Unreal Championship

 Xbox
  • Publisher: Atari
  • Release Date: Sep 24, 2002
Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 29 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 29
  3. Negative: 0 out of 29
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  1. Gaming Age
    100
    It is online gaming at it's best, and nothing really compares. You can single handedly blow away your enemies, team up, or whatever, it's up to you.
  2. Gamezilla!
    96
    Some obvious effort was put into the AI with enemies doing more than just the given "stand and fire." Often you'll see them working as a team or running when out gunned.
  3. IGN
    92
    The game is flat out fun like a good online shooter should be, it's as simple as that.
  5. GameZone
    90
    There's nothing quite like training your crosshairs on a friend's head, squeezing the trigger, and watching all sorts of brain matter becoming wall decorations, and the multiplayer mode quenches this thirst like ice cold lemonade on a sticky summer afternoon.
  6. TotalGames.net
    90
    It's strange but there is something even more satisfying about capping a stranger on Live than there is killing a friend sat next to you.
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  7. Electric Playground
    90
    A game that makes you feel like you're sucking on a IV drip that's pumping adrenalin.
  8. TeamXbox
    90
    I was encaptured by this game right from the start and I haven't put it down since I received my copy.
  9. Yahoo!
    90
    Regardless of whether you're online or off, split-screen or undivided, the game looks fantastic.
  10. Cheat Code Central
    90
    Surprisingly, Digital Extremes has managed to make this game anything but boring. After every match you just want to try to do better.
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  11. Game Informer
    88
    The controller simply lacks the precision to effectively transform a dodge into a flip, and then nail the enemy. [Jan 2003, p.110]
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  12. Gamers' Temple
    88
    Once the poor bot AI is replaced by human players, the game instantly becomes more challenging and thrilling.
  13. Armchair Empire
    87
    Making the experience unbelievably rapturous is the Xbox Live headset communicator.
  14. GameSpot
    85
    A great game that is filled with action-packed, bloody shootouts that are especially fun online, but it lacks polish in a few spots.
  15. Electronic Gaming Monthly
    85
    With smooth graphics, fast action, and intuitive controls, plus Xbox Live or network multiplayer matches, UC's easy to enjoy. [Jan 2003, p.85]
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  16. Game Revolution
    83
    Unreal Championship is like a well-worn pair of sneakers that you threw in the wash - underneath the fresh polish is a comfortable fit, but it's just the same old pair of shoes. Lucky for us, these shoes still fit.
  17. XenGamers
    83
    A choppy framerate and a low resolution display (for those of us who haven't yet upgraded to HDTV) keep UC from matching its PC counterpart.
  18. GameSpy
    81
    Let's not kid ourselves here, UC has little to offer a player without a broadband connection to the Internet.
  19. Eurogamer
    80
    It's by no means anything remotely original, borrowing almost all of its ideas from a three year old PC game, but in terms of console fragfoolery, it's up there with the best of them for visual splendour and all out intense action.
  20. Total Video Games
    80
    The only real disappointment with Unreal Championship is that there's nothing new; it is essentially "UT2003" for the home consoles.
  21. Games Radar
    80
    As a stand-alone game, Unreal Champ doesn't offer the same package as "Halo" or "TimeSplitters 2." [Offline review by XGamer]
  22. Official Xbox Magazine
    80
    It's especially frustrating because the gameplay underneath the flawed framerate is excellent. [Jan 2003, p.64]
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  23. Computer and Video Games
    80
    In singleplayer mode there's a decent selection of games to get you in the mood, but it's playing with your mates that'll really get you amped up, as you fight it out in bloody broadband battles with furious futuristic weapons.
  24. G4 TV
    80
    The single player, as compelling as it is, isn't a very good reason to buy this game. Even four-player split screen isn't a good-enough reason. But for multiplayer on your Xbox, Unreal Championship can't be beat.
  25. GamePen
    80
    Stupid, brainless fun for the frag-inclined masses, but--no--it's not "Halo Live."
  26. Xbox Nation Magazine
    70
    Strafing and running is fine - even more natural feeling than when a keyboard is used - but the Xbox controller's right analog stick just can't compete with the precision of a mouse. [Winter 2002, p.84]
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  27. GameCritics
    70
    A strong shooter with enough depth and variety to stay addicting for a criminally long time.
  28. Play Magazine
    70
    The game needs some touching up, and the framerate kinda sucks. But so good are the multiplayer online battles - don't you dare buy this for solo action - that any of the game's undeniable deficiencies become quickly forgotten. [Feb 2003, p.91]
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  29. Weekly Famitsu
    68
    7 / 6 / 6 / 8 - 27 [Vol 788; 23 Jan 2004]
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  30. netjak
    59
    Just another example of a PC to Console port that just doesn't cut the mustard.
    All this publication's reviews

Awards & Rankings

25
#25 Best Xbox Game of 2002
21
#21 Most Discussed Xbox Game of 2002

User Reviews

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User Score
8.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 21 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 21
  3. Negative: 0 out of 21
  1. PearceO.
    Apr 2, 2007
    8
    WOW! Really intense game. Really fast game play. Not much different than the sega version though. Great game otherwise.
  2. Alex
    Jun 17, 2005
    7
    Fun, but the single player is somewhat lacking, and Live is just too laggy to be fun anymore. best played with friends who are over at yourFun, but the single player is somewhat lacking, and Live is just too laggy to be fun anymore. best played with friends who are over at your house. definitely a try before you buy title.… Full Review »
  3. StevenP.
    Sep 10, 2004
    9
    The Unreal tournament series is back! This time it?s out for the X-box game console, with more action, gore, and more entrainment. Unreal The Unreal tournament series is back! This time it?s out for the X-box game console, with more action, gore, and more entrainment. Unreal Championship delivers non stop addictive fun from the moment you begin the game. Choose your character from a wide selection, find the enemy, and kill! This fast paced first person shooter makes your other games obsolete. It time to say ?Hello? to Unreal Championships and ?Bye bye? to the likes of Doom and Quake because Unreal Championships is a real Doom and Quake killer. I went out yesterday to buy another game for my Xbox. I went to the cash converters shop in town and I saw Unreal championships on the shelf. I asked myself a question, should I buy this game? The answer was definitely yes! I bought it for a mere £10 the game was second hand though. That didn?t matter I got a great deal and to make sure I wasn?t conned, I went away with the game. I looked at the Unreal championships reviews on the internet and to my amazement it had a fantastic score. I was at that point very pleased with myself. I played the game at home, firstly to see if the game wasn?t damaged and secondly to see for myself on how good it is. From the first ever moment of play I have to say, that Unreal Championship played like a dream. It was really that good. Graphics: I thought the graphics were stunning. Clear as vodka they were smooth and good looking, but not completely photorealistic. If you walked up to a wall in the game there wasn?t a ?jaggered edge? in sight, everything was near to perfection. The graphical detail was so brilliant that at one point I actually thought that I was really walking up and down long dark corridors shooting other enemies that I encountered; to sum up the graphics could blind the likes of Quake?s graphics 100 times over. 9/10 SFX: The sound effects in the game are realistic. I like the chain gun because when you fire it, it sounds very realistic. It?s more powerful and fires much faster. It would certainly put the likes of Doom?s and Quakes chain gun to shame and make them sound like pea shooters. Great SFX is one of Unreal Championships fortes. 10/10 Background music: It really as to be said that this game as got eerie music that is full of tension which somehow seems to suck the gamer into the game. I found while I was playing the game this did happen while I was playing. 8/10 Game play: Unreal Championship proves to have top class game play which will keep you on the gaming bliss. The game is fantastic and so addictive that I honestly could not stay off it more than a minute. Unreal Championships is no slide on ice either, because it is very challenging to play. You can choose the right difficulty setting which suit you. The choices are: Novice, Skilled, Masterful, and God like. I played the game on skilled mode and decided that I had no chance of stopping my chosen character from dying, but I wasn?t frustrated by this at all. It?s like Doom where you can just go all out gun ho on your enemies with a chain gun, but it is much harder because there is no BFG 9000 to save your butt and your chain gun only carries a maximum of 250 rounds, so use your rounds wisely when fighting other enemies, plus health packs are so rare in the game, so using your wits is more important than a gun ho mind. Friendly fire is another aspect of the game which is different because you can kill your friends which adds to the game play and makes in more challenging. So what ever you do, don?t shoot and kill your allies in the game because they will re spawn back in the level and join the opposition so be careful. You can also damage yourself by falling or firing a rocket launcher at a wall at close range. Unreal Championship is not original and there?s no real story line in the game which is a bit of a let down. But Unreal Championship?s game play is so full of choice because you can either play the Tournament, where you get to fight other teams controlled by the computer, or you can just play the quick battle mode which I felt was more fun and varied in many ways. 9/10 Value for money: I paid less for this game because it was second hand but if I was to buy it brand new and at the full price of £29.99 I would still say this game is excellent value for money. It is the variation and the rather challenging and addictive game play which earns this game the brownie points for excellent value of money. 10/10 Game interface: Unreal Championship works very well on the Xbox because you can easily get to know the controls without to much hassle and if this problem still persists then you can adjust the controls to suit you. I found that this was a good idea because it meant that I didn?t have to spend some of my life reading the boring manual which meant that I could just step in the action immediately. Saving the game is a great idea and works well in the game, especially when you are playing through the tournament mode. You can save your game by setting up a profile. It will then save your chosen character and any other data which will be recorded each time you complete a level. Unreal Championship supports dual shock which not only works well it also enhances the feel of the game play. This is handy when playing the game because you know when your character is hurt by any attack from the enemy. Multi player is super because you can play up to four players at the same time on split screen. This mode works like some thing from heaven because there?s no more hassle with buying more equipment just to play a multi player game and there?s still more because the game supports the internet which means you can play up to 14 players on line. There?s a catch through. The first is that you have to register with Xbox live which will cost you some money to buy the modem and then there?s the hassle of installing it to your phone line. The next problem is then getting the people on line to play the game with you. While this is happening you will receive a hefty phone bill. The question is: Is it worth it? I will say yes if you can handle the pressure of connecting the modem to your phone line and then if you are rich enough to afford the big phone bill. 7/10 This is a game with full of promise but it full fills its promises 100% by delivering the goods. This game is a Doom destroyer and classic in the making. Quake be afraid BE VERY AFRAID! Or be quaked to death by this game. A stunna and a most buy for every serous gamer. … Full Review »
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