Unreal Championship

Interactive death TV becomes even more grisly according to Logan Booker.

Game death is a fact of life. All gamers grow accustomed to the fact that, in practically every game they play, virtual death is a consequence of one's electronic actions. So, with this in mind, Epic Games decided to craft Unreal Tournament 2003, and make dying all that more spectacular to watch.

For those who've bought (or plan to buy) Unreal Championship -- the Xbox port of this PC frag-fest -- you've nothing to fear. Death remains in all its glory, thanks to the marvellous antics of the Karma engine, and the fruity graphics.

The Karma engine is what makes those missiles fly, grenades fall, and bodies whack against pylons realistically in Unreal Championship. Arms flap around in a painful way, and the heads on player models bounce in the sickening manner that dead heads bounce.

But physics don't make a game , even though realism has been a theme seriously abused by game developers in the past. What makes a game is playability and longevity.

Thankfully, Unreal Championship is equipped to meet these requirements. Armed with five game modes, 25 different player characters, and a juicy variety of environs, Unreal Championship has longevity stuck to the wall like a tail on a donkey.

On the subject of playability though . . . well, let's just say we've found the donkey.
As mentioned, UC is a port of UT2003, and as such retains a large amount of PC code.
In the graphics department, UC looks [i]almost[/i] like UT2003. The level textures are nice and detailed, creating a noticeably sharp distinction between different arenas.

Two maps instantly come to mind: BR-BIFROST and BR-ANUBIS, both featuring some very smooth and engrossing natural textures.

Water effects also appear to have been upgraded since the port, and may just make use of the pixel shader-equipped NV2A sported by the Xbox. The poor chip gets a thrashing though, resulting in frame rate issues that are hard to ignore. A patch (yes, a console patch) is being released to rectify this problem, but until then, you'll just have to put up with it.

Character models are first-rate - as long as you're up close. While this is of little concern in the middle of a fight, it's gratifying to see a robotic torso or a flesh-metal leg flying through the air. The game suffers from a 'high-res graphics, low-res display' that makes characters in the distance difficult-to-see, and really throws off aim and dwindling eyesight.

The game modes consist of your typical deathmatch and deathmatch variants -- and that's it. Even with Bombing Run and CTF, UC is first and foremost DM. Simply put: gamers looking for depth should go elsewhere. UC does implement basic race and player statistics, but how they work in the game isn't always clear, and in the frenzy of battle, fades into irrelevance.

Also carried over from the PC version is adrenaline - the orange and white pills that litter each level. Once you've collected 100 points' worth, you can execute a special combo to grant your player a special power, such as regeneration or invisibility. Adrenaline is also accompanied by your standard range of FPS power-ups, including health, increased damage, and extra ammo for your arsenal.

Gameplay is surprisingly slick for a console. The use of the two analog sticks comes naturally. We imagined that control-pad wrestling would be the order of the day, but manoeuvring your virtual death-dealer isn't a hard task. Primary and secondary fire modes are handled nicely with the shoulder triggers; the only qualm being that when you hold down an attack, such as that encountered with an Assault rifle grenade, things get a little uncomfortable -- the controls can always be reconfigured though.

Many of the weapons from the now ancient Unreal Tournament make a return, with familiars such as the Shock rifle, Flak cannon and the frag-crippling Redeemer all thrusting their way into the refresh. Each weapon in the collection has its own primary and secondary fire mode, just like the original. However, unlike its ancestor, UC includes combination fire modes.

The Shock rifle is the best example: the second fire mode produces a nice, spherical ball of electricity, which can be prematurely detonated with the primary fire mode - as long as you can hit the ball.

If you read Bennett's Xbox Live feature on page 40 of this issue, you'll notice we had a chance to play online.

Unfortunately UC is the least enjoyable game to play on Xbox Live at the moment. In large matches, and in complex environments, it was not unusual for other players to 'warp' around as our DSL connection attempted to compensate for the trans-Pacific delay.

The end result is a decent game, marred by slow downs and, at times, irksome gameplay. The frame rates we're getting at the moment really do make the game a painful experience when it shouldn't be. However, if all you're after is gaming death - both receiving and giving -- then Unreal Championship is a respectable provider.