Hey, everyone! For the last review of 2022, we review the latest addition to one of the most beloved franchises of the FPS sub-genre. Does the access ability scores live up to this accolade?
Let's find out!
Epic Games' Unreal Tournament is probably one of the most recognisable, famous franchises in the FPS genre. The original entry of the series, released in 1999, along with Id Software's Quake 3: Arena revolutionised traditional, arena-based shooters. Even today, the original Unreal Tournament is still being supported, patched, and played online.
As I have said that the previous review of this particular game, I remember playing it in the computing labs, the last day of school of 2004. You know exactly what happened just before the summer vacation ended!
In 2002, the spiritual successor to the original Unreal Tournament, Unreal Tournament 2003 was released. The game is also ported to the original Xbox, Unreal Championship. It was originally developed to showcase how the game's engine, Unreal Engine 2 can be used for the development of games specifically designed for consoles. Also, to showcase Microsoft's new multiplayer gaming service (at the time) Xbox Live.
In 2004, Epic Games to the groundwork that was UT2003, and added a plethora of new maps, modes, and mechanics, then released it as a standalone game. Unreal Tournament 2004 was born. The community hailed this particular game as the pinnacle of the franchise. And also, one of the most played games on my Steam library. I have been playing this game for roughly 364 hours in total.
Our last stop on our tour of the Unreal Tournament franchise is, of course, Unreal Tournament 3. This game's launch was a very strange one. It was originally announced on May 5, 2005, originally called unreal tournament 2007. Slated for a 2006 release. However, Epic delayed the launch of the second half of 2007.
The PC version was released on November 19, 2007. The support for the PlayStation 3 was released on December 11, 2007.
However, the game had to be ported, from scratch for the Xbox 360. The reason why this was both PC, and PlayStation 3 versions was running on an open network. This means that the community can make maps, mods, characters, even game types, import these community-made creations into the game itself (the PlayStation 3 version need to be physically imported onto the console itself, using a USB thumb drive, which can be shared with other friends, or players online.
Xbox Live, at the time, did not support third-party mods. So, Epic had to delay the release for the third time, to give the developers extra time to build the game around the Xbox Live network. The Xbox 360 version was released on July 30, 2008.
Unlike the other games of the franchise, the game's plot is not focused around the Grand Championship, and a few of the teams featured in this game was not actively participating during the game's plot. In this game, humans who were reincarnated by a process, known as Necris, pioneered by Phayder Corporation carried out an attack on the Twin Souls colony on an unknown planet.
You play as James "Reaper" Hawkins, one of the survivors of the attack, turned mercenary with the Ronin Division of the Izanagi Corporation. It is up to you to battle your way through the game's twisted arenas, and find out what really happened to your colony.
The accessibility scores are as follows:-
Visibility 7.5
this game has no colourblind support. To make matters worse, the team colours in both the campaign and multiplayer are red and blue. You know as well as I do, red and blue are not exactly the worst colour contrast when it comes to colourblind players. It still needs addressing nonetheless!
Audibility 6.5
Account of playing this game hearing impairment, there are quite a few major issues here. To this game's advantage, there is a subtitle function available in the options menu.
However, there is a major catch to this. These subtitles are only present in cut scenes. To make matters worse, mission briefings before our match is played, in story mode are not displayed.
Also, standard radio chatter that the bots use does not appear in the game's chat window. This includes "enemy flag carriers here, and the red base." You can see how the lack of this feature's implementation mid-match can put that hearing-impaired player at a marked disadvantage. Especially in a highly competitive environment, for example, a first-person shooter game.
Mobility 10.5
Let's get this the way. Epic seemed to have tailored this game with mobility impaired players in mind. It is very hard to criticise this game, in terms of this category.
In the PC version's case, there is gamepad support available, but, there is no way to customise the stick layouts. However, if you would rather stick your trusty keyboard and mouse, you can fully customise the controls via the options menu.
The console versions are no exception. Regardless of the PS3, or the Xbox 360 versions, the game has interchangeable control layouts. As you can probably tell, both button and stick layouts can be changed to suit your impairments.
So, as I have said earlier in this category, this game is extremely accessible for a player with a mobility impairment.
Gameplay 11
Well, it seemed as though that Epic Games still has their charm while developing this game. Yes, as I have said earlier in the review, the game has been delayed twice (three times. If you count the Xbox 360 version). This game has infinite replayability, as mod support is available for both the PS3 and PC versions.
However, modding the PC version is somewhat complex (trust me, guys, I tried it!). However, the PS3 version is probably the easiest version to mod. Just copy the mods to a specific folder, on your USB drive, plug the USB drive into your PS3, and the game should do the rest.
The in-game mod manager allows you to enable and disable particular mods to give you the experience you want.
The Xbox 360 version, on the other hand, had absolutely no mod support whatsoever, due to the closed nature of the Xbox Live network, when the Xbox 360 was at its prime.
However, the game is still extremely enjoyable nonetheless. The Xbox 360 version contains the Titan Pack add-on. This add-on contained additional maps and characters. Let's run down the line, the Titan pack was, released for the PS3, and PC versions.
The Xbox 360s version cell has a hell of a lot of lifespan. The campaign is very long, I can be played in co-op for up to 3 players. However, as par for the course of the series, it's the multiplayer is where the game really shines through. The multiplayer experience is an absolute blast, with your friends, or other players online.
However, multiplayer servers on the Xbox 360 seems to be very dormant. No one seems to be playing it, even though that the game itself is backwards compatible on your Xbox One, and Xbox series S/X. However, you can still play multiplayer matches against bots via the game's instant action mode.
The PC version still has a fair few servers still running, thanks to a community effort to keep them online.
In summary, Unreal Tournament 3 is probably the best first-person shooter game on the Xbox 360 generation. Even now, the game has a timeless feel to it. The gameplay itself is very similar to the game that put the Xbox 360 hardware on the map, Gears of War.
This really showed the world how Unreal Engine 3 was purposely built for the Xbox 360, and PS3 consoles. As I have said earlier in this review, the game is backwards compatible on your Xbox one, or Xbox series S/X consoles, and this game is currently under a tenner on the Microsoft store!
See you guys in the next review! SpartanCommander1990 out!
Roll out Spartan Legion, and Happy new year!
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