Unreal Tournament 2004 Goes Gold

psyco484 writes "Unreal Tournament 2004 has gone gold, the game will be in stores on March 15th. After an impressive demo, I'm certainly looking forward to this one." There are several improvements over UT2003, but my favorite is the ability to carry dual assault rifles.

Vehicles

[wed128]

The vehicles in the Onslaught mode have to be the coolest addition ever!!!

Re:Vehicles

[GrodinTierce]

I quite agree. While UT2004 certainly isn't the first FPS with vehicles, nor does it have the huge collection of some games (e.g. BF1942 and/or DesertCombat), its vehicles [unrealtournament.com] are well-designed, well-balanced, and so much fun, it's kind of ridiculous.

Re:Vehicles

[nukem1999]

And most other games' vehicles don't have horns that play La Cucaracha(Manta) and Dixie(Scorpion) :)

Re:Vehicles

[Snaller]

But some of the cars in DesertCombat play Iraqi folk music!

FYI

[MachDelta]

Just FYI, the Raptor vehicle (no relation to the UT2004 Raptor) in Unreal 2: XMP plays Dixie too if you get airborn with the boosters (and hit the horn). :)
I loved watching that thing come flying over a hilltop with fire streaming out the vents playing that cute little tune. It was hillarious, right up until the point that it smacked into you, chewwed you up in the grinders, and spit your gibs out the same vents.

Re:Vehicles

[InShadows]

If you press semicolon ( ; ) while driving a vehicle it will play the horn! There is a different horn sound for each vehicle.

Also, if you bind a key to 'playvehiclehorn 1' it will play a second, slightly more funny horn for each vehicle. Do that by entering:

set input "key" playvehiclehorn 1

At the console, where "key" is whatever key you want to bind it to.

Re:Vehicles

[hype7]

and what's more, Mac and Linux versions are following right behind.

The way all games should be developed. Kudos to Epic/Atari.

-- james

Re:Vehicles

[Anonymous Coward]

The beauty of the unreal engine is all 3 are developed in tangent because UT uses OGL in Linux and OGL.

Yes I know the pros of using DX as the windows based render (there are hooks in it to take advantage of DX9...but the game doesn't show it now) but with opengl having shader support, I think they should return to OGL.

Just one mans uninformed, uneducated opinion.

Re:Vehicles

[SatanicPuppy]

Blizzard may not make Linux games, but the ones they do make run beautifully under Wine.

Re:Vehicles

[YOU LIKEWISE FAIL IT]

What is cooler still is that this philosophy goes all the way up the corporate tree. A while ago I wrote a letter to their support department asking about Mac ports, and I didn't get a friendly, personal letter confirming the Mac and Linux ports from some guy in the trenches, I got one from Mark Rein, Epics V.P.

A company whose big-wigs take the time to answer mail, and who understand the importance of supporting minor platforms is definitely a company I enjoy giving my money too.

Re:Vehicles

[Graff]

A while ago I wrote a letter to their support department asking about Mac ports, and I didn't get a friendly, personal letter confirming the Mac and Linux ports from some guy in the trenches, I got one from Mark Rein, Epics V.P.

A company whose big-wigs take the time to answer mail, and who understand the importance of supporting minor platforms is definitely a company I enjoy giving my money too.

Yep, my cash is going right to Unreal Tournament 2004 when it comes out and I'm doing the same to World of Wa

Re:Vehicles

[Geccoman]

Version 1 - Win/Linux
Version 2 - Mac

You're cool, don't cancel.

Re:Vehicles

[pcx]

Vehicles in UT2004 = hopping shotgun into a jeep driven by an insane pre-teen with no-motor control who makes a strategic decision to drive halfway across the map to an unlinked power node (the kind you can't attack) and makes the tactical calculation that if you smash the tank head on the jeep will be the winner.

What's amazing is that onslaugh is fun despite this :)

Re:Vehicles

[ErroneousBee]

Were you the one that went backwards, forwards, turned a bit, bumped into the gate post, realised they couldnt drive and ran away to join the battle on foot?

Next time I'll have a microphone, so I can try the 'Put it in gear, love. Now turn the wheel, bit more, bit more. Now go forward. STOP!!!' routine.

Re:Vehicles

[lewp]

Indeed. I have always been an Unreal hater, but I haven't touched CS since the UT2K4 demo came out. The sole reason for that is because of Onslaught. CTF and DM were done to death a long time ago.

Assault would probably be cool too, but I don't like the gimmick map they included with the demo.

Mantas rule.

Re:Vehicles

[zerocool^]

I totally agree; however, I do have a bone to pick with Onslaught, or mabey it's just the Torlan map.

Once you're losing, and you're down to your base and only one or two power nodes, it's damn near impossible to fight your way back. The vehicles are simply too powerful, and your base doesn't spawn the two most useful vehicles (the scorpion and the tank). And the ability to spawn at any power node you have captured means that even after you kill everyone rushing your base, they're right back there (they don't have to run across the playing field).

Needs tweaking, but inspite of the downfalls, I've been playing the crap out of it.

~Will

Re:Vehicles

[Sparr0]

This is the reason for the custom node link setup. Servers can link the nodes together however they want, the default setup is just a suggestion. Filter your server list for names containing "Custom" or "Customlinks" or "Custom Links" for a world of new fun. I find it much more fun when the bases link to the goliath nodes (the 'enemy' goliath node), then from there to other nodes. This ensures both teams have their tank almost to the end. Or when both bases are linked to TWO nodes, making it so much ea

Re:Vehicles

[Geccoman]

To add to your comment, I've found that the comeback is usually swift and painful for the other team. Every single time I'm able to take back those close nodes, we KILL the other team very quickly.

Re:Vehicles

[CaptnMArk]

I have noticed this too.

Re:Vehicles

[mcpkaaos]

God I admire you.

Re:Vehicles

[biglig2]

Yes, there's the truck with a big gun in back with a different name to the truck with a big gun in back in Halo, the floaty thing that leaves trails with a different name to the floaty thing that leaves trails in Halo, the tank with a different name to the tank in Halo, and of course the zippy hovercraft you run people over in with a different name to the zippy hovercraft you run people over in in Halo.

Mind you, the dune buggy with a flickknife on the door is new.

(BTW I do like the Onslaught Demo myself a

Re:Vehicles

[ShadowBlasko]

Agreed, with one exception.

*2* people take the Manta to node 3, at least. That way less of your crew has to walk. Just slam it down when you get in, and let them jump on the wings.

I've carried 4 on it, thats the most so far.

OTOH, one thing that annoys me is when people jump out of badly damaged vehicles up by the tank node, and jump in the tank, letting the manta or other vehicle coast into the bushes. As long as it is damaged, and not dead, it will *not* re-spawn back "wherever" you took it from for ano

Re:Vehicles

[Sigma 7]

They took out assault, fucked with the weapons, and even yanked the sniper rifle.

A sniper rifle by any other name is still a sniper rifle - even if it shoots lightning.

The lightning gun is a simple case of overcompensation - it was extremely overpowered in the first Unreal Tournament. As proof, play CTF-FacingWorlds against Godlike bots - it is no problem to enter a killing spree with 25+ kills.

In UT2003, it's much harder to do so on the same map (although it can be debated that the central Pyrmaid cu

Re:Vehicles

[Pxtl]

I liked the changes. The rocket launcher caused huge problems with its 5 loading in original UT. It made the assault levels totally circumventable by "launching" your teammates. It meant that it was by far the best weapon in any mode involving superscalar monsters. 3 missiles fit it back in the spread.

The ripper was stupid, so its gone. It was easier to kill someone by accident than deliberately.

The biorifle was underpowered. Its not anymore.

The flak cannon was overpowered. Its not anymore.

The al

Re:Vehicles

[RickL]

I rather liked the ripper. It wasn't terribly useful, and as you say, just as easy to kill teammates: friendly-fire friendly. I thought it was funny. I like my weapons to be funny.

What I really miss from the original UT is the secondary fire from the rocket launcher. Rather than rockets, it would launch grenades. These were really handy for firing around a corner. As much as I liked the number of rockets you could fire in the original UT, I agree that it was too powerful.

I hated the pulse guns in th

Re:Vehicles

[IamNotWitchboy]

UnrealScript ins incredibly modular and object-oriented. Implementing such mod would be extremly simple and you wouldn't have to touch a single line of OpenGL or C/C++ code even.

It would be a very interesting initiation to UnrealScript and would serve as a very educative experience. You should really try it

http://unreal.epicgames.com/UnrealScript.htm

Re:Vehicles

[RickL]

Ah yes, "pancake". For those who haven't tried it yet, the Manta is hovercraft of sorts. It usually flies just high enough to pass over people's heads. But then you can always suddenly descend..."pancake".

The announcer commentary is one of the things that makes UT series fun. It always makes me happy to be acknowledged for doing something nifty. Even if the acknowledgement comes from a computer. With the vehicles you get some new ones:

"pancake"
"Road rage"
"Vehicular mansaughter"
"Hit and run"
"top gun"

assault rifles

[xenocytekron]

Is it even possible to carry two assault rifles simultaneously in real life? sounds a bit heavy...

Re:assault rifles

[Ozone Depletion]

*looks at da govinator*

Re:assault rifles

[savagedome]

Is it even possible to carry two assault rifles simultaneously in real life?

Not the article but not even the Title now? I would have to say RFTT dude. Its Unreal Tournament ;)

Re:assault rifles

[NanoGator]

"Not the article but not even the Title now? I would have to say RFTT dude. Its Unreal Tournament ;)"

Uh.. pardon my naievness, but wasn't the reason it was originally called Unreal was that they excelled graphically in both hardware and software mode? I remember being quite surprised when I first got it. Even without a 3D card, they did some neat stuff that just wasn't being done at the time. It did look 'unreal'. I don't think the original reference was to the practicality of the game. Since this is a continuance of the franchise, I can imagine it's still meant in the same spirit.

But who knows, maybe I'm wrong. There's a couple of sides to this issue. On one hand, it has to be semi-grounded in reality. For example, it would be odd if you ran off a cliff, but didn't fall until you looked down in Yosemite Sam fashion. At the same time, though, how much fun would the game be if it was too realistic? I'd have a heart attack if I tried to run a short distance, heh.

There is a fine line there one must walk when designing a game like that. Afterall, if real life was so exciting, where would the game market be?

Re:assault rifles

[frankthechicken]

Is it even possible to carry two assault rifles simultaneously in real life?

It certainly is possible, much like the British SAS' much vaunted ability to fire a rocket at the ground, propelling themselves behind enemy lines.

In fact only the other day, I was walking around town, felt a bit short of cash, and decided to headbut a wall, and bounce a top several passerbys, earned a small fortune that day.

Re:assault rifles

[rholliday]

Man, I can't tell you how many times those floating stars have kept me from getting a ticket. So handy to just dive in an alley and make the police forget about you ...

Re:Stupid special forces tricks

[core plexus]

The very fisrt thing the instructor said to us in edged weapons class is never throw your weapon away. We learned how to anyway, as well as throwing scissors, letter openers, and other assorted items. It's pretty cool to throw something and see it sticking in the target, although in a real fight, you still have time to 'return the favor' before you bleed out, assuming the wound was even eventually fatal. In the movies, the Hero/Badguy can throw a knife and bury it to the hilt, but try it on a slab of unfrozen beef sometime, even try to stab it to the hilt. It's not easy, especially around the ribs, breast, or shoulder. Notice how hard it is to pull the knife back out? If it is one of those silly Rambo knives, the serrations will catch on ligaments and other parts. It's really more of a distraction. They actually sharpened the edges of the shovel, and were trained to use them in ways other than by throwing. Then again, we never got the chance to throw something when the target was shooting, or threatening to shoot, back. I'm pretty sure that would affect performance.

Back on the subject, you can fire 2 'assault rifles' or handguns at a time, but there's no need, and plenty of reasons not to. One rifle can lay down plenty of suppressive fire, and more accurately than trying to use up all your ammo in a display of firepower. The target will just keeps it head down til you're trying to clear a jam or reload, and put a single round where it really hurts. Or send out his buddy to flank you. Since you used up all your ammo, and your weapon it too hot to touch, he won't even have to throw his shovel at you.

-cp-

President Bush to Liberate Alaska [alaska-freegold.com]

Re:assault rifles

[Tim C]

No, you probably can't - and you certainly wouldn't be able to do that and carry half a dozen or more other weapons strapped to yourself, *and* run the entire length of the map at full speed, jump, or leap into the driving seat of a vehicle...

It's a *game*. It's meant to be fun, not ultra-realistic :-)

Re:assault rifles

[Moofie]

You will put a lot more rounds on target with one properly aimed weapon than with two shooting from the hip.

If you want suppressing fire, get a SAW.

It looks really nice...

[fidget42]

But I had a problem when I tried playing it at a resolution other than 1280x1024. I couldn't read some of the text (especially when trying to join an internet game). Another problem that UT2k3 had was the size of the maps. Even with a broadband connection, transferring a 10 MB map takes a looooooong time.

Re:It looks really nice...

[justMichael]

Unless they changed the server behavior they throttle map downloads.

Most places are urged to provide the maps on a standard web server.

Of course I haven't managed a UT2kx server so what do I know.

You are correct about maps

[Sycraft-fu]

The Unreal Engine, be it orignal, UT2003, modified, whatever, was made to host maps on a speperate server. The UT server itself will send maps and other files, if it must, but at the same max rate as whatever the max client data rate is. This is done so the server doesn't screw people playing because someone is downloading.

What you are supposed to do is setup a web server that holds all the maps, textures, sounds and such that you need. You then set a redirector in the UT config to the web server. When a client needs a file, they get sent there, which then proceeds to send at the maximum rate possible as ber HTTP.

An additonal advantage is that the HTTP redirect supports compression. You can zip up the files (50% size on average) with the UCC program. They then download compressed and decompress on the client side, saving bandwidth and time.

So if you run a UT server, of any version, host the maps on a web server and setup a redirect. It can be on the same physical hardware if you like, or a completely different host, whatever works. However don't have the UT server itself serve up the data, it isn't efficient.

Re:It looks really nice...

[big daddy kane]

Could be that you set your direct36 settings to max preformance, or set your textures too low, happened on me mates box, try nudging up the texture quality a bit and compensate with lower values on other settings, that should help some. Good luck!

Turn off "performance" DirectX options

[pslam]

But I had a problem when I tried playing it at a resolution other than 1280x1024. I couldn't read some of the text (especially when trying to join an internet game).

I had this problem but discovered it was because the display settings for my Ti4200 were at "performance" rather than "quality" (right click desktop, settings, advanced, directX, blah, blah). It's probably because fonts are treated just like textures and are reduced in resolution along with everything else. It seems to me there's no difference in speed between performance and quality settings, so it's no loss - and it looks way better anyway.

Hope that helps... it certainly had me puzzled for a while. I think they need to at least add this to the FAQ.

Going Gold

[Wexton]

sweet now it is gold, i wonder how long it will take for a full copy to be leaked, i give it 2 days.

Re:Going Gold

[NanoGator]

"sweet now it is gold, i wonder how long it will take for a full copy to be leaked, i give it 2 days."

Can't say that matters a whole lot to me. I tried to download GTA3 after I scratched the disc, ended up getting different games that were just renamed to GTA3. Fortunately for me, I found a used copy for reasonably cheap.

Frankly, I don't see what all the anti-piracy hype is about. If it's easier to just run down the street and buy the game than to wait all day to download and cross your fingers that it's a.) legit b.) works, then I don't see why the "you-cannot-backup-your-game" measures are all that necessary.

Re:Going Gold

[Zakabog]

I tried to download GTA3 after I scratched the disc, ended up getting different games that were just renamed to GTA3. Fortunately for me, I found a used copy for reasonably cheap.

So you just bought a game twice because you scratched a disk? I bought GTA 3 because I liked the game, I never bought a GTA game before that (downloaded them all, weren't worth the price, GTA 3 was deffinitely worth it) and I wanted to support rockstar since they made such an amazing game. BUT if I scratched the game, I wouldn

This is great! But not for the basic game

[ScottGant]

I can't wait now for Red Orchestra 2.0 using UT2004. Hopefully this will generate more intrest in this awesome mod.

But when I play it now, there's usually only one server with people playing on it. It's ashame because this is such a great game that tries to be more realistic. Like no floaty crosshairs, get shot with a bullet and you die...not 50 bullets while you jump around like a chicken.

It still needs work, but the guys making it are listening to the people playing it. And with ut2004 and all kinds of tanks sitting around, can't wait to see what they do with the new engine.

Re:This is great! But not for the basic game

[kryptkpr]

The reason is simple: Some people (like me) don't want realism.

The game is called UNREAL Tournament for a reason, and I'm glad the people who made it made it the way they did... I get enough realism at school, working my ass off in hopes of a future.. don't need any more realism then that thankyouverymuch.

I love the floaty crosshairs, impossible weapons, guided redeemer missles, and getting-pumped-full-of-led-and-not-caring-cuz-you- got-200-health-and-100-armor-in-an-800-health-tank ! It's a totally different world, and that's what makes the game so enjoyable.

Re:This is great! But not for the basic game

[Jaysyn]

Bingo! Stuff like ChaosUT [gamespy.com] and Unreal4Ever [planetunreal.com] are the reasons I *love* the UT franchise. The crazier the weapons the better. My absolute favorites are the proxy mines that talk smack to you while they hunt you down & the Quantum Singularity Generator (i.e. the Black Hole Gun).

Jaysyn

Re:This is great! But not for the basic game

[Cecil]

Chalk me up under the "hate videogame real-life-ism" tally.

That comes with a major caveat though: I think strongly that games have to at least be realistic within their own universe. It's one thing for the heavily armed and armored, trained for fighting, shieldpack-wearing ogres in Unreal Tournament to be able to take a chaingun barrage in the chest. It's what the game is all about.

It is not, on the other hand, acceptable for a bored civilian in Deus Ex 2 to be able to withstand a point-blank pistol blast to the head without even getting angry at me. Nowhere in the game's story did it suggest that humans had evolved metal skulls, or that the anti-gun lobby had gotten all firearms replaced with bb-guns.

Mac

[LittleLebowskiUrbanA]

With a demo already out, it looks like MacSoft will have this out for OS X almost at the same time as the PC version. Sweet.

hope they fixed the audio cpu usage

[green pizza]

I've been playing the UT2K4 demo on both Windows and Mac (yay PowerBook) and the community chatter is right -- disabling audio results in framerates jumping anywhere from 50% - 200% faster. I hope it's a bug and not just the base requirement for UT2K4 audio!

Which versions?

[Saven Marek]

This miht be a silly question, but is this a usual case of Windows version only without specifically mentioning it is?

Or are the Mac and Linux versions also gold? The article didn't specifically mention, but when that happens I usually suspect it referring to window's only

OSX desktops, hints and gaming [slashdot.org]

Re:Which versions?

[Anonymous Coward]

Linux binary will be included in the pc/windows package.

Naming Conventions...

[ItMustBeEsoteric]

I must admit, while I love the various flavors of UT, I dislike the naming convention. The same problem sports games have: once a year, they will seem out of date. They're basically making themselves stay on a once a year schedule: let's be real, how many gaming companies can do that (HL2, Doom 3...deadlines go to hell). And, unless there's actual changes, I would rather not buy a new version every year just to keep up with the online play (though I know you can always play the old versions). That said, I want this game. The vehicles are great, as is the gameplay and graphics in the demo.

Re:Naming Conventions...

[El]

They're basically making themselves stay on a once a year schedule Just like Microsoft! First there was Windows 95, then Windows 96, Windows 97, Windows 98, Windows 99, Windows 2000, Windows 2001, Windows 2002, Windows 2003... they haven't released Windows 2004 yet, and Windows 2003 seems SO dated!

I think we'll all forgive them if they skip a year or two.

Including Linux?

[JustinXB]

Will this be including the Linux version of the game, like 2003 did? Maybe they'll be nice to us this time and put a notice on the box stating Linux version included.

Re:Including Linux?

[vogel]

There is a penguin on the box this time around and a Linux32/64 bit installer on the CD/DVD. It's actually quite prominent as it's one of three files in the root directory - autorun.inf, setup.exe and linux-installer.sh :)

Big thanks to Ryan (http://tehgordon.com, he "loves" it when I post this link ;)) for making it happen in time for inclusion on the retail CD/DVD!

-- Daniel, Epic Games Inc.

Re:Including Linux?

[13Echo]

UT2004 has a lot of new game modes and features. In general, it's just a more polished version of UT2003 with new stuff. In addition, the OpenGL render on Linux is *much* more refined, and seems to run very well with videocards from nVidia and ATI alike. Most people experience substantial speed improvements over UT2003.

It's a better game. If you weren't quite sure about UT2003, suggest you try UT2004. It seems to be a good upgrade. I didn't buy UT2003, but I'll probably pick up this one, especially

A deeply disappointing game IMHO

[Andrew Price]

I absolutely loved Unreal and UT. UT2k3, Unreal 2 and UT2k4 were horrible for me. Nice graphics, utterly stupid gamplay. If you liked 2003, this game may appeal, otherwise a waste of d/l time. Call of Duty and ET are waay better, actually requiring some brain. Just my 2c

Re:A deeply disappointing game IMHO

[nonmaskable]

I hate "me too" posts, but...

I tried to get used to 2k3, but it's just a pretty looking, bad playing quake clone with short people players.

I still play UT on the net. Lots of great servers & good players.

Decent price too

[Fiz Ocelot]

I got the collector's edition for 40 bucks, comes on DVD with a nice logitech headset and bonus dvd. It also has some kind of emblem that adds either 50HP to your car or 2ghz to your pc (whichever you apply it to)

Re:Decent price too

[Dirtside]

It also has some kind of emblem that adds either 50HP to your car or 2ghz to your pc (whichever you apply it to)

Cool! The extra 50 hit points will keep my car safe from clowns driving rocket-launcher-equipped ice cream trucks. (I live in L.A.)

Re:Decent price too

[Kelz]

How exactly can you be out of stock when they are not even IN stock yet?

everybody interested in having more games on Linux

[dmouritsendk]

..should rush out and buy this game and then send a mail to one of these people [infogrames.com], letting them know that the fact that the game ran on Linux was one of the factors that made you deside to buy the game.

Bacially, thank them for their support of your favorite platform. And let them know you are always looking for quality game titles running linux to buy.

That won't hurt the chances of future ATARI distributed games being ported to Linux.

Re:everybody interested in having more games on Li

[vogel]

Actually the best way to make sure your copy is associated with Linux is to play the retail version online as our masterserver keeps track of the last OS used to connect to it (per CD key).

-- Daniel, Epic Games Inc.

Re:everybody interested in having more games on Li

[TheCoop1984]

Do you know roughly what % of retail copies run on linux then?

Re:everybody interested in having more games on Li

[ImpTech]

I wish they'd push Linux support a little harder. I mean, you can't find concrete verification anywhere that if you buy the Windows copy it will work on Linux. Now, I know it does, but thats because I found a screenshot of the back of the box somewhere. No online store mentions it.

voice recognition

[berkut1337]

Voice recognition is the besst feauture for me, I'm surprized it's not being mentioned more. All that you have to do is download MS speech SDK, train it and then the fun begins:

ALPHA GET OUT! the bot will exit the vehicle, or
EVERYONE DANCE!, lol

http://www.beyondunreal.com/content/articles/74_ 1. php

Does anyone remember the original Unreal Tournment

[msimm]

The dual weapons (pistols? assault rifles?) were there but it was so much more dark. It was an extreme sport setting with somewhat realistic human (future) characters. I really miss that.

Re:Does anyone remember the original Unreal Tournm

[nukem1999]

The biggest things I missed from the original were a real sniper rifle and Assault mode, both of which are back in 2k4 :D
Although they kept the "lightning gun" sniper rifle clone in the game for some maps. I guess to keep down on the campers in certain areas. It can be hard to see snipers in the foliage in certain areas (I know first hand, even with the lightning trail giving away your position, someone has to be looking to see it :D)

All in all, must of my gripes about 2k3 (which I didn't buy) are gone now

Unreal on the Ides!

[MigrantHail]

Enjoy such new features as onslaught, assault...and good old backstabbing.

Which version will you pick up?

[MMaestro]

The 7 CD version or the special edition 2 DVD pack?

Great Game

[(eternal_software)]

This is an excellent game. I was never a big fan of FPS but the "onslaught" mode in UT2004 has me hooked. Excellent mix of combat and strategy, the controls feel right, and the vehicles are really fun.

I still haven't played the standard "deathmatch" and "capture the flag" modes (and I am not really in a hurry to try them).

There is much more to be had here then in previous Unreal titles.

Mouse-gesture aim

[eddy]

[...] but my favorite is the ability to carry dual assault rifles.

I'm guessing this is like in every other game, you still aim them together?

I was thinking that it would be interesting to experiment with individual aim for dual-weapons. You could have 'hold RMB and move mouse to aim second gun' (would subsume looking around) and 'hold RMB and press LMB' to fire.

But it guess it would be odd to controll one weapon as "an arm" and the other like usual (that is "where you look you fire"), so then you'd have to do the same but in reverse for the "left" gun, which I'm sure few gamers would like. Maybe for an option...

Just a thought.

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:What makes it good

[patternjuggler]

"play through the game once and forget" games hardly get any replay value

The ultimate in replay value would be the game that you completely forget after playing, except for how great it was to play, so you play it again and forget and then back to step one again...

For true replayability though, since the player probably won't forget, is to give the game a great deal of depth- so much that after beating the game the player is able to go back and play in a totally different style, explore more remote areas

"Biggest thing to ever hit multiplayer?"

[death00]

"...the biggest thing to ever hit multiplayer gaming...the granddaddy of all multiplayer competition...most exciting multiplayer title ever to grace the PC." Somehow I doubt these spurious claims. I remember playing Quake III Arena and the original UT (in fact I still enjoy playing both), and those were the biggest things ever to hit multiplayer gaming. The adrenaline rush from playing at breakneck speeds against human opponents was fantastic! Initially, I had to decide which one would get my $50, and went with UT because of the different gameplay modes. I was highly disappointed with UT2003, especially since the assault mode was dropped. I'm glad to see UT2004 has assault mode back in, but I'm still looking forward to Doom III and Half-Life 2 far more than this release. Carmack: Where's my Doom III? It's been nearly a year since I asked that last!

Macintosh performance issues

[v1]

I've seen a few posters comment about rendering speed increasing if sound is disabled, but that's not really an option for a serious player... if you can't hear where the shooting is coming from (or hear the footsteps of the person tailgaiting you) you're not gonna last very long. So turning off the sound isn't a serious option.

Also, just in general I'd say the frame rates on the mac are a lot slower than on the PC. Are they even bothering to use hardware accelleration? It feels like I'm back playing the original Unreal Tournament on my Wallstreet with its sucky graphics speed, and yet this is a fairly new tibook. My fps drops to around 4 or so during heavy action.

Re:Macintosh performance issues

[green pizza]

I've seen a few posters comment about rendering speed increasing if sound is disabled, but that's not really an option for a serious player

I totally agree... and hope that it's more of a threading bug than anything else!

Also, just in general I'd say the frame rates on the mac are a lot slower than on the PC. Are they even bothering to use hardware accelleration?

Both the Mac and Linux versions run slower than the Windows version... mostly because the game's 3D engine was written for MS Direct3D... the Mac and Linux versions have been hacked to use OpenGL.

That said, you're going to need a modern Mac (or Linux PC) to run this game... newer than what would be required to play on a Windows PC. The game runs more than fast enough on my 15" Aluminum PowerBook G4 (1.25 GHz G4, Radeon 9600 Mobility). Performance dops a bit when I run higher than 1024x768, though... it may be a fillrate issue with the GPU as this game makes heavy use of multipass rendering. Hopefully the new Radeon 9700 Mobility will fix that! The same game on a similar iMac 17" (1.25 GHz G4, GeForce FX 5200) runs quite a bit slower dispite similar system architecture. My guess is that the FX 5200 can't pump the pixels as fast as the Radeon 9600. Disabiling audio speeds up both machines, so there might be room for improvement.

I had an opportunity to play the demo on both a monster pc gamer rig and on a dual processor G5 at a local mom-and-pop computer store. The PC, with a Radeon 9800, showed about 3x the FPS frame rate as the Mac (dual 1.8 GHz G5, Radeon 9600) but game play felt about the same on both machines. Though the numbers are smaller on the Mac, the game didn't feel any "choppier" than the PC.

Why is it always idsoft and Unreal?

[Awptimus Prime]

The only two games that get much coverage on /. seem to be Quake, Doom3, and Unreal(x).

Meanwhile, BF1942 and others get little coverage -- even though other titles were the ones to pioneer 64 player servers and larger maps.

The only thing I can figure is the old school FPS game with a gun that fires the EXACT same while running at a scale speed of 38mph, jumping, etc.

I remember posting the same question about Counter-Strike getting no /. press when it had like 20x the number of online players than Q3 had, at the time, and getting modded as a troll.

Personally, being a seasoned player of FPS titles since Wolf3D, I prefer games that have some level of chance when it comes to firing a perfect shot. Getting 18 consecutive headshots in MP with a sniper rifle is just lame after a while.

I also play paintball a lot, which is fairly inconsistent when it comes to accuracy. I've also got a couple of scoped rifles I enjoy doing some target practice with sometimes. Even with the bipod extended and laying prone, I can't hit consistently within a foot at 100 yards. Mind you, I have some eyesight problems.

This just makes the running and shooting perfectly thing in Unreal and Q3 just too cartoony for it to be fun.

Re:Why is it always idsoft and Unreal?

[Cosmik]

You forget the influence of the Mac and Linux crowd on this site.

Re:Why is it always idsoft and Unreal?

[cozziewozzie]

I agree, and this lack of realism also pisses me off. When I play a game, I want it to be realistic dammit. For example, in Quake3, you never have to stop and pee, WTF?! I mean, you can play for 10 hours straight, and never once have to urinate!!!! Wouldn't it be much more exciting if you had to stop in a corner from time to time and pee, exposing your vulnerable back to the enemy!

Then there's the eating. Since Duke3d we haven't had hot-dog stands in FPS maps, and even those weren't fully operational. What

Re:Why is it always idsoft and Unreal?

[tf23]

The only two games that get much coverage on /. seem to be Quake, Doom3, and Unreal(x).


Ya know, you *can* help change that. Submit articles about other games. I looked at your submissions [slashdot.org] and the list is so vast... ;) get my point?

Offnote tactic for the airvehicle

[88NoSoup4U88]

If some opponent is on the redeemer spawn spot, and you have control of a flying vehicle (not sure on the name)
Spidermine it first, then lightly scrape over the floor while flying past the high-redeemer spot : The spider mines will jump off, and target any enemy on top of it :
Great fun :)

original UT

[luckyguesser]

...but my favorite is the ability to carry dual assault rifles.

That's one good reason why I like the original UT better than either 2k3 or 2k4. Others include the ability to boost the game speed up to... something like 200%, and older but much much less graphic-intensive graphics engine. My computer will theoretically run 2k3 and 4 just fine, but I still like the original's gameplay much better.

Runs on TNT2

[G3ckoG33k]

Yes it does!

PIII-700 with a TNT2 M64

Low-end...

I may have 15-20 fps but runs with a fair amount of visual goodies anyhow!

Amazing, considering the age of the card.

Re:Can anyone help me out?

[Squidgee]

Yea, sure. Just send $20,000 US to this Nigerian Prince I know, and I'm sure we can work things out...

Re:Hardware requirements?

[Anonymous Coward]

You can read the requitements on http://www.unrealtournament.com/ut2004.
Also, while you are there, read the forum thread on n00b Raptor camping and the posters that the fans have made up. You'll laugh up a lung, guaranteed!

Regarding systems, I had been on an Athlon XP 1600+, with PC133 SDRAM and an NVidia Ti4200 64MB card. When I started playing the demo a couple of weeks ago in Linux and Doze, I decided to upgrade. The demo is soo awesome. I never played UT before, as it always ssemed to be a bunch of bunny hopping clowns. But, I digress; I did buy the SE DVD edition.

My new system isn't anything extreme, as I always go for the sweet spot on the price/performance curve. I got an Asus A7V8X-X motherboard with 1.25GB of PC2700 333MHz RAM. AMD XP 2800+, same GF4 4200, added cooling and overclocked it to 4400 speeds. And I got a nice Lian Li case to put it in, and keep it cool. ~$250 for everything but the case. The gorgeous LianLi 6077 from Directron.com was $165 with PS.

I play in 1280x1024 or 1600x1280 at 32bit color and get ~75FPS. The benchmarks give me between about 45FPS and 350FPS, depending on what's going on.

It plays well on an 1800+ (~1600MHz). I'm sure it plays very well on 3200 systems, but it's not necessary. though maps like Onslaught and the physics models are very CPU intensive, and the performance is not bound to graphics processor. Build a system with a good balance of memory, internal bandwidth, CPU and graphics,and you should be fine.

Plays beautifully on Mandrake 9.2 with NVidia modules.

I can't wait to get my boxed set. My studies are really suffering.

Re:Hardware requirements?

[shadowbearer]

Link [ataricommunity.com] to the n00b raptor camping posters. There's some really good ones in there....

SB

Re:Misleading hardware req.'s

[shadowcabbit]

Agreed. UT2K3 worked just fine on my old P3 700 MHz and a GeForce2; boosting the RAM from 128 to 256 made it almost flawless. I'm now running a P4 2.8 GHz and 512 RAM with an onboard Intel graphics set and the game still runs beautifully; I imagine that uninstalling 2K3 to make room for 2K4 will cause no noticeable difference in performance (no broadband for the duration of my unemployment, so I haven't picked up the demo).

It's been my experience that missing one or two of the "minimum requirements" by a

Re:Linux???

[Lord of Ironhand]

As already pointed out, it will run on Linux, in fact, there is a 64-bit version for Linux. Download all versions of the demo here [unrealtournament.com].

Re:Linux???

[Saven Marek]

> But will it run on Linux?

Yes

> Thought not.

That makes no sense. Yes it does run on Linux

> Yet, this same crowd who hates Microsoft with a passion still
> love the precious windows games.

Yes I hate windows, I havent run it this century. I'm still an intense gamer. I don't play Windows games

> Hypocrites.

Having a little argument with yourself there Mr. Slow minded?

webalizer - thousands served daily [67.160.223.119]

Re:Linux???

[NanoGator]

" Companies who "get it" regarding Linux should be rewarded and pubblically thanked and respected."

It's not that they don't get it. It's that a AAA successful game sells 40,000 copies in the Linux market. The problem isn't lack of respect for Linux, it's that there isn't enough of a base to be reasonably successful in that market.

You want more games for Linux? Start encouraging others to use it. Want a good suggestion for that? Burn a few Knoppix CDs and give it to peeps who run Windows. If they're

Re:Linux???

[vogel]

If you write solid portable code from the beginning, there's no additional cost to releasing on multiple platforms,

Wishful thinking :)

Re:emphasis on gameplay?

[kryptkpr]

Sounds like you need to get a better computer, turn everything ON, and crank the reasolution to 1280x1024... then maybe you can stop being bitter that your system sucks and enjoy the game!

The Onslaught game is so totally not decided in the first 30-40 seconds. I was in a game yesterday that took 52 minutes. That's right! Thes server did not have overtime mode turned on (this is usually at 15 mins, and get triggered a lot). I've been in many games where the tides turned against the team that looked like t

Don't complain about performance...

[KalvinB]

...if you can't be bothered to post the specs of the machine you're trying to run it on. It's completely meaningless.

"The pistol is gone; it was highly accurate"

Pistols aren't supposed to be accurate. You cannot snipe people with pistols. If a game allows you to do such a thing it's rediculous even for a fantasy world.

If you like unlimited firepower with "can't miss" weapons, feel free to use cheat codes in single player or continue playing the original. It's not like there's a shortage of maps or pla

Re:emphasis on gameplay?

[Lumpy]

you obviousally dont have a god grasp on onslaught "link the power nodes" game.

you can easily turn the tide towards the end of the game if your team is skilled enough... one camper in a tank on the hill overlooking the enemy's vantage point blowing to hell every vehicle that re-spawns will allow you to overrun that power node quickly.

I suggest you play it with some people instead of AI only.

oh and nothing feels better than driving a pickup recklessly into the enemy base and jump it into their power supply, jumping out of the vehicle in the air and watching it crash into their cell as you launch a few rockets into the truck and target winning very VERY quickly.

Re:Speed Hack

[Kelerain]

Actually, they have mentioned specifically (like at the bottom of this Mark Rein [ataricommunity.com] post), that the demo has NO cheat protection at all, because it would give that crowed a head start on the final version. They also mention that they will update the demo once the full game has been released for a little while, to include cheat protection. Its good to see that they are not only serious this issue, but they have put some thought in thier strategy.

Re:UT 2004 is good, but consider...

[AGTiny]

There is a $10 rebate in the box!

Re:Unreal

[nicky_d]

Too true - and don't forget that older games like Unreal will most likely FLY on your current PC, which can be quite a revelation... my PC at the time of Unreal managed it fine most of the time, but had occasional slowdown and didn't do very well at higher resolutions. On my current PC - POW! I've also been playing System Shock 2 for the first time in many years, and I'm having the same experience with that. This is a good way to discover which games are truly classics - Unreal, SS2, the Quakes - they stand

Re:linux geeks please help me

[cthulhubob]

Easily, I'd say:

1) Mozilla (http://mozilla.org)
2) Mplayer (http://mplayerhq.hu)
3) GIMP (http://gimp.org)
4) OpenOffice (http://openoffice.org)
5) Cinelerra (http://heroinewarrior.com/cinelerra.php3)
6) K3B (http://www.k3b.org)

Not knowing anything about Linux, I would recommend having a friend help you set up your computer and having him available once in a while to ask how to do stuff. You'll get the hang of the OS pretty quickly though. I got my friend up and running with Fedora Core 1 a couple of weeks ago