Description

The prison transport ship Vortex Rikers was on its way to a penal moon colony when an unplanned course change led to it being caught in the gravity well of an uncharted planet. Not many aboard survive the crash landing, and those that do find this new world to be one full of strange beauty, but also many dangers. Not only is it full of dangerous wildlife, but it is the setting of a conflict between the ruthless Skaarj and the peaceful natives they have enslaved, the Nali. As one of the surviving prisoners, the player must escape the wreckage of the Rikers, navigate through Nali villages and temples, Skaarj mines and refineries, other crashed ships and many more locations, with the ultimate goal of finding a way off the planet.

Unreal is a first-person shooter. Its story is mostly told through short text messages, deciphered via a translator from computer stations, personal logs, books and signs. The game features a weapon arsenal of ten guns, each with two firing modes. Besides standard pistols, rocket/grenade launchers, miniguns and sniper rifles, there are such items as the Bio Rifle, which fires blobs of toxic waste which stick to walls and enemies, the Flak Cannon, which sprays deadly shrapnel, and the Razorjack, which shoots spinning blades that ricochet off walls. The secondary firing mode might allow a charged shot, sacrifice accuracy for speed, or even make it possible to guide the projectile.

The game also includes a multiplayer mode. Ten deathmatch maps are available for free-for-all, team deathmatch or a variant called "King of the Hill". A special mode is DarkMatch, for which one special map is available. In DarkMatch, the map is without any illumination, and players must use a searchlight to see anything. The deathmatch modes can be played against bots, and the game also offers a cooperative version of the single player campaign.

Unreal introduced the game engine of the same name, which employs such tricks as colored lighting, curved surfaces, reflective surfaces, "detail" textures (via multi-texturing), and real time interactive mixed digital music.

Alternate Titles

  • "虚幻" -- Chinese title (simplified)

Part of the Following Groups


Merchant Title   Price  
amazon.com
Unreal    
GOG
Unreal Gold $9.99  
Unreal 2: The Awakening SE $9.99  
ebay.com
Unreal    
Not an American user?

User Reviews

Unreal is strange, and sadly it doesn't hold up as well as its offspring. Windows Kadath Bird (42)
Big & beautiful, but not very addictive. Windows Roedie (5139)
An immersing experience Windows Antti Salminen (66)
Tough & Beautiful Windows Santa Bronze Star Contributing Member (847)
Fantastic graphics, not much game. Windows Ashley Pomeroy (227)
A milestone in PC gaming. Windows Tomer Gabel Bronze Star Contributing Member (4476)
"Yup, it's Unreal..." Windows Unrealist (180)

The Press Says

PC Games (Germany) Windows Jul 01, 1998 92 out of 100 92
Electric Games Windows 1998 4.5 Stars4.5 Stars4.5 Stars4.5 Stars4.5 Stars 90
PC Player (Denmark) Windows 1998 9 out of 10 90
IGN Windows Aug 12, 1998 9 out of 10 90
Mac Gamer Macintosh 1999 90 out of 100 90
Reset Windows Jul, 1998 9 out of 10 90
PC Player (Germany) Windows Jun, 1998 87 out of 100 87
GameSpot Windows Jun 10, 1998 8.4 out of 10 84
Game Revolution Windows Jun 05, 2004 B+ 83
AppleLinks.Com Macintosh Jan 25, 1999 4 Stars4 Stars4 Stars4 Stars4 Stars 80

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Trivia

The Unreal engine took 4 years to design. It had several features that weren't included in the Quake II engine.

Volumetric Lighting: An effect for generating fog, smoke or plasma. It was used in great effect for obscuring view.

Dynamic Lighting: A real time render of colored lights. You could mix colored light sources to produce other colors. You also could see moving shadows.


This entry was contributed by Trixter Bronze Star Contributing Member (8866) and Ace of Sevens (4291)
 

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