Dec 21, 2007 The first user-created content for the PS3 version of Unreal Tournament III has hit the internet. Deathmatch map DM-Shrine has been created by a bloke from Nottingham, and is described as a "small map designed for close-quarters combat" and supports two to six players. DM-Shrine is hosted on FileFront, which has details on how to get the map up and running on PS3 UTIII once it's downloaded. User-created content such as this has traditionally been the stomping ground of the PC, ... » Read More

As Epic explained on its forums delays dotting the i's and crossing the t's held up the tools needed for modders to make their content PS3 compatible. While it usually takes a little while for the mod scene to really cranking anyway, that sparked some disappointment that PS3 gamers wouldn't be able to start adding user-created mods to their game right out of the box.

The public release of those tools remains in limbo (don't worry; it shouldn't be too long 1UP's sources say). In the meantime, Epic themselves have stepped in and using their developer version of the tool have packaged up a surprise Holiday treat for PS3 UT3 gamers. The first ever user-created, not to mention free, map for Unreal Tournament 3 on PS3 is DM-Shrine by Thomas Browett, who goes by the name Setheran on the official UT3 forums.
» Read More 

Who doesn't like shooting things? PS3 had more than its fair share of bullets and explosions. Which games made you more of a man this year?

And the nominees for PS3 Fanboy - Best Shooter of 2007 are:

Call of Duty 4
The Orange Box
Unreal Tournament III
» Read More 

CVG reports:

"Jim Brown, lead level designer at Epic Games, has been talking about the PS3 version of Unreal Tournament III and the possability of getting some Home features in there at some point.

When asked by PSU if there are any plans to integrate Unreal Tournament III into PlayStation Home, Brown replied: "There appears to be some great options for trophies, achievements, matchmaking, demos, and distribution of user-made content, just to name a few. We're excited to see how things turn out, but it's a little too early to really anticipate how far we'll be able to go with it."

Fingers crossed that means there'll be some features worked in. As far as a European release goes, Brown could only say, "We don't have an exact date yet but we expect it to be early in the new year." Sooner rather than later, we hope."
» Read More 

This year multiplayer gaming has been taken to a new level with quality online experiences that are also great fun in an offline, living-room setting. Shooters occupy the majority of our nominations this year, but they're also joined a couple of the most innovative multiplayer titles ps3fanboy has seen to date.
» Read More 

Unreal Tournament III sales may not be strong on the PC, but reviews have been positive for the latest installment in the frag-fest series. It appears outlets -- deviating from standard practice -- are trying to view the PC and PS3 versions under different lenses. The PC version (per usual) is the better option if you've got the rig to handle the Unreal Engine 3 game, but the PS3 version wasn't a toss-away port here. The reviews below are from the PS3 version of the UT3 reviews.
» Read More 

Assasins Creed, GTA IV, Maps, November Sales, Wii Voice chat and more, all located in this weeks MyArcadePlanet Game Report. Covering Monday December 10th - Friday December 14th, 2007.
» Read More 

GamerNode writes:

"Seems that in the month of November, only 39,995 units of Unreal Tournament 3 for the PC were sold in the US. The expected number of units to be shifted was 70,000 so to only move half that number is not a good sign.
Crysis on the other hand, which was expected to move just over 68,000 units, ended up with over 86,000 units being shifted. Of course all of these numbers pale in comparison to the console sales, so hopefully with the release of UT3 on the PS3 a few days ago, and a 360 release sometime next year, the sales for UT3 will be a lot larger. Christmas could also help to push UT3 PC sales up."
» Read More 

CustomPC writes:

"GPU physics could be achieved on a single graphics card, and would make a big difference to benchmarks. Even though talks between Havok and ATI have broken down since Intel bought the company, GPU physics were in development for quite some time before that, and it looks as though Unreal Tournament III could even support GPU physics with a future update.

An anonymous source who works in game development told Custom PC that 'the most interesting stuff we've done recently is with a "triple A" game, that's shipping now actually, which is physics-accelerated on GPUs, and in fact in the engine that the game is built upon.'

So which 'triple A' game would this be? 'I'm not allowed to name things at the moment,' said our source, 'which is why I'm being a little bit evasive, but both the engine and the game benefit from GPU acceleration in physics for the eye candy stuff, and it has a very significant benefit in benchmarks, but the developer hasn't yet made a public statement about that.' However, they did say that you could buy the game now."
» Read More 

Dec 13, 2007 The US retail version of Unreal Tournament III (for PS3) is without the much-hyped PC mod support due to "legal/release issues," says Epic programmer Josh Adams. Much noise was made about the PS3 being an open development, allowing for UT III to support PC mods on the console. Yet the final game has sneakily turned up without its mod support features, because they weren't ready on time. "The PS3 mod tools aren't quite ready yet," Adams confessed, after baffled gamers tried their ... » Read More

From the official UT forum, regarding split screen coop on the ps3 version:

"We're aware that some of our customers wanted split screen for the PS3 version of UT3. We hear you and will evaluate the feature for possible future updates to UT3."

We'll have to wait and see what Midway and the unreal team has in store for ps3 gamers.
» Read More 

From Gaming Bits:

"Day one of Unreal Tournament III for the PS3 isn't without a few bumps. One of the more significant bumps is one of the most touted features of UT3 on the PS3: support of mods. Epic Games is aware of a few problems that popped up in the first day of Unreal Tournament III on the PlayStation 3.

So it looks like there is some refining to do. Remember the game was pushed up to make a December 2007 release instead of January 2008. So we inevitably face glitches. The good news is Epic is listening and working on the issues. I did experience the same issues with voice chat. Multiplayer gameplay last night was smooth. This morning it was significantly laggy. We'll keep you posted on any updates or when a patch is coming."

Planet Unreal has posted on the issues.
» Read More 

Ars Technica reports on December 11, 2007:

The PlayStation 3 version of Unreal Tournament 3 has been the talk of the town for being one of the first ever console games to feature modding. Though you'll need the PC version to make use of the editor for maps, models, and so forth, having access to player-created content is still a huge feature. Gamers have been testing these functions out, but have learned that the PS3 version - which hit stores across North America today - cannot accept mods yet.

Ars Technica's tests show that the Unreal Engine 3 Editor has no way of exporting content specifically for the PS3 yet. There is also no utility to package the various .ini, .ut3, and .u files necessary for other mods into a format that can be extracted and installed by the game's import content function. Though the instruction manual contains some basic instructions, even the printed reference page is currently unavailable. This may be a downer for some who were looking to get mods going right from the start.

Epic Games team member Josh Adams has explained the problem on the official forums.
» Read More 

Dec 11, 2007 Epic's first patch for Unreal Tournament III (PC) has finally been released into the wild. Bringing the game up to v1.1, the patch contains a huge number of fixes, addressing issues with gameplay, AI, demo playback, server browser, user interface, HUD, blah blah blah... A complete breakdown of what the patch patches up is available on FileRadar. Unreal Tournament III released on PC last month, and you can see what we thought of it here. A PS3 version is hitting Europe next ... » Read More

The following is the Gamedaily review for UT3, PS3 version. Graphics are good. The AI is also good and is able to give the players quite a game from what it sounds like. Say that this is a fine addition to the PS3 and is comparable to the PC version. Sixaxis support is also included for vehicles but can be turned off.

"The real significance with Unreal Tournament III on the PS3, however, is the Community support."

Final Score: 9/10.
» Read More 

Warm Gun, a futuristic wild west shooter, combines the favorite motifs of the classic western genre with the scraps of an obliterated technocracy. The team behind this project are beginning development of this game while searching for more talented developers ranging from programmers to modelers. This game will be in the form a free downloadable mod for UT3 which, in that case, will enable this experience to be shared solely between PC and PS3 owners. This is one of the many projects to come which will be entering the Make Something Unreal contest. For more info on Warm Gun, as well as concepts of the characters to be seen in the game, check it all out through the link below.
» Read More 

Unreal Tournament III finally gets released in the US tomorrow and one of its developers, Art Production Manager Chris Mielke, has posted some tips on the PlayStation.Blog. So if you're picking the game up at any point, make sure you take note of Chris' advice. While the main bulk of his post is a walkthrough of the level "Suspense" he also includes some random pearls of wisdom. Check out the blog post and try to osmose as much information as you can in readiness of tomorrow.
» Read More 

The simExchange has released their monthly industry report.

Key Topics:
- Video games to break record sales
- PC Games continue to cannibalize each other
- Assassin's Creed - the woes of new intellectual property
- Rock Band - Too many hands in the cookie jar
- Wii - Can it handle M-rated titles

Analyst Jesse Divnich comments on sales:

"The prediction market expects November's software sales to be $1.15 billion which is a 42% increase over sales last year... [Software Sales] will be the highest ever seen in the month of November and the first time November sales will break $1 billion... Combining The NPD Group's estimates in October, retailers will net over $4.04 billion in software sales this holiday quarter, a 39% increase year-over-year-a record as well. "
» Read More 

Midway Games, a leading interactive entertainment publisher and developer, and world-renowned developer Epic Games, Inc. today announced that the highly anticipated and award-winning Unreal Tournament 3 game has shipped for PS3 computer entertainment system.
» Read More 

US Games
*Unreal Tournament III
*Blacksite: Area 51
*The Orange Box

EU Games
*The Orange Box
*Oblivion: Game of the Year edition

Asian Games
*Gran Turismo 5: Prologue
» Read More