Campaign as well as the Instant Action mode simply serves as training for the online portion seeing as the entire available game match types are featured. Aside from Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch, there is also Capture the Flag and Vehicle Capture the Flag. Accompanying these four match types is also Warfare and even a match type called Duel that pits you against a single opponent. Warfare is, by far, the most challenging of the match types seeing as the objective is to damage your opponent’s base by destroying its vulnerable core before your enemy destroys your own base.

Making a return are vehicles that range from tanks, hover vehicles and even aerial fighter planes. On the Necris side, there is the impressive and massive Necris Darkwalker that looks somewhat like the alien invader vehicles from the remake of War of the Worlds. Vehicles add much to battles and there is also the option to bum a ride from companions driving one when hover boards become available. Even the weapon variety is excellent whether you like sharp shooting with sniper rifles or blowing enemies to pieces with a rocket launcher.

The Xbox 360 gets the five new maps that were made available for the PS3 via download and they’re actually good maps that work well with the different game match types. There are also new characters to use in the game, although these characters don’t play a big role during Campaign. As far as the controls are concerned, Unreal Tournament III feels right at home on the 360 and this is good news for first-person shooter fans new to the series. This game is actually easy to get into right away, which is perfect for online play.

Speaking of online, the game flows nicely without a dip in the framerate. Up to 16 players can take each another on System Link or via Xbox Live but there is also the option of playing against a friend or with them via co-op. New to the Xbox 360 version is the fact that you can play the game using split-screen … that, sadly, was an option missing on the PS3.

On the graphics front, Unreal Tournament III looks spectacular. The maps are quite striking and the level of detail is wonderful enough to make them stand out. The character design is also a nice touch and up close they really fit in with the striking environments. Through the cut scenes in Campaign, the characters really are impressive … although Reaper must have been separated at birth from Gears of Wars’ badass, Marcus Fenix. Even the visual effects are gorgeous.

The sound is a bit of a letdown but this is not to say that it’s bad. There’s a dramatic score in this game that is militaristic in nature and goes well with the theme. I would have loved to hear it a bit more during Campaign matches but that’s Ok. At least Campaign contains some solid voice acting from all the characters including Akasha. Sometimes, during matches, you’ll hear the same pre-set phrases and that gets a bit irritating. As for the sound effects, they’re quite good.

Despite its late arrival on the Xbox 360, Unreal Tournament III brings its wonderfully refreshing and action-packed goodness for Xbox Live. There are a few new maps and characters to use but the game could have used more console exclusives such as new game modes. While the single-player Campaign mode isn’t particularly deep, it compliments the great online portion well enough and thus making this a package well worth buying. 

Gameplay: 8.5
The series feels right at home on the Xbox 360 and the solid controls prove it. While the single-player game is nothing more than training for the online game, there’s still something to like about the story. Online is where the action is and where you will be spending a lot of your time.

Graphics: 9.0
What was a stunning-looking game on the PS3 is a gorgeous one on the Xbox 360. Everything from the character models to the maps will not fail to impress and the dazzling visual effects light up the screen perfectly.

Sound: 8.5
The game’s score is intense and riveting to the point that you’ll wish you heard it more during the matches. In the single-player game, the voice acting is actually really good and helps the bot matches feel less … mechanical.

Difficulty: Medium
Campaign is actually very challenging since the bot AI isn’t dumb at all. You’ll find yourself really on your toes in single-player while online all depends on your opponent’s skills.

Concept: 8.5
The new maps and characters are great additions but the real advantage over the PS3 version is the split-screen feature. The action is fierce online as well as off and there are some cool vehicles that spice things up nicely. Too bad the match customization options of the PS3 version are a no-show.

Multiplayer: 9.0
Online the multiplayer game runs smoothly even with up to 16 players on screen at once. There is co-op and you can go up against a friend via split-screen. Add System Link fun and you have yourself an action-packed LAN party on your hands.

Overall: 8.5
A true frag fest that is destined to become a classic among UT fans, Unreal Tournament III is far from perfect but still a seriously enjoyable online shooter for the Xbox 360. While the game isn’t big on new content, it’s great to see this third installment of the Unreal Tournament on Microsoft’s console.