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Product summary
Even without player-created content, the Xbox 360 version of this online shooter holds its own, providing plenty of slick, thrilling sci-fi action.
Specifications: ESRB: Mature; Genre: Action; Number of players: 1-2 Players See full specs
Price range: $38.99 - $59.99
Gamespot editors' review
- Reviewed on: 08/29/2008
- Released on: 07/07/2008
It might seem a little late to the party, but the Xbox 360 version of Unreal Tournament 3 proves that fast, furious online action, when done correctly, is timeless. Of course, it's a lot like previous games in the series: You'll cringe when you're stuck with the bio-rifle, celebrate killing sprees that come courtesy of the powerful rocket launcher, and memorize all the best vehicle spawn points. But whether or not you've played an Unreal Tournament game before, this sequel provides endless replay value and plenty of memorable, fist-pumping moments that will keep the adrenaline flowing.
In Warfare mode, the orb carrier can take a node instantly.
But the awesome action at its core doesn't make this version of Unreal Tournament 3 the best. Noticeably missing is the inclusion of player-created content, which greatly expanded the PlayStation 3 version's online possibilities and was (unsurprisingly) a central element of the original PC release. To help ease the blow, however, developer Epic Games has added a few new maps and local split-screen play. Local split-screen multiplayer is probably the most interesting addition, allowing you and a buddy to join each other in an online game or even play the single-player campaign together. Jumping into a vehicle in split-screen limits your viewing area a little more than you may be comfortable with, but the feature itself is a welcome addition that helps mitigate the missing user content.
That campaign isn't the scripted story mode you would expect from a single-player shooter, but it's a good way to get used to the maps and modes before jumping into the fray online. It is simply a series of offline matches in which you and your AI teammates take on another squad of bots. Thankfully the bots are actually pretty decent, particularly in Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch, though experienced FPS fans will want to ratchet up the difficulty level, since the standard setting is a cakewalk. There are some AI issues that crop up from time to time in the other modes, but for the most part, you can find some challenge in offline campaign and instant action matches.
But the bulk of your time with Unreal Tournament 3 will be spent online with like-minded fraggers, and the game offers some quality ways to make your opponents weep. This is the speediest, twitchiest first-person shooter available for the platform, and it controls well with a gamepad, even with it's keyboard-and-mouse roots. The star of the show is Warfare mode, which is a retooling of Unreal Tournament 2004's Onslaught. Here, you capture the nodes spread across the map in order to link them up with your enemy's base; once the base is vulnerable, your team must destroy the enemy's nuclear core to win the match. As it happens, the best of the new maps are Warfare levels: Cold Harbor, in which you gain control of mountaintop nodes in order to rain missiles onto the enemy's prime node, and Necris Downtown, which is jam-packed with the game's most unique vehicles. What makes the mode so exciting, and easily the best way of playing UT3, is that the action remains focused in just a few key areas at any given moment. Teams must be constantly on the move, adjusting tactics on the fly whenever a node becomes unlinked or the enemy captures a node that gives them access to vehicles that can only be found at that location.
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