Verdict: M, M, M, MONSTER KILL!
Creating a sequel to a game that's arguably one of the best multiplayer first-person shooters of all time - Unreal Tournament - was a mammoth task and, until now, Epic Games never quite managed it. Unreal Tournament 2003 was disappointing in almost every level, and while UT 2004 made up for UT 2003's shortcomings, it fell short of recreating the original UT magic.
With Unreal Tournament 3, the developer has gone back to basics. While other games have evolved into more structured, intelligent and slightly slower-paced affairs (Call of Duty 4 is a textbook case), Epic has stuck with the time-honoured formula of relentless frag-till-you-drop style, in which lightning reflexes and marksmanship separate the men from the dead.
Although you can proceed straight into multiplayer, it's advisable to run through the single-player campaign first. This isn't to say that the plot is any cop: the storyline, replete with tales of warfare and revenge, is far-fetched in the extreme. Not least because you keep coming back from the dead and repeatedly blowing apart your sister in the opening map, which is wrong on so many levels. However, the single-player campaign introduces you to each of the different game types, maps and weapons at
a sensible pace. In essence, it's a cunningly disguised tutorial; essential if you want to avoid becoming frag-fodder the second you go up against human opponents online.
The game modes have been consolidated into three main types - Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, and Warfare. While the first two modes are self-explanatory, the third kind needs a little more clarification. Much like the Assault missions of the original UT, this game mode requires you to capture a series of victory points before making a move on the opposition's main base. You can, of course, also take a detour and capture side locations, which unlock bonus goodies (such as spawning one of the Necris vehicles) and can turn a losing battle on its head.
The weapons will be familiar to fans of the series: the sniper rifle, Bio Rifle and Redeemer all make an appearance, and even the Impact Hammer returns after an eight-year absence. There's also a wide range of vehicles and aircraft that you can use during a battle, some of which would look more at home in 'War of the Worlds'. Players also carry a hoverboard that can be used to rapidly cross the battlefield (although you're defenceless while travelling this way).
All this is wrapped up in the unimaginatively named Unreal Engine 3 (the engine behind both BioShock and Gears of War). In short, the visuals are pretty jaw-dropping (for a first-person shooter, that is) and you're likely to be fragged a few times while gawping at the views.
The trouble is that while in some ways, the game has come a long way since UT 2004, in other regards, it's also stood still.
Basically, the developer has taken all the best elements of the original UT and served up a cocktail of old-school delights. However, with many other games heading towards a slower, more suspense-orientated theme, it's this retro style of play that gives UT3 its appeal, making it a relentless, addictive and enjoyable first-person shooter, served with lashings of eye candy. Unstoppable!
