In May 2020, Epic Games revealed Unreal Engine 5. Showing off some incredibly realistic shadow-mapping, architectural geometry, and impressive facial animations, this initial Unreal Engine 5 tech demo blew gamers away. In 2021, developers began using an early build of Unreal Engine 5, and in 2022 games are officially using Unreal Engine 5.The Matrix Awakensacted as a wonderful introduction to this new tech, andFortniteChapter 4’s new graphics are surprisingly impressive. But there’s one game series that’s always been used to showcase the Unreal Engine’s capabilities, so it’s time forUnreal Tournamentto make a comeback.
Released back in 1998, thefirst game in the series titledUnrealwas a first-person shooter designed solely to compete withDoomandQuake. Using the first Unreal Engine, this game received high praise thanks to its graphics, sound quality, and level design. A multiplayer spin-off,Unreal Tournament, released soon after, and with every new iteration of the Unreal Engine a newUnreal Tournamenthas soon followed.
RELATED:Fortnite’s Next Gen Graphics are Chapter 4’s Best Feature
It’s Time for a New Unreal Tournament Game
The firstUnreal Tournamentreleased in 1999 for the PC, Dreamcast, and PlayStation 2, and it was an instant hit. Going head-to-head withQuake 3: Arena,Unreal Tournamentmanaged to stand out from its competition by having superior graphics, map design, customization, and gunplay. Pitting large lobbies of players against each other,Unreal Tournamenttruly showed what the Unreal Engine was capable of, using real-time multiplayer to push the limits of late 1990s gaming.
Unreal Tournament 2003would release at the end of 2002, but unlike its predecessor this entry only came to PC.Unreal Tournament 2003was another success, with critics gushing about the game’s graphics and technical performance on the then-new Unreal Engine 2. Releasing just a year later,Unreal Tournament 2004wasn’t used to showcase an all-new engine, but was instead used to show off the refined Unreal Engine 2.5. Despite coming out in the same year asHalo 2andHalf-Life 2,Unreal Tournament 2004was still revered by both fans and critics, showing just how impressive this series can be.
With the release of Unreal Engine 3 in 2007, a newUnreal Tournamentwas sure to follow. TitledUnreal Tournament 3(though it’s technically the fourth entry in the series), this game showed just how well the Unreal Engine could work on modern consoles, with a PS3 and Xbox 360 port receiving just as much praise as their PC counterpart. In 2014, theUnreal Tournamentseries would receive its last entry. Simply calledUnreal Tournament, this Unreal Engine 4-powered title was released for free in its alpha, but development ended in 2017 asEpic Games shifted focus toFortnite.
With Unreal Engine 5 just getting on its feet, now is the perfect time for a newUnreal Tournamentgame. Nostalgia is always a powerful factor, and Epic Games has this popular IP sitting dormant. On top of that, the retro arena shooter genre is making a bit of a comeback right now, thanks mostly tothe rebootedDoomseries, so a newUnreal Tournamentwould have a larger audience than the previous 2014 entry. AnUnreal Tournamentgame has always been used to show just what the Unreal Engine can do, and with games using the latest engine taking a while to release, it’s the perfect time for a newUnreal Tournament.
