New Unreal Tournament

[{bad}]

I am a big fan of Epic's Unreal tournament series and there hasn't been any news on the new UT game for years. So I wanted to know is this series dead or we could see new unreal game with new engine.

 

[tidy]

.

 

[Stringjam]

Epic seems to be more interested now in engine licensing than game development, which is undoubtedly where most of their income is derived.

I think to make another UT, they would probably hire an outside developer (I thought they actually bought one a couple of years ago, but possibly closed the doors shortly after).

 

[Bobisuruncle54]

EPIC isn't capable of another proper Unreal game. Their hearts aren't in it anymore, and I think they've shed a lot of the talented individuals that made the games so great.

Also we have the console plague, and the ever plummeting standards of the average gamer - there wont be any more flagship PC titles.

I can't describe how depressing it is watching the likes of EPIC and Crytek go to shit.

Despite it's many flaws, UT3 actually turned out to be a very good game. The death of it's online player base was premature, and more the fault of the audience than EPIC itself. People were clamoring for a 'return to roots', and when they got it I think they decided that they'd rather have another UT2004.

The problem with UT3 was the rampant cheating due to a lack of any kind of cheat protection and a server set up that actually made it easier for cheaters to cheat. I forget the details now, but that's essentially what killed it in the end.

I actually enjoyed the way it played too, which is a shame.

 

[{bad}]

I played at 2004 MP for years and really enjoyed it. e1 nowadays me and my friends have a occasional LAN party we play ut 3 or quake 3 or cod4. Just wish that a new fast paced game like quake 3 or at launch soon.

only similar new game i can think of is bulletstrom.

 

[Texashiker]

I am a big fan of Epic's Unreal tournament series and there hasn't been any news on the new UT game for years. So I wanted to know is this series dead or we could see new unreal game with new engine.

Epic probably makes more money off leasing their game engine then they would make by releasing another game.

 

[reallyscrued]

EPIC isn't capable of another proper Unreal game. Their hearts aren't in it anymore, and I think they've shed a lot of the talented individuals that made the games so great.

Also we have the console plague, and the ever plummeting standards of the average gamer - there wont be any more flagship PC titles.

I can't describe how depressing it is watching the likes of EPIC and Crytek go to shit.

Despite it's many flaws, UT3 actually turned out to be a very good game. The death of it's online player base was premature, and more the fault of the audience than EPIC itself. People were clamoring for a 'return to roots', and when they got it I think they decided that they'd rather have had another UT2004.

This. I don't even think they know what made the original UT so great, that's the sad part.

It's funny how this topic springs up on this forum time after time.

I don't think PC gamers necessarily need a new "UT"...I'm just waiting for the twitch shooter genre as a whole to be revived. We've got 4-5 generations of graphics advances between Quake III and UT99 and today; as well as internet speed, average desktop resolution, mouse precision, etc.

It would be SOOOO good.

The time is ripe for another interesting entirely multiplayer focused, not deeply storylined, fast paced hardcore shooter with a mature, PC attitude.

It won't happen, because game companies are run by analysts now, and in the best interest of making money they will not allow dedicated personal servers, introduce ads, and program it to play for the lowest common denominator of players to ensure sales.

 

[WhipperSnapper]

I am a big fan of Epic's Unreal tournament series and there hasn't been any news on the new UT game for years. So I wanted to know is this series dead or we could see new unreal game with new engine.

It's dead.

EPIC isn't capable of another proper Unreal game. Their hearts aren't in it anymore, and I think they've shed a lot of the talented individuals that made the games so great.

Also we have the console plague, and the ever plummeting standards of the average gamer - there wont be any more flagship PC titles.

The original Unreal Tournament, aka UT99, was an amazing game and arguably the greatest online multiplayer FPS of all time. After UT99, Epic began to destroy their franchise.

First came UT 2003 which changed the game play and which was almost universally despised by most UT99 fans, at least by the online multiplayer player base. Then came UT 2004 which was inferior to UT99 for on-foot game play (Deathmatch, Capture-the-Flag, Bombing Run) but was a good game in its own right for Onslaught and the Invasion-RPG mod.

Then came UT3. The game play of UT3 itself was not bad, but everything that surrounded the game play was an insult to UT fans because it had been consolized and the looks had been Gears-of-Warrified. Make no mistake, UT3 was an abomination! When the game was released it was in a buggy Beta state--you couldn't even add server favorites to the server browser! The user interface and server browser and been horribly consolized and it was inferior to that of prior UT games. It also felt clunky and had an inferior Map Vote system compared to what was in UT 2004. In short, going from UT99/UT 2004 to UT3 was like downgrading from a souped up Lexus to a stripped down Yugo (cheap, junky Yugoslavian car from the '80's).

The real shame about UT3 is that the basic game play itself was pretty good. Not as good as UT99, but the on-foot game play was much better than that of UT 2004 (for CTF and Deathmatch). UT3's vehicles for Warfare (Onslaught) however did have an inferior feel to those of UT 2004 (and no third person view option).

In short, UT3 was a joke and it killed the franchise. It was a stillborn abomination.

I wouldn't count on seeing another UT game for that reason. Much of the player base that remembers UT99 and UT 2004 has "aged out" of computer gaming and most of today's gamers have never even heard of Unreal or Unreal Tournament; if they were to release a UT4 they would basically be starting from scratch as far as marketing is concerned. The other problem is that the "freemium" games such as Team Fortress 2 and Planetside 2 may have changed the FPS business model or at least the climate.

I do think it's possible that a first-rate UT4 (aka UT99 + Onslaught, Bombing Run, and Invasion) could be developed, but whether or not PC gamers would learn of its existence, I have no idea. They would probably need to repeat the original Unreal--->Unreal Tournament or Half Life--->Counterstrike/Team Fortress 2 pattern by releasing a big name single-player Unreal 3 game and then releasing UT4 after Unreal 3 became popular.

 

[WhipperSnapper]

This. I don't even think they know what made the original UT so great, that's the sad part.

I have concluded that UT99's success was pretty much an accident and not by design. Since they really didn't need to try to "one-up" anything they were free to just make a good game. It was also before the rise of the consoles and the time of disposable console games.

What's really pathetic about the UT franchise is that Epic Games had a great game and squandered it. With UT99 they got the hard part--the game play, feel, and chemistry--right. Then they changed the formula and did a horrific, shameful job with the easy part (user interface, server browser) in UT3.

It's funny how this topic springs up on this forum time after time.

UT99 was a legendary game to some people and for many also the "virginal" moments of online multiplayer. As one person put it many years ago, "it was an amazing time to be a gamer".

I don't think PC gamers necessarily need a new "UT"...I'm just waiting for the twitch shooter genre as a whole to be revived. We've got 4-5 generations of graphics advances between Quake III and UT99 and today; as well as internet speed, average desktop resolution, mouse precision, etc.

It would be SOOOO good.

If it were done right and produced as a first-rate, non-consolized game. As it stands now, the entire "arena style" FPS genre is completely dead--not because young males would no longer enjoy a fast-paced arena-style FPS, but simply because Epic Games killed off its franchise with the failure of UT3 and because Quake's ID Games decided to abandon online multiplayer (see Quake 4).

All they need to do is to produce a bona-fide UT99-2 that also includes Onslaught, Bombing Run, and Invasion RPG while having a first-rate user interface and server browser along with other online multiplayer features (good built-in voice comm, some sort of an internal IRC chat feature, etc.).

It won't happen, because game companies are run by analysts now, and in the best interest of making money they will not allow dedicated personal servers, introduce ads, and program it to play for the lowest common denominator of players to ensure sales.

I suspect that this is the ultimate reason why we'll never see a game like UT99 again--it's just not profitable by today's standards (for big name, first-rate titles). UT99 took off and had a life of its own that was independent of Epic Games (and profit) and pretty much totally out of its control. There was clan match activity and an active clan community. There must have been over 10,000 (free) custom maps and mods, and the game servers and communities existed as completely independent entities.

You could enjoy all of that (and many people did) for years without ever paying Epic Games more than the price you paid for the original game. I bought it for $10 in early 2001 and played it heavily in online multiplayer through 2007. And Epic Games only got a measly $10 out of me (plus the $8 I spent on UT 2004 and the $60 I spent on UT3 at release). The thought of someone only paying $10 (or even $60) for a game and then playing it heavily for years without having to ever pay anything else would make today's game studio executives sick!

 

[{bad}]

do people still play ut 2004 online??? i used 2 go 2 cafe everyday 2 play it.. maybe if there are still people playing it i will buy it and play

 

[tidy]

.

 

[futurefields]

I don't think PC gamers necessarily need a new "UT"...I'm just waiting for the twitch shooter genre as a whole to be revived. We've got 4-5 generations of graphics advances between Quake III and UT99 and today; as well as internet speed, average desktop resolution, mouse precision, etc.

UT isn't a twitch shooter it's a strafe shooter. Counterstrike/COD are twitch shooters.

 

[{bad}]

Incidentally: http://forums.beyondunreal.com/showthread.php?t=201708

if its for ps4 i don't think pc version will be that great

 

[Zenoth]

In my opinion a new UT is inevitable, especially with Unreal Engine 4, it's just a question of time. I wouldn't say next year but perhaps within the 2015 or 2016 time frame (just my own guess, might be off by a decade for all I know). I'm simply convinced they'll make another one. When the original Unreal Engine was new they made UT99, then UE2 came out and they made UT2003, then UE3 came out and they made UT3. A crap load of games will run on UE4 for the next generation just as much as UE3 was used (and still is being used a lot today and for upcoming games) for so many games (hundreds) since the 360 and the PS3 came out. Also perhaps one day id Software will give another go at Quake (4) Arena with their id Tech 4 engine.

As a side note I actually enjoy(ed) UT3 quite a bit especially with custom maps. It's not as fun as UT2004 (my personal favorite) or as memorable as UT99 but it's fun nonetheless. I never really liked most of its interface but other than the GUI there's really not much that bothered me and I always thought that at the very least it was a generally enjoyable game (and still is today I think). My favorite will always be UT2004 though, but I got so many mods for it and unfortunately I got the CD-Rom version which has a bazillion discs and requires so many disc swipes during installation I just can't be bothered... maybe one day I'll install the whole thing plus all my mods and maps for it (which is like another 15+ GB install from two separate back-up DVDs which themselves are most likely lost in the abyss of my basement somewhere and probably guarded by a giant spider).

 

[{bad}]

ut 2004 was also my fav, though i spend most of the time playing CTF @ Face, or sp over and over again.

 

[Crow550]

Any of those Open Source shooters close to being like UT? Like Xonotic? Nexuiz?(has retail version too) Alien Arena? Red Eclipse? Warsow?

OpenArena is a good Quake 3 like shooter.

The spirit of Unreal Tournament will live on just won't be called Unreal Tournament.

Course you can still play em & the community will keep em going. I'm sure UT99 has HD pack the community made to make it look snazzy too.

 

[{bad}]

Any of those Open Source shooters close to being like UT? Like Xonotic? Nexuiz?(has retail version too) Alien Arena? Red Eclipse? Warsow?

which check gameplay on youtube, if i like them will try.

 

[shortylickens]

do people still play ut 2004 online??? i used 2 go 2 cafe everyday 2 play it.. maybe if there are still people playing it i will buy it and play

All I ever see is those monstrous levels with ultra long range weapons.

 

[{bad}]

All I ever see is those monstrous levels with ultra long range weapons.

u mean people play onslaught???

 

[shortylickens]

u mean people play onslaught???

Onslaught seems to be the most popular of the special games, but mostly all I see is DM (rarely team DM) of huge open worlds with instant kill super zoom rifles or shock rifles.

 

[tidy]

.

 

[Maleficus]

This thread really makes me sad, UT2k4 was an evolution in every aspect of the genre. with the possible exception of the minigun every weapon was balanced and useful. movement was fast, concise, responsive, and most importantly incorporated the Z element in a meaningful and controllable way. UT99 was great as a basic shooter and really separated itself from Quake through weapons and tone, UT2k4 established the franchise as unique. UT3 is an embarrassment that should have been aborted.

Rankin was an excellent map there were plenty of good maps that were played though, you just needed to find the right server groups.

 

[HeXen]

Well there is still Nexius. Last I played, it was pretty similar minus the vehicles and stuff.
Though last I played UT3, last year maybe, there were plenty of occupied servers, did it die out already? I liked playing the football like ones, whatever they were called.
Though honestly I would rather play BF3 and i'm sure most gamers in general would say similar, twitch shooters get old quick. Everyone does the exact same crap on the same old stale maps every single time despite all the decent user created maps out there.

Also, it's funny how quick UT2k3 got forgotten about as UT2k4 came out soon after, as if 2k3 was a major mistake or something lol. But it had some awesome user created maps but they should have made 2k4 a free upgrade. But IF they ever make another one, they should make it free if they want anyone to really play.

 

[{bad}]

ut 2004 was great, only thing i liked in ut 3 was that skateboard + link gun thingy

 

[orthancstone]

Also, it's funny how quick UT2k3 got forgotten about as UT2k4 came out soon after, as if 2k3 was a major mistake or something lol.

Epic offered a rebate for purchasing 2k4 at release if you already owned 2k3 (directed at poor souls like myself).

That's a sign of acknowledgement that 2k3 was certainly a major mistake.

(Back to topic: I've yet to encounter any game that had the pure fun factor that the original UT offered. Easily my favorite game of all time.)