UT2004 - Looking Very GOOD - and how it'll Kill HALO

Read this for the review:
http://www.gamespy.com/previews/february04/ut2004pc/

Look at these screen shots. (you'll need to change the last 2 digits
to see other images).
http://www.gamespy.com/asp/image.asp...t2004pc/01.jpg

(Game Spy used to have a Master page of screen shots)

I've been playing Unreal since the first game in 1997 - the reason *I*
bought my first REAL 3D card, the Voodoo1.

Even to this day, I still play UT from 1999 more than any other game
for multiplayer.... but yes I do play some new games.

When UT2003 came out at the end of 2002, it had great eye candy.
Amazing details which are still better than some of the current games
coming out.

You can spend forever making the game "perfect" - but that never
happens, now about 14 months later, a new version with a lot of
enhancements is coming out. The graphics updated, more weapons etc.

I hope UT2004 is kick ass, because WHILE UT2003 had amazing eye candy,
it SUCKED FOR GAME PLAY! They made it more like Quake, the removed
some features (playing dead for one, Team view for another). But
besides the worse menu interface (which looked good, but functionality
is limted) and the revised MENU control from the Original UT over to
the keyboard style of Counter Strike (WHY WHY MESS this up?!) is that
the WEAPONS SUCKED ASS!!!

With the relase of Unreal2, it shows that GOOD weapons can be made,
and adding them to UT2004 (as we are guessing by their statements)
will fix the game. The MOST fun I have with UT2003 is on a server
with modded weapons that are more fun and usable than the default crap
that came with UT2003. Even to this day, for every hr I play UT2003,
I play 40hrs of UT-classic... The clans and people I play with feel
the SAME way... many of us BOUGHT UT2003 and felt ripped off.

I hope UT2004 is a killer game, it LOOKS good, it SOUNDS good... but
until I play it, I won't know.

Things messed up by the UT2003 team that would be needed:

1 - Weapons: Sniper rifle (like in Unreal2), remove the "balance"
function of having the same KILL Damage with different looks thingy.

2 - Improved MENU controls for setup etc, more like original UT (I've
heard they've done this)

3 - Faking Death button, this is a FUN thing to do... either it works
or you are killed on the ground. Also handy for quick breaks to the
toilet.

4 - TEAM view button (F5) which cycles to 3rd person view of your
fellow team mates, GREAT for helping members who are lost or have a
problem. So you can HELP them in fighting or returning to base.

5 - Screen-Command (For feedback text/speech and bot commands), have
an option for both styles. Its a LOT of work in a DARK room to press
your number buttons 2-4 times to get a command, rather than HOLD down
the command and the MOUSE appears for you to make your selection.

6 - Different levels of transparancies for HUD, Having the ENEMY's
NAME show up so brightly above or below the cross hairs - rather than
above their heads makes the shots difficult.

7 - Throw out the stupid lightning gun, with its useless scope. (see
#1 weapons)

8 - Adding a PUNCH button is fun and handy for those times when there
is no more ammo. I've killed 3 players in HALO in the last 10 seconds
of the game that way

9 - Improve networking performance.


With the Patches (about 75mb worth) provided by Team UT2003, they had
fixed many problems with UT2003. Their UT-CLASSIC mod kinda sucked,
it over-rid some personal modes. They didn't "GET IT" as to what made
UT-classic the CLASSIC it is today. It has to do with game play,
weapons and the features I listed above.

I play HALO more than UT2003, its a DIFFERENT Team game than UT2003
because of its weapons and VECs. (Jeeps / Jets / Tanks) and the game
play is different. But in general, HALO is a crappy game. The single
player maps look nice, somewhat - but the repeated multi-level alien
rooms were BORING and STUPID. (imaging the SAME room 20 times!!) And
its Multiplayer feature set is a joke... Only 3~4 good maps out of
20!! No MOD or add-on user maps available (Yikes), no BOTS, no
rag-doll effects, no gibs - ALL players LOOK exactly the same (which
is lame sine there are 8 other combat characters from the game that
could have been THROWN IN). The networking tools SUCK, idiotic.
Clearly designed by people who know little about multiplayer games.

Here is an example how the VEC are different from HALO and UT2004.
(The JEEP class alone) - which are FUN in HALO, but very limiting.

HALO, when you drive, you are 100% defenseless without a GUNNER. When
I played it, I thought, "It would be great if it had a HORN" to warn
your TEAM your driving by to get their attention of to WARN them so
they don't get hit. In UT2004, there are 2 HORN types (Oh yeah!) and
Alarm when an enemy steals your Jeep (this should be funny) and for
added bonus, the driver has a basic shooting ability. (Hope it still
allows a gunner, I dont know) - but for even more bloody mess, which I
think is over kill - the 2nd fire on the Jeep has saw blades that come
out the sides!! OUCH!!

In HALO, you just drive....

BUT, HALO in general is a fine single player (other than the alien
room problem - my guess, to PAD the levels up) with a great concept,
very good NPC characters, awsome voice acting and sound effects.

HALO is a DX7-DX8 game in reality, its graphics do not compare to
UT2003, much less UT2004. I've played the HALO Retail version, a
friend was bored with it... and I SURE wouldn't pay $40 for this OLD
game... maybe $15. And for the most part, the HALO DEMO is all YOU
NEED... other than its total lack of ADMIN tools (to take care of
TKers) - HALO DEMO has the BEST Multiplayer map (and only 1) out of
the full version! That is SAD... very very sad.

Buy UT2004, its easily the game that HALO will never be for
Multiplayer gaming.

UT2004 - PLEASE BE AN AWSOME GAME!!! (Due March/April)

Because Doom3 and Half Life2 won't be out till after this summer.


--
Remember when real men used Real computers!?
When 512K of video RAM was a lot!

Death to Palladium & WPA!!

On Thu, 12 Feb 2004 00:08:16 GMT, Darthy
wrote:

Read this for the review:
http://www.gamespy.com/previews/february04/ut2004pc/

Look at these screen shots. (you'll need to change the last 2 digits
to see other images).
http://www.gamespy.com/asp/image.asp...t2004pc/01.jpg

(Game Spy used to have a Master page of screen shots)

I've been playing Unreal since the first game in 1997 - the reason *I*
bought my first REAL 3D card, the Voodoo1.

.................................................. ..............
blah, blah, ..........................................

Please post instead to:-

comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

I assume that this was posted here accidentally, since I
believe that you are active in both newsgroups and you have
not cross-posted to the action group.

John Lewis

On Thu, 12 Feb 2004 12:05:53 -0500, "PB" wrote:

Nice rant

Put it in a gaming NG, not a hardware NG asshole

Eat me...

Hey, its a new game that can kinda flex the muscles of todays cards.


--
Remember when real men used Real computers!?
When 512K of video RAM was a lot!

Death to Palladium & WPA!!

Darthy wrote in message . ..
On Thu, 12 Feb 2004 12:05:53 -0500, "PB" wrote:

Nice rant

Put it in a gaming NG, not a hardware NG asshole

Eat me...

Hey, its a new game that can kinda flex the muscles of todays cards.

True it looks very nice, though well..i'm sure it will be playable
will. I hope it looks in the game self as good as on the pictures,
with a reasonable normal computer and videocard.

I like that new tank.. with those 3 turrets and those nice pinny
wheels! A true assualt tanks, hahaha

On 13 Feb 2004 04:52:36 -0800, (Dark Avenger)
wrote:

Darthy wrote in message . ..
On Thu, 12 Feb 2004 12:05:53 -0500, "PB" wrote:

Nice rant

Put it in a gaming NG, not a hardware NG asshole

Eat me...

Hey, its a new game that can kinda flex the muscles of todays cards.

True it looks very nice, though well..i'm sure it will be playable
will. I hope it looks in the game self as good as on the pictures,
with a reasonable normal computer and videocard.

It looks quite good on at least a GF4 TI card.

I like that new tank.. with those 3 turrets and those nice pinny
wheels! A true assualt tanks, hahaha

The regular tank is a little smaller than the one in HALO... but they
have a SUPER tank that holds 4 people to control 4 turrents + the
driver controlled rocket launcher. The Tires are twice as tall as
the player.

And yes, the game LOOKS very good... I don't think it will match the
visuals of Half Life2 - which is a Single player game, so they are
pushing for character details (mouth / eyes) - while in games like UT
- they are fast paced and TRUST ME, you rarely get close enough to an
enemy to see their eyes or mouths if they were moving. Such DETAILS
slows down the game.

The Unreal2 Engine demo shows eyes and mouth movement as an ability
(and does so in the game with some characters) - but its a more
personal Single player game.

But I've only seen video DEMOS of Half Life2 and 2 dozen cool screen
shots... but not played the actual game.


--
Remember when real men used Real computers!?
When 512K of video RAM was a lot!

Death to Palladium & WPA!!

Darthy wrote in message . ..
On 13 Feb 2004 04:52:36 -0800, (Dark Avenger)
wrote:

Darthy wrote in message . ..
On Thu, 12 Feb 2004 12:05:53 -0500, "PB" wrote:

Nice rant

Put it in a gaming NG, not a hardware NG asshole

Eat me...

Hey, its a new game that can kinda flex the muscles of todays cards.

True it looks very nice, though well..i'm sure it will be playable
will. I hope it looks in the game self as good as on the pictures,
with a reasonable normal computer and videocard.

It looks quite good on at least a GF4 TI card.

I like that new tank.. with those 3 turrets and those nice pinny
wheels! A true assualt tanks, hahaha

The regular tank is a little smaller than the one in HALO... but they
have a SUPER tank that holds 4 people to control 4 turrents + the
driver controlled rocket launcher. The Tires are twice as tall as
the player.

And yes, the game LOOKS very good... I don't think it will match the
visuals of Half Life2 - which is a Single player game, so they are
pushing for character details (mouth / eyes) - while in games like UT
- they are fast paced and TRUST ME, you rarely get close enough to an
enemy to see their eyes or mouths if they were moving. Such DETAILS
slows down the game.

The Unreal2 Engine demo shows eyes and mouth movement as an ability
(and does so in the game with some characters) - but its a more
personal Single player game.

But I've only seen video DEMOS of Half Life2 and 2 dozen cool screen
shots... but not played the actual game.

I have played it, and yes it looks very nice... for a fast paced game.
I put everything as high as possible at 1280x960 on my Ati 9500 Pro.
And got very decent, actually very good game play.

The textures are nice, you still see that how the textures are applied
is rather simple but the added effects make it look nicer indeed. And
yes, in Unreal you don't have time to stand still and awe..unless you
like to eat rockets!