Unreal Tournament 3 & Geometry Wars Retro Evolved
By Tom Hodgson

Living On The Edge

Unreal Tournament has come a long way since capture the flag matches on Facing Worlds or assaulting Overlord at late-night LAN parties. From the makers of Gears of War, Unreal Tournament 3 returns with an intensity found only in boot camp instructors on The Maury Povich Show. With the industry giant Unreal Engine leading the charge, the frontlines have never looked so good.

Outside of practice, the single-player campaign is ancillary to the purchase. It’s like buying a brand new car because it has an iPod dock. Campaign mode in a first-person shooter is basically a tutorial with a plot. While the developers attempted to make it enjoyable, no one is fooling themselves into thinking that they bought the game to play it alone.

My major gripe with the campaign mode (and off-line multiplayer) is the bots. It’s close to impossible to program a computer player’s AI to mimic the reactions of an actual person behind a controller or a keyboard and mouse. So while the campaign mode serves its purpose and has a fantastic story driving it, the enemies just seem so fabricated. Either they’re crawling around like a baby or you can’t step out in the open because they can see you coming through walls and play beyond godlike. There’s no happy medium.

Multiplayer is of course where this game shines. Unreal Tournament didn’t create the first person online experience, but it helped revolutionize it. UT3 is no exception with a new game mode, updated weapons and vehicles and the same old carnage. People expecting a furthered experience may be disappointed when finding that many of the previous game modes got the axe. So while updated, it’s almost taking two steps forward to take one step back. Ultimately, it’s more of what has made the franchise so great, and honestly, who can argue with that?

Outside of Deathmatch (both free-for-all and team-based), game modes include Duel, Vehicle Capture the Flag and the crème de la crème Capture the Flag. The cherry on top is the new Warfare. Similar to Onslaught and Assault in previous versions, Warfare adds energy nodes which you must capture and defend to destroy the opposing team’s power supply. Putting a new twist on the classic interpretations, it’s a delicious dish served like something on Iron Chef.

While it’s no Call of Duty 4, it’s not supposed to be. That’s like holding an apple to an orange or Saved by the Bell to Saved by the Bell: The College Years. Unreal Tournament revolutionized the genre and re-defined the multiplayer experiences with its frenzied pace and perfectly designed levels to compliment it.

Unreal Tournament 3 isn’t the greatest shooter of all time, but it’s right on par with what one should be ~ frantic, bloody and awesome.

Class is in session

Geometry Wars is back, and I don’t mean the argument after dinner with your parents about getting your homework done. With new enemies, multiplier system and game modes, this game got its hair did, its nails done and a whole lot more.

Available for download on Xbox Live Arcade for 800 Points ($10), this classic game has been given a booster shot of substance and is bulging at the seams like Barry Bonds’ sleeves. In its simplicity lies its greatness. It’s not a game with a steep learning curve. It’s a quick fix you can enjoy and not have to worry about the A&E Intervention crew coming to knock at your door.

This sophomoric release is divided into six themed levels, each unlocked by your performance in the last. Deadline mode gives you a set amount of time to score as much as you can. King mode spawns random circles known as zones across the stage and you can only fire at enemies from within them. These zones decay over time, so you’re left to weave around enemies to make it to the next. Sequence mode is a 20 level sprint of insanity meant for you to fail. Last but not least and my new favorite, Waves sends rows of ships at you from all sides of the board and you have to blast holes in the lines to survive. It’s the truest test of hand-eye coordination. So if you ordered one pizza and got six, you’d have a smile on your face and be wiping sauce off your mouth for weeks. Although, I don’t recommend you try to eat your controller or Xbox hard drive.

But in all the glory of the HD promise, the graphics seem to come up short. The presentation seemed washed down with a very blurry hue surrounding the menus and objects. I thought my glasses were fogged at first glance. I’m no tech expert, but I think it’s a direct effect of the HD. Once the explosions start and the screen looks like a Fruity Pebbles mess, you’ll learn to live with the minor imperfections and fall into a comatose of colors only thought possible at Woodstock.

For a measly $10, you have no excuse not to buy Geometry Wars Retro Evolved?. It’s a psychedelic drug without the harsh flashbacks and it’s safer than testing your reflexes in oncoming traffic. Throw out your school books because this is the only lesson in geometry that matters.