To start things off, a brief introduction with those unfamiliar with the title or its predecessors. Back in 1999, Epic Games produced a follow-up to their 3D shooting epic Unreal that was meant purely for multiplayer. In fact, the concept started off that it would be an expansion, but as things go going the creators saw potential for so much more. Thus the first Unreal Tournament was born, and it completely revolutionised the 3D-shooting world. Not only was it a fantasic game right out the box, with beautiful graphics, fantastic sound, unique weapons, varied and interesting environments that not only looked great but were well-designed and several modes, but it featured some of the best AI bots to challenge a person, and customisation so far up the wazzoo you'd lose sight of it. The engine that made the game came with it, allowing users to make their own content such as custom maps, skins/models, voice packs and mods to a degree not seen before... and quite frankly I have to say since either. That's why I personally consider it to be the greatest game of all time so far: it had so many options and ways to customise even as a vanilla game, but opened up into unlimited possibilities.
Several years later a sequel game out: Unreal Tournament 2003, which was kind of a beta game to be honest. It tried some new things, players reacted both positively and negatively to them, and then a year later the formula was tweaked and altered according to what players had said to produce Unreal Tournament 2004, which was pretty much the same game but with lots of extras and tweaks, including vehicles. Now one of the things that several die-hard UT fans thought was lacking in 2003 was the variety of options. Quite frankly, things were trimmed down. Many things were added and/or restored in the 2004 version of the game, and despite being a fantastic game when it came to actually playing it, the whole thing never felt quite as open and inviting when it came to customisation as the original. Nonetheless, it did become the best multiplayer shooter to grace the PC since the original, with the newer modes (particuarly the vehicle ones) providing a more than entertaining romp. If you want a fast, action-packed frag-fest with vehicles, UT2004 is the shooter for you.
Now, we finally have what is considered to be the third game in the series. Like the others, the graphics are absolutely amazing. One of the things that Epic really excelled at that few other makers of 3D shooters have is making a lot of unique and interesting environments that remind you of other things, but at the same time have their own identities. They draw you in, and one of the things that makes them so great is the added stuff the levels have that aren't really needed, but just seem cool and make things more real. In a slower-paced game they might seem a little more important, but the UT games are beyond fast when you're into them, and as a player you rarely have time to take in the beautiful scenery when things seem to be going 1000 miles an hour. All the same, be it spaceships or asteroids flying by, waves crashing up onto the beach or a series of images flashing by on screens, they're there and they bring the maps alive. Add to that neat touches like maps with flooding, power surges, huge traps, and random avalanches and sandstorms and you have some brilliant surprises.
Of course, one has to be able to run the game to be able to get this, and while Epic made sure to give as many computer owners as possible a chance to play the game, you do need a fairly beefy machine to get the best out of it. For one, it recommends you have a Dual Core Processor of at least 2.4 gHz, as well as at least 1GB RAM and a GeForce 7800 Graphics Card or better. Thankfully I exceed all those requirements, and I must say that even I am surprised at how smooth and fast the game runs considering how good it looks. I thought it might hitch or lag now and then, but even with a map filled with 16 players and vehicles everywhere it remains smooth and lightning fast. I wouldn't want to try running it with the same specs on Vista though
The weapons here are generally excellent too, and harken back to the original in some ways. The Impact Hammer and Enforcers --missing from 2003 and 2004-- are back again, and the Sniper Rifle has made the lightning gun obsolete. The Shock Rifle is not only back, but I think it's at its best yet. The Link Gun (originally the Plasma Rifle) returns, once again charging nodes and repairing vehicles, but it's been weakened. I approve though, as the 2004 version was a little too grunty. The Bio-Rifle is back, and as if to compensate for the Link Gun is actually more powerful. There's no Ripper sadly, but the Flak Cannon and Rocket Launcher return. I have to say though, the former is a little too weak and slow at firing, and with the Assault Rifle replaced by the Enforcer again having the Rocket Launcher the same as it's UT2004 counterpart means the lack of a really good grenade option now. The Sniper Rifle is also slower to fire, but seems to have more kick, even if it shoots a red streak that gives away your location. Overall, the weapons are a mixed bag, but overall are quite satisfactory.
The vehicles are really neat, I must say. Most of the lineup from UT2004 returns, but the neatest addition has to be the new Necris vehicles. They range from bikes that Batman would envy and a ball-like spider thing (that's hard to describe beyond basically being a ball with three long legs that can climb about the scenery) to gigantic War of the Worlds-esque tentacled walking death rays and stealth tanks. The ball spider thing has little offensive power, but can retract its legs so you can roll about the map, while the bikes can briefly fly and then be fired into enemies like a missile. The giant walkers, while slow, are basically a huge machine of death that literally scare the hell out of you on some occasions, while the stealth tanks can turn invisible, and while lacking any direct firepower can drop mines, shields and a neat giant cube that slows down anything that passes through it. There are other Necris vehicles, as well as the human ones, but those are the most interesting of them. I approve of pretty much all the changes made with regards to these instruments of destruction.
The sounds are fantastic. There are great homages to the music of the original game, which will become quiet and slow or fast and loud depending on how much action is going on, and the announcements and sound effects really do get your adrenalin pumping. The voice-acting of the characters varies though, and it's probably a little weaker in some cases than the previous games. While more is good, some lines just sound a little forced, and some are just simply too lame and cliched. I have to say the sound department also suffers due to a lack of choosing voice-packs or any varied announcers. There's also no mp3 player option like there was in UT2004.
The maps and modes a pretty good. Standard and Team Deathmatches are there, as is Capture the Flag. The two new modes in this version are Vehicle CTF and Warfare, and I have to say... they are incredibly fun, mainly because that's where the vehicles come in. Vehicle CTF is pretty much self-explainatory, and Warfare is like UT2004's Onslaught mode mixed with Assault. Basically, two teams try to capture power nodes which link to their bases which have a power core. Once a path through the nodes is made to the other team's core, they can damage it, and the first team to reduce the other's to 0 out of 100 wins. That's the basics of it, but there's more to it than that, especially with the orbs you can collect to instantly take a power node or defend it more. It's great fun, and requires a great deal of tactics. And the new hoverboard that allows you to travel around the map faster (but without weapons) is a fantastic addition that stops the frustrations of being too slow happening.
Unfortunately, there's no Assult or Domination modes of any king, and Bombing Run is also absent. Add to that the fact there's no many maps and the variety just doesn't seem to be there. Also, don't even ask about the Single Player campaign in this game... it's beyond a joke.
AI is good. The bots are nice and smart, and they will actually act with more intelligence now in the more complicated team games than they did in UT2004. The downside is there aren't many options, and while one can now customise their bots more than in UT2004 by adding varied choices of armour, there aren't enough choices to really give a good amount of decent customisation.
The gameplay itself is fantastic. It's faster than ever, harkening back to the original after its sequels felt a little more casually paced and floaty. Not much more to say really, there simply isn't a dull moment unless there's only a few bots on a large map.
Now, I'm going to finally get to the main point, which may have become evident from some of the points I've made so far. As far as being a game goes... as far as gameplay itself is concerned, Unreal Tournament III is nothing short of fantastic. It's pretty, it's loud, it's fast, it's intelligent and it's insanely fun. It is still the thinker's 3D shooter in every way, while also just being the mindless frag-fest, depending on what you want. If this were called something else, it would quite simply rule.
However... as fas a being an Unreal Tournament game goes, it feels a bit anaemic. Sure, the variety and unique locations are still there, and the weapons and vehicles are varied and all useful, but the options are just, well... not there. Compared to its predecessors the maps count is low, the game modes have been slashed, the races/clans and options with bots/characters are greatly diminished, there's practically no sound options be it announcers, voice packs or music, etc. Quite frankly, it feels like half a game. Sure, a lot of this stuff will be added by modders and the like, but the fact is the game shouldn't be this bare bones. The original is coming up on 10 years old, and it had twice as much of almost everything, as did its sequel. For a game to come out --as fun as it is-- in 2007 and be this limited is one thing, but when it's got so much to live up to it just seems a waste. Almost an insult, in fact. I can't help but wonder if this stems from something to do with it becoming a console game soon too, with PS3 and XBox 360 variants coming, because it almost does feel like it's a console port like the Halo PC conversions rather than being a big open PC game with options consoles could only dream of.
Overall, a great game, let down by the options simply being a pale shadow of its predecessors. Whether you should get it is up to you. It really depends whether you'd rather have a Ferrari Enzo that looks and runs like a dream, but has no boot, back seat or extras, or you'd like a nice reliable Honda Accord that can give you a large boot, fold-down rear seats, power windows, GPS, a DVD player, etc. To be honest, if you're after a 3D multiplayer shooter, and you don't have any of the UT games, I'd recommend picking up the Unreal Anthology instead, which is half the price and includes Unreal and Unreal 2 as well as the original and 2004 UT games. There's far more hours of gameplay there, that's for damn sure. If you're still interested in this, particuarly if you own the others already, then I'd suggest maybe trying before you buy, or simple waiting for the price to drop.
Graphics: 9.5/10 - Looks amazing, with fantastic detail and lighting.
Sound: 7/10 - Voice acting is sometimes iffy, but the rest is solid and very fitting.
Playability: 9/10 - Plays like a dream. Extremely fast and fun.
Lastability: 5/10 - A lack of options puts this factor squarely on whether Epic release an update as well as the modding scene.
Overall: 7/10