Unreal Tournament 2003

{{Infobox video game

| title = Unreal Tournament 2003

| image = Unreal Tournament 2003 cover.png

| developer = Epic Games
Digital Extremes

| publisher = Infogrames{{efn|Released under the Atari brand name.}}
MacSoft (OS X)

| director =

| producer =

| designer = Cliff Bleszinski
James Schmaltz
Shane Caudle

| programmer = Steve Polge

| artist =

| writer =

| composer = Kevin Riepl
Starsky Partridge

| series = Unreal

| engine = Unreal Engine 2

| platforms = Windows, Mac OS X, Linux{{Cite web|url=http://joebarr.sys-con.com/node/32796|title=A mixed welcome for Unreal Tournament 2003 on Linux {{!}} Joe Barr|website=joebarr.sys-con.com |access-date=March 9, 2017}}

| released = Windows
{{vgrelease|NA|September 30, 2002|EU|October 4, 2002{{cite web |url=http://www.uk.infogrames.com/?pg=game_detail&productID=10

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030819214233/http://www.uk.infogrames.com/?pg=game_detail&productID=10

|archive-date=Aug 19, 2003 |url-status=dead

|website=uk.infogrames.com

|title=Unreal Tournament 2003

|access-date=September 13, 2024}}|AU|October 16, 2002{{Cite web |title=Unreal Tournament 2003 |url=http://www.gpstore.com.au/product.x?1456582 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030929195330/http://www.gpstore.com.au/product.x?1456582 |archive-date=September 29, 2003 |access-date=July 22, 2024 |website=Gameplanet}}}}Mac OS X
{{vgrelease|NA|June 20, 2003}}Linux
{{vgrelease|EU|October 4, 2002}}

| genre = First-person shooter

| modes = Single-player, multiplayer

}}

Unreal Tournament 2003 is a first-person arena shooter video game developed by Epic Games and Digital Extremes, and published by Infogrames under the Atari brand name. The game is part of the Unreal franchise, and is a sequel to 1999's Unreal Tournament. Like its predecessor, the game is designed mainly for multiplayer gaming.

The game saw a record 1.2 million downloads when the demo was released.[http://pc.gamezone.com/news/09_24_02_01_43PM.htm ATARI'S UNREAL TOURNAMENT 2003 DEMO EXPLODES ONTO THE INTERNET] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706193845/http://pc.gamezone.com/news/09_24_02_01_43PM.htm|date=July 6, 2008}}, Atari Press Release, September 24, 2002. In addition, the Unreal Engine has been widely licensed for games such as the Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six series, Splinter Cell, and America's Army.

An Xbox port, Unreal Championship was released on November 12, 2002. Unreal Tournament 2003 would be updated into Unreal Tournament 2004, which was released on March 16 of that year.

Gameplay

The available combat modes are:

Deathmatch: Frag other players as much as possible to gain the highest score.
Team Deathmatch: Two teams go head to head to be the best fragger.
Capture the Flag: Players must invade the enemies' base, capture their flag and bring it back to their base in order to score.
Double Domination: Two teams must control two points on the map. Holding both locations for a certain period of time gives points to the controlling team.
Bombing Run: The player with the ball has to take it into enemy territory and score in the enemy force's goal. Players can pass to other teammates. Getting killed causes the ball carrier to fumble the ball. The ball launcher is used to carry the ball; it is not a weapon but heals the carrying player when they are at low health. Three points are awarded for field goals (shooting the ball through the goal), and 7 points are given for touchdowns (carrying the ball through the goal), although the levels are often designed such that this kills the ball carrier.
Last Man Standing: All players in this gametype spawn with a limited number of lives. The last remaining player to still have lives wins the match.
Invasion: A co-op gametype in which the players attempt to kill the invading alien AI. Each player has one life.
Mutant: Mutant is similar to a "Juggernaut" or a "King of the Hill" type of gameplay. The first person to make a kill becomes the mutant, which gives them unlimited ammo, camouflage, and super speed. The mutant then tries to get as many kills as he can until he is killed. The person who kills the mutant then becomes the mutant.

Reception

{{Video game reviews

| title = Reception

| state =

| align = left

| MC = 86/100{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/unreal-tournament-2003/critic-reviews/?platform=pc|title=Unreal Tournament 2003 Review|work=Metacritic|publisher=CBS Interactive|access-date=October 10, 2014}}

| GSpot = 8.8/10{{cite web|url=http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/unreal-tournament-2003-review/1900-2882410/|title=Unreal Tournament 2003 Review|work=GameSpot|publisher=CBS Interactive|date=October 4, 2002|access-date=October 10, 2014|first=Scott|last=Osborne}}

| IGN = 9/10{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2002/09/27/unreal-tournament-2003-review|title=Unreal Tournament 2003 Review|publisher=IGN|date=September 27, 2002|access-date=October 10, 2014|first=Ivan|last=Sulic}}

| rev1 = PC Magazine

| rev1Score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite web|url=https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,760667,00.asp|title=Unreal Tournament 2003 Review|date=2002|access-date=October 10, 2014|first=Rich|last=Brown}}

}}

GameSpot named Unreal Tournament 2003 the best computer game of October 2002.{{cite web | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20031017065623/http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/all/gotm/110202/index.html | url=http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/all/gotm/110202/index.html | title=GameSpots Game of the Month October 2002 | author= GameSpot | date=November 2, 2002 | website=GameSpot | archive-date=October 17, 2003 | url-status=dead}}

Unreal Tournament 2003 won GameSpot{{'}}s annual "Best Graphics (Technical) on PC" award, and was nominated in the "Best Multiplayer Action Game on PC" category.{{cite web | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030207155400/http://gamespot.com/gamespot/features/all/bestof2002/ | url=http://gamespot.com/gamespot/features/all/bestof2002/ | title=GameSpot{{'}}s Best and Worst of 2002 | author=GameSpot Staff | date=December 30, 2002 | work=GameSpot | archive-date=February 7, 2003 | url-status=dead}} During the 6th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the game received a nomination for "Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering" by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences.{{cite web |url=https://www.interactive.org/games/video_game_details.asp?idAward=2003&idGame=384 |title=D.I.C.E. Awards By Video Game Details Unreal Tournament 2003 |publisher=Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences |website=interactive.org |access-date=August 2, 2023}}

=Sales=

In the United States, Unreal Tournament 2003 sold 360,000 copies and earned $13.6 million by August 2006. At the time, this led Edge to declare it the country's 45th-best-selling computer game, and best-selling Unreal title, released since January 2000. Combined sales of all Unreal computer games released between January 2000 and August 2006 had reached 1.8 million units in the United States by the latter date.{{cite magazine|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017165955/http://www.edge-online.com/features/top-100-pc-games-21st-century/ |url=http://www.edge-online.com/features/top-100-pc-games-21st-century/ |title=The Top 100 PC Games of the 21st Century |author=Edge Staff |date=August 25, 2006 |magazine=Edge |archive-date=October 17, 2012 |url-status=dead}} In December 2002, the game received a "Gold" sales award from the Verband der Unterhaltungssoftware Deutschland (VUD),{{cite web | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030223165239/http://www.vud.de/presse/dezember2002.php3 | url=http://www.vud.de:80/presse/dezember2002.php3 | title=UD-SALES-AWARDS Dezember 2002 |date=December 2002 | publisher=Verband der Unterhaltungssoftware Deutschland | archive-date=February 23, 2003 | url-status=dead | access-date=July 18, 2018 | df=mdy-all}} indicating sales of at least 100,000 units across Germany, Austria and Switzerland.{{cite magazine | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180718145345/https://www.gamepro.de/artikel/vud-gold-awards-2003,1290773.html | url=https://www.gamepro.de/artikel/vud-gold-awards-2003,1290773.html | title=VUD-Gold-Awards 2003 | author=Horn, Andre |date=January 14, 2004 | magazine=GamePro Germany |archive-date=July 18, 2018 | url-status=live}}

In its first month, Unreal Tournament 2003 sold more than 800,000 copies worldwide.{{cite web|first=Neil|last=Davidson|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/93260522/the-daily-herald-tribune/|title=Unreal success of made-in-Canada game means big sales, big name|newspaper=Grande Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune|page=56|date=November 21, 2002|accessdate=January 23, 2022|via=Newspapers.com}}

References

External links

{{Official website|https://web.archive.org/web/20021206001151/http://www.unrealtournament2003.com/}} {{small|(archived from the [http://www.unrealtournament2003.com/ original])}}
{{MobyGames|/unreal-tournament-2003}}
{{PCGamingWiki|Unreal_Tournament_2003}}

Category:2002 video games

Category:Arena shooters

Category:Atari games

Category:Digital Extremes games

Category:Epic Games games

Category:Esports games

Category:First-person shooters

Category:Infogrames games

Category:Linux games

Category:MacOS games

Category:MacSoft games

Category:Multiplayer and single-player video games