Mass Effect Possibly had a Prequel: Unreal II

     

                              Even the box covers look similar…

Mass Effect and Unreal. What’s the connection here? Mass Effect 1& 2 used more than just the Unreal Engine, you see. Mass Effect is also somewhat similar to Unreal II: The Awakening.

I bought the Unreal Anthology the other day, which had Unreal II bundled along with three or four other games in the series. This got me thinking back to the days when I played Unreal II. Okay, so it didn't continue the story of Unreal, but it wasn’t a bad game.

What does all that have to do with Mass Effect? Look at Unreal II, and then look at Mass Effect.

Both featured one man out to save the world, along with his crew, on his ship. You argue that those two men aren’t the same rank, and that with Shepard you could at least customize what he [or she] looks like.

Fair enough, but then look at the how the game plays – you have those dialogue options and so on. Yeah, Unreal II had those, and could also be one of those talky games as well at times.

Okay, so you argue that the dialogue options weren’t as in depth, and didn’t feature Paragon and Renegade and so on. I know you’re probably getting cross now, but have a look at this next one.

Unreal II also saw you travelling to different planets and so on to stop threats: one which included a trip to the snow-covered planet known as Hell, where John Dalton [you] ended up battling these huge spidery looking things called Araknids, and the Heavy Araknid -essentially the Queen. Sound familiar? Mass Effect also had a snowy level, Noveria, where you drove up to this building, where you faced the Rachni - which were big spidery looking things, with a Queen Rachni…

Mass Effect 2 also had that suicide mission at the end of the main storyline, but if you played it carefully, most of the crew if not all came out alive. In Unreal II, there was also a bit a of a suicide mission, but this time the crew ended up sacrificing themselves by plunging their ship into the sun.

Not to mention that Mass Effect 2 had your Cerberus officer, Miranda – the eye candy of the game – and Unreal II had Aida.

I’m not saying that BioWare copied Unreal II, and it could all just be coincidence, but I just happened to notice a few similarities. Perhaps, spiritually, even though they are now working on Mass Effect 3, the Mass Effect series all ready has a trilogy… in a way.

Mass Effect Possibly had a Prequel: Unreal II

Classic Game Collecting: Unreal Anthology

I went over to Makro for the first time in quite a while today and naturally went over to the section where all the games are. I was quite impressed with their selection of classic games, particularly from the early 2000’s and even some from the nineties – stuff that you don’t often see in some of the other shops. They had a shelf dedicated to classic PC games, as well as a bargain bin just filled with the usual rubbish and a few gems.

It was here that I stumbled upon something that caught my eye. There was a box that read Unreal Anthology.

Originally released in 2006, in it are several games in the Unreal series, namely: Unreal, Unreal: Return to Na Pali [the expansion, both collectively known as Unreal Gold], Unreal Tournament: Game of the Year Edition, Unreal II: The Awakening, and Unreal Tournament 2004. It’s also got a bonus soundtrack CD with music from the series.

This is a welcome addition to my collection, seeing as I do have the original Unreal, which I bought brand new years ago, back in 1998, but even though I’ve played all the others, I haven’t really owned them myself. The only one I haven’t played at all would be Unreal: Return to Na Pali.

I also all ready own Unreal Tournament III. So I’m missing what? Unreal Tournament 2003, Unreal Championship and Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict.

There were some other games there that I had a look at like some games in the Hitman series, but I settled for the Unreal Anthology, which has 4 or 5 games in one box for about R99. And it was the only copy in the store.

If you want to get a hold of Unreal Anthology yourself, you can grab it from Amazon, and even Direct2Drive.

Classic Game Collecting is a AAA original, where I talk about my shopping outings, where I usually pick up one or two games that appeal to my interest. The more games in the box, the better value, I say.

Classic Game Collecting: Unreal Anthology

Apocalypse Then – Unreal II: The Awakening

Even though I did an article on this last year, I only found this out later, so I decided to still along and post this, seeing as it’s better.

On this day, the 3rd of February 2003, Unreal II: The Awakening was released.

The game was developed by the now defunct Legend Entertainment, not Epic, and published by Atari and used the Unreal Engine 2.0. The game saw a release on PC, and the Xbox a year later.

Unreal II, for short, is a FPS title loosely based on the Unreal series. The game bears no real relation to Unreal besides the Skaarj – the iconic enemies from the first game. They are bladed brutes which are reputed to stand eight foot tall, and unlike the first game, some wear armour and come in different colours, but are encountered only occasionally.

Besides this, it’s said that the ending bears some resemblance to the first game. And the company name “Liandri” crops up as well, and there is a glimpse near the beginning of the game which shows you how the Unreal Tournament was formed.

Unlike UT, Unreal II was initially singleplayer only until Unreal II: eXpanded MultiPlayer was released.

In the game you take the part of John Dalton, a former marine and now Marshal with the TCA (Terran Colonial Authority). Basically he’s like a police officer instead of a soldier, and in the game you go from planet to planet to retrieve pieces of an artefact. And along the way he fights different enemies, but also including others, mainly mercenaries or aliens of some sort. You even get to team with others against enemies at some points in the game.

                   Aida: the first officer and prime piece of ass on the ship

But to me the among some of the most interesting parts of the game were aboard the ship, the “Atlantis”, with the other characters, Ne’ban, Isaak, and Aida – the eye candy in the game. You could chat to them, and find out their insecurities as well as information on the game’s locations and weapons that you might not have otherwise have known. You find out that Aida has a strong dislike for Isaak because of a past incident that took place.

[spoiler alert] In fact, I was quite devastated at the end, after becoming attached to these characters, and having to watch them die. [spoiler alert]

Apart from all this, I imagine that the graphics in the game were a major selling point. It might not have been as highly regarded as its predecessor or the Unreal Tournament spin-off series, but it was still quite enjoyable to play, although quite short, linear, and little in the way or replayability, even though I did play it through two or three times years ago.

It wasn’t a bad game, but just kind of unrelated and disconnected in a way, because of its story. It’s still something that hasn’t been rectified to this day seeing as there’s been no Unreal 3 released, since Epic went on to focus on Unreal Tournament and Gears of War titles.

You can pick up Unreal II: The Awakening here if you want to play a classic.

Apocalypse Then – Unreal II: The Awakening

Apocalypse Then: Unreal Tournament

10 Years of Unreal Tournament

On this day in gaming, on November 30, 1999, Unreal Tournament, a title developed by Epic Games and Digital Extremes, was released. It was published by GT Interactive (now Atari) and appeared on numerous platforms like Windows, Mac, Mac OS X, PS2, Linux, and the Dreamcast.

Unreal Tournament, Despite being an FPS, was one of the first games geared more towards multiplayer, with a tacked-on singleplayer on the side, much like its chief competitor, Quake III Arena by id Software. Instead of a true sequel to Unreal, the Unreal Tournament franchise took off and there have been several sequels which pretty much all look the same to me.

Unreal II: The Awakening, although not a true sequel to Unreal, also featured a part early on in the game which pitted you against another guy in a fight. This is supposedly how the Unreal Tournament was formed, story wise.

Unreal Tournament received mainly positive reviews, especially on the PC. Console, particularly PS2, reviews were average to good. It was also featured twice as a deathmatch title at the World Cyber Games. Aspects of the game praised were the graphics (the water always looked inviting), AI, map or level design, and good weapon balance.

I remember back in school, a bunch of us would always argue over which one was better: Q3A or UT? I got the Game of the Year Edition back in 2001 or 2002, although I had played the game before this period, although probably just the demo though.

God knows why I stuck with the game for as long as I did though. I remember playing it on an old Windows 98, while friends were round, and we would take turns battling bots, or else battling each other, while listening to Linkin Park.

The singleplayer in UT featured a series of levels with different play-modes which put you against bots – AI controlled opponents.

These bots could also be used in multiplayer, while competing in different game types like Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, CTF, Domination, Last Man Standing, and Assault. One of my favourite levels, although pretty basic, was the one called Overlord, basically the game’s version of a D-Day map.

Weapons in the game continued with the alt-fire feature that was seen in Unreal, and you could use a pistol (Enforcer), two pistols (guns Akimbo), the ASMD, minigun (my favourite), Pulse gun, and the Sniper Rifle. Some weapons also made a return from Unreal except they were renamed, like the Razorjack (renamed the Ripper), the Flak Cannon, and the Bio Rifle. Another weapon was the Impact hammer, which replaced the Dispersion pistol, and with it you could literally blow someone’s head off. You could also use it to do the equivalent of rocket jumps.

The game is known for having inspired many, many mods over the years, ranging from mutators to TCs. Also, other games have used the engine such as one incarnation of Duke Nukem Forever a long time ago. Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix also considered using the engine, but went with Q3A’s. Another game which used this engine was Rune, a game forgotten by time.

You can pick up Unreal Tournament here, if you want to play a classic.

Unreal Tournament at Amazon

Apocalypse Then: Unreal Tournament

Id Software’s Rage to Have Classic id Game Weaponry

Tim Willits of id Software told Total PC Gaming that when Rage comes out next year, it will not only have some brand new toys to play with as far as guns go, but will also feature some classic id weapons too.

"Rage will feature many of the classic id Software weapons of the past, along with some new and unique Rage weapons as well. We are focusing not only on great weapons, but on engineering items that will add to the variety of gameplay. We will also have multiple ammo types available for a number of the weapons."

“We are focusing not only on great weapons, but on items that will add to the variety of gameplay”

"Rage also has an economy where you are allowed to choose how you spend your money earned through combat and racing,"

"You might decide you love the wingstick (a boomerang-cum-shuriken weapon) and stock up on them, or you may feel inclined to purchase parts to build more sentry bots or to keep your armour upgraded and repaired."

One thing I’ve noticed with id games is that one thing they didn’t do that the Unreal series has done all along, is implement alt-fire with their weapons. You might want to put that in there too, Tim.

So anyway, I went and got a list of all of the classic id games’ weapons, from Wolfenstein 3D, the Doom series and the Quake series.

Games that weren’t directly developed by id, like Quake 4 and Wolfenstein, don’t count for the purposes of this list. Remember, classic id weapons.

So here’s the list. Leave your favourites in the comments if you wish. There will also be a poll on your favourite classic id weapon (the best new guns from each game), which you can find at the bottom of the right sidebar.

Axe (Quake)
Berserk (technically not a weapon, but a powerup) - (Doom series)
BFG 9000 or 10K (Doom and Quake series)
Blaster (Quake II)
Chaingun (Pretty much every id game in some form)
Chainsaw (Doom series)
Fists (Doom 3)
Flashlight (Doom 3)
Gauntlet (Quake III)
Grenade (Quake II& Doom 3)
Grenade launcher (Quake series)
Hyperblaster (Quake II)
Knife (Wolf3D)
Knuckledusters (Doom and Doom II)
Lightning gun (Quake I and III)
Luger (from Wolf 3D)
Machinegun (Quake II, III and Doom 3)
MP 40 sub machinegun (from Wolf 3D)
Nailgun (Quake)
Pistol (Doom)
Plasma gun (Doom series and Quake III)
Railgun (Quake II and III)
Rocket launcher (Doom and Quake series, used by boss enemies in Wolf3D)
Shotgun (every id game except Wolf 3D)
Soul Cube (Doom III)
Super Nailgun (Quake)
Super or Double Barreled Shotgun (Doom and Quake series)

I would personally like to see the super shotgun and of course the BFG in some form. To leave these out would be folly, as well as the chainsaw perhaps, and the Chaingun… and the Railgun. Damn, just put them all in there! Borderlands did! Well, their weapons were mainly randomly generated, but still.

By the way: is it just me, or does that guy with the hat remind you John Romero, just a little, around the eyes? I guess the classic weapons aren't the only thing making a return.

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http://www.thatvideogameblog.com
http://www.nowgamer.com/news/1802/xxx

Id Software’s Rage to Have Classic id Game Weaponry

Apocalypse Then: Unreal

Developers: Epic Games, Digital Extremes
Publisher: GT Interactive (now owned by Atari)
Engine: Unreal Engine
Platforms: Mac OS, Microsoft Windows
Release date: May 22, 1998

On this day in gaming, in 1998, Unreal was released.

It was hailed as revolutionary due to its advanced graphics, competent enemy AI, and for its use of music modules rather than MIDI or CD audio. It was also hailed as a “Quake killer”, due to being released in the same six months as Quake II, and people claiming it was technically superior engine wise to id Tech 2 (Quake II).

The game has had one expansion pack, Unreal Mission Pack I: Return to Na Pali, which would be bundled together with Unreal later as Unreal Gold, an official map pack called the Fusion Map Pack which can be downloaded from the internet for free, a sequel in Unreal 2: The Awakening, and spawned a series of games in another series, starting with Unreal Tournament.

In addition to this, Unreal ended up spawning a series of Unreal engines by Epic Games, now at Unreal Engine 3. Many games have ended up using these engines, notably the Brothers in Arms series, Rainbow Six series, and Duke Nukem Forever.

Companies such as Unreal FX took their name from the game.

Not bad for a game developed in a garage for over three years.

Games also released on this day:

Red Faction- May 22, 2001 (PS2)

Apocalypse Then: Unreal

Games I want: Unreal 3

I was wondering about something the other day, and I decided to investigate a little bit: will there be an Unreal 3?

The answer for the moment seems to be “no”, with no official plans that anyone knows off, and if you Google it, you’ll most likely be inundated with results that show Unreal Tournament 3. Not only this, but on some forums, if you look for Unreal 3 threads, you’ll get some humans, that even after explaining your case, will still assume that you obviously mean Unreal Tournament 3 and not Unreal 3 without the Tournament. They just assume that you must automatically mean that, and that you’re a noob for not including the “T” word in there.

What I mean, and I’m sure others will want to clarify this to other people too, is that I want to see a sequel to Unreal, the first game, or possibly Unreal II: The Awakening.

It’s been years, and it’s a shame that this seems to be the case: that Unreal branched off into another franchise, that being the Unreal Tournament series, and that nobody has even bothered to think about the single-player anymore, with it essentially having just become one of those multi-player games that you find a new release of every other year. Why? Probably because multi-player games are more popular; in fact, I wouldn’t be that surprised if they announced an Unreal MMORPG sooner that an Unreal 3.

What happened to Unreal, the “Quake killer”, the game that “ate Quake II as a snack”? It had an excellent story and the graphics were great for its time. Strangely, I even dreamed of Unreal before I even played it. In the dream I had that ripper weapon that shoots the blades out everywhere and they can bounce off of walls and decapitate enemies. The original game was even left on a cliffhanger when the player was left drifting in space in an escape pod of sorts.

I think a great solution that would satisfy everyone is this: develop Unreal 3 along with an Unreal Tournament 2010 (you know there will be), and released them together. That way, people will buy it for the multi-player game and they can get this other thing called a ‘single-player game’ as well.

One studio could focus on Unreal Tournament 3 and another Unreal 3, so we don’t get any of that, “Oh, the single-player was just an afterthought”- just like Quake 3 or Unreal Tournament.

And just like in the forums, if anyone says, “Yeah, Unreal 3 is out now”, meaning Unreal Tournament 3, I’m going to scream as loudly as possible over the internet at them.

The above image can be found here in full resolution.

Games I want: Unreal 3

On This Day- Unreal II: The Awakening

Six years ago, Unreal II: The Awakening was released. Although the name suggests that it is the sequel to Unreal, the game itself offers little in the way of continuation of the original. The only real remnant from the first game is the Skaarj, those funny lizard-like creatures with blades coming out of their hands, a total rip-off of Wolverine.

Despite this, it is a great game to play, and I must have played and clocked it a few times. Aida, the intelligence officer, was certainly a motivator in this regard.

On This Day- Unreal II: The Awakening