Unreal Tournament 3 Comments by Kristan Reed

@all

you can choose to play on a server with or without keyboard support to make it fair.

i found when playing with pad against keyboard the advantage was not that great and barely noticable.

i have won many a round with pad on servers with both, but i cant be sure how many people were using the mouse!

@ParanoidZombie - Sorry but I loathed Gears of War's online mode; it's just so boring with just 8 players and it's slooooooooow! Co-op was cool though. I doubt I'll ever bother playing Gears 2 online, I'm only really interested in the single player and co-op.

thedudefather wrote: "would love to see how this would have went down if the 360 and ps3 versions reversed features..... "

Since the x360 version features a video of gears2, that would have been fun indeed...

@Darren: agreed that gears2 is not the same game at all (it has no vehicles, too), but you have to admit that this game will rule xboxlive from november on, and probably kill the x360 UT3 community in the process. Once again, that's why splitscreen was a much needed feature, and kudos to epic for being smart and making it happen.

edit: jamie_fear is no longer with us...

Wow the PS3 fanboys aren't happy
Yeah, we shake our fists at our keyboard and mouse support. We wail in agony at having mods available to us.

Wait. Oh, that's right. YOU FAIL IT. It rather seems the XBots are in full "it's not important" revisioning mode.

@seasidebaz

Indeed. I'm tired cos it's the end of my working day and felt that I asked a profoudly stupid question so took it down before anyone noticed.

Clearly I was wrong, lol.

Trouble with this game, Epic will drop all support after a month (see: Clan support in GoW... And Map Packs for that matter)

It also features a lack of mod support, which has always been integral to Unreal Tournament.

Without it, sorry to say this, it's just another generic FPS.

ut3- a barrel of piss to drown the UT franchise!

random quote from some guy who just played ut3 on pc when it came out - " i actualy threw up with rage and ran of a wall so hard in anger i nocked myself out!"

true story..

Great game... but I personally find Warfare utterly bewildering. Far too complicated.

@Darren

Gears of War was amazing fun online.The slower page of play made for a much more strategic experience compared to other shooters, and the weapons were always tremendously satisfying. Really, you're missing out of you skip GoW's online component.

Hang on. So people want to force everyone else to use controllers just because they don't wanna use a keyboard/mouse?

Because too many people would use keyboards and mice if they were allowed to, and therefore only playing against other people that wanna use the pad limits the number of games they can play...

Perhaps the fact that "too many" people would wanna use the keyboard and mouse setup invalidates your point and proves it's the better control system?

Despite not offering users the keyboard-and-mouse option offered to PS3 owners, Epic has conjured a control system which feels every bit as responsive and fast-paced as it needs to be for furious twitch-based gameplay.

lol

"But there's absolutely no texture pop-in to speak of, and a wonderful array of lavishly detailed environments to explore unfettered - something the PS3 struggled with even when you installed the game to the hard disk."

What on earth are they talking about, the PS3 version runs flawlessly, but I guess they have to get a dig in somewhere.

"Can you play split screen online?

Absolute deal breaker for me. "

Yes...

I bought this on PS3 import late last year (I've been an unreal fan up untill UT 2003, but didn't like the Xbox 1 one), and I must say: shitty singleplayer and dated multiplayer.

Nothing new, the vehicle levels pretty much all suck, and the balance in health items in way off. 80% of the time, you kill or two guys and then die when going for health items. Pretty too look at and fast as hell, but oh so boring.

EG, time to tighten up those reviews. Bad Company has a lame singleplayer and way too basic online mode (no clan options or provate rooms kill off teamplay, and thus also the use of tactics), and was certainly not an 8/10.

And this ain't either.


the first guy that starts a gaming website that is 100% independent, and has NO banners income from the gamesindustry, has got my vote. All other gaming press is f*cked.

I play it on PS3, always with k+m (I have a elevable table between my sofa and the tv) and my experience is that I can beat the A.I in "Masterful" in Duel in some maps with k+m, but with pad barely can beat it in "Skilled" (2 degrees down) even with the auto aim. So, k+m matters, matters A LOT. I don't understand how is the only fps with this support in PS3. Even with the separate rooms, is able to play with pads in k+m rooms, the guys with pads that play in that way usually find themselves torned into red clouds of meat, blood and bones.

About the game himself, is the best TDM and CTF game of the moment: furyusly fast, superb balanced weapons (I love the exquisite balance between all of them, all usables, since the Enforcer to the Flak, Bio Rifle, Shock...

Also the games has some of the best maps ever: Arsenal, Shangri La, Defiance, Sanctuary and the new version of Deck are awesome. Also, "Sentinel" is the best designed 1 vs 1 arena since Quake III and UT. In CTF I'm personaly in love with Strident, Vertebrae and Searchlight.

My only complain are two: the first one is that Warfare is not very innovative compared to Warfare, and in fact I prefer the old Warfare; the second one is the absence in oficial servers from Midway of the free maps from the bonus pack.

"Ah, it's an old school twitch shooter for the adhd kids. I get it. Well, I'll stay with the more tactical option."

Have you played Warfare?

It's fast AND tactical. I play FPS for adrenaline and excitement. UT3 is the closest thing we have to an online sport. If I wanted to slouch around and watch the good guy always win I'd watch a movie. UT is a game that gives power to the players ad treats us as adults.

If online is too hard for you, just play Instant Action, that's what I do and I suspect that it's a significant reason for the low numbers online people are complaining about; the bots are good enough that I personally, with slow internet, don't see the need.

@ziggysays

I bought the ps3 version and even with full HDD install you get texture pop in, all the time. Once it catches your eye its distracting as fuck.

A prime example is when you switch weapons on the move, the weapon model draws in fine but there is a noticeable delay before the detail textures apply. This problem is due to the Unreal engine and how it handles textures to keep frame rates up, normally due to a lack of video memory. You can see similar texture pop in on Mass effect on the 360 during closeups of the characters.

Also the online was shit on the ps3 you could never get a decent game as the servers were all running mods which you had to look for online. I posted the same stuff when I got ut3 months ago and at that time although the idea of mods was a good one the implementation was fucking abysmal. These are consoles not pc's.

I expect that Epic will due the usual and over the next few months there will be free map packs and probably free best of the 'community' map packs and mods to download on live.

Do yourself a favour, buy Orange Box instead. TF2 is MUCH better that UT3 plus you get a bunch of other AAA titles with it.

Marshall2008: I disagree. The pop up of textures only happens in the first 5 seconds before the game starts, and then all works nicelly, even with 16 players all vs all in small maps like Rising Sun. I hardly can see how can affect the gameplay since is matter of seconds to the system to load all the textures involved in a match.

And about the mods, you're clearly wrong: the official servers from Midway don't run mods -even not run the extra maps provided by Epic-, which means that all thepublic servers are running the same official contents, with the mods running only in matches started by players as server.

IMO this game has the better online in PS3, even when I must play in servers with big lag (300 ping or more) is easy to predict the ballistics of the weapons and to do a killing spree fest.

Edit: Dezm0nd TF2 looks and handles like a a slug compared to UT III. Is like riding a VW Beatle compared to a Bugatti Veyron, or better: compared to a Leopard II.

Keyboards suck!

I'm glad Microsoft stuck to their guns.

"the first guy that starts a gaming website that is 100% independent, and has NO banners income from the gamesindustry, has got my vote. All other gaming press is f*cked" "
dude, you're implying 360 bias in a site that has but Sony adds in it... funny. Anyway, do you consider for a moment, that perhaps for any technical reason (forget the emotion esoteric issues, for 2 secs) Unreal Engine can work better on 360 specs ?

i'm amazed that this warrants a new review on EG. It's the same game without K & M and no mod support... I think every 360 owner pretty much knew that already.

I wonder if they'll re-review Bioshock on PS3 when it comes out.

ThePissartist - doesn't care for keyboard/mouse and mod support.

ThePissartist - also doesn't care if people refer to him as a fanboy, at least he gets to play Unreal 3.

I was playing this last night. The 360 version looks and runs slightly better than the PS3 version with comparable loading times to the HDD installed version too. There IS texture pop in though, mostly after the level has loaded where it takes up to five seconds for them to appear, but I've also noticed them popping in on rare occasions while I've been playing despite what the EG review claims. Oddly the Character Customisation option is missing, which allowed you to mix-and-match your character's look from up to half a dozen items for helmet, chest, visor, etc. Dunno why they took that out, it didn't have anything to do with user-mods. This version also supports up to 16 bots for 17 player matches, one more than the PS3 version. This applies to online matches too so you can have 17 players. I played a couple of 14 player deathmatches online and it was impressively lag free and every bit as smooth as playing it offline with bots.

It's a great game, shame it tooks so damn long to arrive on the 360... and without user-mods.

"This is what happens when you put too many Voodoo 2 cards in the same room."


SLI MAN! SLI!

I'm going to 3dfx you up!

Comparisons & Analysis

Graphics:

The PC and Xbox 360 versions easily have the best graphics. The Playstation 3 has the worst graphics.

Customization:

Xbox 360 doesn't have the customizable map stuff that the PC and PS3 versions do. Let's be realistic, though; 99% of the customizable stuff people make sucks.

Maps:

Xbox 360 version has five new maps that are pretty cool

Split-Screen:

The Xbox 360 has a Split-Screen mode not found in the PC or PS3. If you don't have access to the Internet, this automatically makes the Xbox 360 version the best.

Controls:

PC and PS3 let you use a keyboard if you want to, Xbox 360 doesn't. I supposed I can understand Microsoft's logic of not letting people use customizable stuff on Xbox Live, but not letting people plug a USB Keyboard and Mouse into the system is inexcusable. The good news is that the Xbox 360 controller works a LOT better than the PS3 controller for playing Unreal Tournament 3...so, if you are one of the many people who like a controller better than a keyboard, you will be very happy.

Price:

The PC version was always the least expensive. The Xbox 360 and PC versions are more expensive than the PC version.

Bottom Line:

The PC version was released first. The PC version has the best graphics. The PC version has the most customizable options. The PC version even costs the least amount of money! Obviously, the PC version is the best. The only way a person with PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 would decide not to get the PC version would be if they wanted to play the game in a split-screen mode, which is provided in this Xbox 360 version.

"The only way a person with PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 would decide not to get the PC version would be if they wanted to play the game in a split-screen mode, which is provided in this Xbox 360 version."

Nope. Got a reasonable PC and 360+Wii but I do my gaming on consoles, apart from WoW. I just don't like PC gaming, it's antisocial.

Its never too late too care for a fantastic game like this. The achievements will take a hell of a lot of time though. Thats okay when the game is as good as this. I need no other online shooters until Gears 2 arrives. Campaign mode is actually very entertaining in Coop.

@farticusmaximus - I've got to agree with you there. I have a PC capble of running UTIII at 1680x1080 at 30 fps but I oped for the console versions because (a) I enjoy lazing around in front of a big HDTV with surround sound; and (b) I really don't mind playing FPSs with a controller anyway. Of late I've really gone off gaming on my PC, apart from the odd game like World of Warcraft, the whole experience just doesn't compare with consoles at all in terms of enjoyment and ease of use.

Before the PC crowd jump up and down, I'd just like to add that that's my own personal experience of gaming and does not apply to everyone, etc, etc, etc, names changed to protect the innocent, etc, etc, no animals harmed in the making of this post, etc, etc.

I tend to prefer the isolation of my PC room when playing WoW, but when on my consoles I prefer downstairs on the TV with friends or chatting with my girlfriend.

EDIT: Who am I kidding.. 'being chatted to by' my girlfriend, not 'chatting with' as there is no way in hell I'm getting a word in edgeways if she notices my concentration is weakened by the console.. ;)

"Do yourself a favour, buy Orange Box instead. TF2 is MUCH better that UT3 plus you get a bunch of other AAA titles with it."

Sorry but TF2 is about the worst online game I have played in the 14 something years that I play online now.

"I was playing this last night. The 360 version looks and runs slightly better than the PS3 version"

As expected. Dont worry though PS3 owners its only slightly this time.

@Farticus
A word I very rare use but LOL. Knowing aforementioned girlfriend the edit is very apt. :D

Actually a little birdie told me that Microsoft just retired the guideline that forces developers not to support keyboards...

How soon before they release an update that allows the player to use a mouse in conjunction with the already supported USB Keyboard?

Food for thought?

Personally I don't mind people using K+M and if I was seriously competing when I played FPS games I would definitely use them. However, it is merely a matter of comfort (I prefer using my thumbs to fingers) and that there is something that just feels right about using controllers.

I'd watch this space for more info on whether Microsoft plan to support this or not, could happen.

Its funny. Ppl that found out games purely out of a Nintendo to a PlayStation in best case is all of a sudden capable of whining for a keyboard/mouse support on a console... Its really funny actually. The best FPS they ever played was the crapy Medal Of Honor with a PS controller which was pathetic. And now they want a Keyboard/Mouse to play their FPS as a standard? rofl.I mean ok to be sking for that option but bicthing about it when some just woke up into the real gaming world is stupid just to prove a point or their advantage on their PS3 or whatever. Ur hardcore FPS gamer and you SO need a mouse to play ur fucking game? then prove it on ur computer. Not on a damn console. Buy u a Razer and a damn keyboard that u find more comfortable for ur PC and play. If not go play ressistance on ur fucking PS3s with the controller cause thats how it goes. THOSE are meant to be played with a controller anyhow. Lame ips intriging new gamers to the kind. I'll play a couple of times UT on my xbox. but if i wanna enjoy it hardcore ill log in with my PC copy. its that simple.

And dont tell me about "why buying both versions?" well that was my choice. YOU go buy it just for the PC then if thats ur issue, really. Cause also saying u expect ur loving PFS games to be ever better on ur console is also a lie. So you OUGHT to have a good enough rig to run ur fps games. Am I wrong? Nope... At least thats how i see it. So... I rate this game at its max for a CONSOLE game. Not as a PC FPS... If you know what i mean. - Auros

Wow the PS3 fanboys aren't happy
Yeah, we shake our fists at our keyboard and mouse support. We wail in agony at having mods available to us.

Wait. Oh, that's right. YOU FAIL IT. It rather seems the XBots are in full "it's not important" revisioning mode.

PS3 fanboys, xbots. Did I just walk into playschool? Sometimes being into games depresses me....

the first guy that starts a gaming website that is 100% independent, and has NO banners income from the gamesindustry, has got my vote. All other gaming press is f*cked

I think Giant Bomb might turn out to be pretty trust worthy, maybe. Also Ars Technica reviews. Being a tech site they have little to no games related advertising. No scores either. Awesome

[i]Nope. Got a reasonable PC and 360+Wii but I do my gaming on consoles, apart from WoW. I just don't like PC gaming, it's antisocial.[/i}

Anti-social, yet you play WoW... Anyway, bloody stupid argument. Im willing to bet the majority of gamers probably spend the majority of their playing time alone. Or at best online, which is no different to playing on a PC online.

"the first guy that starts a gaming website that is 100% independent, and has NO banners income from the gamesindustry, has got my vote. All other gaming press is f*cked" "
dude, you're implying 360 bias in a site that has but Sony adds in it... funny. Anyway, do you consider for a moment, that perhaps for any technical reason (forget the emotion esoteric issues, for 2 secs) Unreal Engine can work better on 360 specs ?

nope, I'm not implying bias in either way. EG switches sides every week anyway, just to get more hits from fanboys defending their side. It's just that games get way too high scores, and reviews don't mention tons of negative stuff. Just to keep the publishers happy, and secure their income.

Battlefield: Bad Company was no way an 8, and this isn't either. Not on 360, not on PS3.

Anybody getting network errors for this? I've never had a problem with my 360 before, but if I try to host a game, or start any new game, it throws an error up about port forwarding and DMZ servers. What the chuff's going on?

Just forward the ports.

Live ports;
• UDP 88
• UDP 3074
• TCP 3074

That or stick it in the routers DMZ. My mate had similar problems with Halo 3.

@GamerG
"I gave up PC online gaming because I was never sure if I was losing because a) the other guy was cheating or b) the other guy had better equipment than me be it, a better mouse, a better processor, a better G/card etc. "
Or c) you suck.

i just think games have moved on from this. I used to love UT back in the day, but to me there is just not enough substance to keep my interest up, that and the fact that there is no assault which in my eyes was always the best game mode by far.

May be worth a rent in the long endless summer of no release.

I had this on the PS3 and it was good but i got it for the 360 at the weekend and it runs a whole load better. smoother and less lag. so what it dosnt have mods but i dont care.

Agreed. The 360 version of UTIII runs noticeably better than the PS3 version. There's also substantially less screen tearing too plus, subjective I know, it plays much better with its controller. There's just about enough improvements to make up for the lack of mods but one can hope that Epic will at least release some free maps for the game to compensate.

yep defo much better on 360, which is weird because I thought when a game was ported to a system it is supposed to make it worse rather than better?

"yep defo much better on 360, which is weird because I thought when a game was ported to a system it is supposed to make it worse rather than better? "

It was never ported... the 360 version as way ahead of the PS3 version in the dev cycle, but then Epic stopped in because they didnt want to launch close to Halo 3 and they thought they had found a hole in the PS3 FPS market.

Anyway... are there a lot of people playing? That would be a decider for which version I guess for many people.

@Dizzy

Theres actually alot of people playing this on the 360 at the moment. Finding games is easy and fast wich is very important for an online game.

I hope the xbox never supports mouse control. I will quite happily eschew a slightly more accurate control system for kicking back in my living room with a control and relaxing.

I heard mods will be coming, after "quick" certification from MS, they'll be available in the Downloadable content section.

The lack of Assault and Bombing Run is a huge minus for this, though. I hope we can get those as downloadable content soon.