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LGR - Unreal 20th Anniversary Retrospective (Patreon)

Published:
2018-05-14 15:19:00
Edited:
2018-05-15 00:16:20
Imported:
2021-03

Content

When I set out to do this a while back, I can't say I planned to make this a half-hour monstrosity of a review video. 

Whatever man, this game is rad and I had things to say.  
Hope you enjoy the early viewing before it turns 20 on May 22nd! 

Files

Unreal 1998 PC Game Retrospective

taking a look back at the 1998 first person shooter from Epic

Comments

Anonymous

Dude, thank you so much for covering this game. It was such a big part of my youth moving into the Internet and online video games. At the age of 7 and 8 I hosted my own servers, made my own maps and gradually learned English with this game. The memories, friends and experiences I made in this game I'll cherish for as long as I live. It's tragic to me that it's so overshadowed by Unreal Tournament because this game has so much to offer.

Anonymous

Facing Worlds..... Local LAN....... Just a race between me and my cousin to see who can get 999 kills....

Anonymous

So happy you made this video! Btw, near the beginning it seems like you say that quake 1 was only 8 months old when Unreal was released but from what I can see it was 23 months old at that point but I might be wrong tho... 😜

Anonymous

...also, I would go totally nuts blown for a Falcon Northwest Mach V review!!

LazyGameReviews
>>12311528

You bet, I'm glad it's appreciated! Definitely a game that deserves more retro coverage, I can't believe I'm the first one (as far I know) to make an Unreal review video of this depth on YouTube.

LazyGameReviews
>>12311791

I was referring to the infamous "world reveal" article from Next Gen Magazine I was showing on-screen, which was from February of 1997.

Terry Lee

Back when this came out I was still playing Diablo and war craft 2 and StarCraft. I missed out on unreal but I discovered unreal tournament when that came out a few years later and that was great fun!

Anonymous

Just an FYI, 25:11 to 30:01 is just black, with no audio or video. Otherwise, great video!

Evan B

Ah loved this... I completely agree ..that first scene where the lights slowly go out and the scar enemy shows up for the first time.. it was genuinely frightening playing that back in the day ..Also loved the music when you first escape the ship and see the whole world that's there.. I remember playing multiplayer for years afterwards ..And being especially blown away the first time I got a 3dfx add on card and seeing how gorgeous the game now looked

Anonymous

I have always thought of Unreal as a multiplayer only game, but this campaign seems pretty rad. I can see a lot of stuff that probably inspired games like Half-Life and Halo in the world and enemy design, maybe worth playing! But could not help but noticing Total Annihilation in the GT Interactive catalog... Is it a game ya have any plans on covering?

LazyGameReviews
>>12312711

It really is such a memorable experience, especially that first half of the game. Just one wondrous thing after another, what a crazy thing to play in '98.

Anonymous

My jaw absolutely hit the floor the first time I stepped out of that ship and into the world at large. I never paid attention to the fact that Alexander Brandon did the music. That's why it was so awesome.

LazyGameReviews
>>12315486

Mr. Brandon is just awesome as a person too, he's been really friendly and supportive of LGR over the years :)

Alyxx the Rat

The reasons you listed, the level design and the enemy bulletsponges are the reasons I just can't finish this game and really get into it. I agree it looks stunning and jawdropping for its time but man... it's just so hard to love at times...

LazyGameReviews
>>12316152

The latter half is seriously a slog to get through, sadly. A nice remaster with some gameplay rebalancing would do this wonders.

Anonymous

I was too addicted to Quake 2 to give Unreal a try back in the day, and still haven't played the original yet. When Unreal Tournament came out however, I got hooked. Many hours late at night sniping noobs on Facing Worlds, blasting the incredible music that level had. My other favorite was using the low grav/instagib mods on Deck 16 in multiplayer. /edit Whats up with the 5 min of black silence at the end of the video? :)

LazyGameReviews
>>12316640

UT99 is where my true love lies with the Unreal franchise for sure. But the way I see, we'd never have that without this one so: props :) Black silence is addressed in the description above

Anonymous

This is the one and only game that has ever made me jump. I remember it clearly, playing the game at about 3am with surround sound and near the beginning of the game where the lights click off and it goes dark and then that monster deal is in front of you, it made me jump. Not even VR jump scenes do that to me now since I know something is coming and thus it doesn't "get" me, but back then, it was a whole new world.

Anonymous
>>12316680

So I posted too soon, you cover that same scene.... however I don't remember ever using flares, so it was just pure darkness into chaos.

Anonymous

Wait...the hell?! Unreal wasn't the first game released with the Unreal engine?! Wow, now THAT is some awesome game trivia right there!

Anonymous

very thorough review! i find myself agreeing with a lot of your points; i wasn't really old or geeky enough to be that into the tech of the time, but i distinctly remember a lot of things in the game that made me feel tranquil: the giant, open landscapes, coupled with the classic and sweeping tracker music made me feel really immersed in the world. i distinctly remember using the chat command to try and "talk" to some of the Nalis to help me get back home; it seems that even junior me figured out that was the goal of the game, with my limited English knowledge at the time!

Anonymous
>>12321590

however, i also agree with that the combat in the game can be rather tedious. the first half of the game is just like you said, awe-inspiring for anyone that played it back then, but going back to it a couple years ago, the combat is rather annoying because of how clever the AI can be, particularly Skaarj, and just requiring a lot more firepower to take down individually compared to how Doom and Quake enemies are dealt with for example. it really soured me on the last part of the game, as i had never reached that far before, and the amount of Skaarj and stuff you had to deal with got a bit overwhelming. it still has its place in history though, but my nostalgia isn't burning quite as strong with this game as something like Quake 2.

Anonymous

I felt strangely melancholic playing this the first time around, the eerie tracker music and shiny intro brings that back. Ditto, leaving the spaceship was quite something. Thank you very much for making such a thoughtful review - watching this transported me back to simpler times.

Anonymous

Twenty Years. Twenty! Doesn't seem that long ago to me somehow. And yet, it's true. Of all the PC games that are my all-time favorites, Unreal is at the very top of the list; from the moment I bought my copy in May 1998 I was enthralled, completely enthralled. Exploring the maps. Meeting the Nali. Admiring the views and atmosphere. Facing the Skaarj, Brutes, Krall, Mercenaries, and other enemies. Listening to the wonderful soundtrack. For me, it all adds up to an incredible (and at times, indescribable) experience. Only Doom has come close to recreating this feeling of awe. Thank you for reviewing this game Clint. And while I agree with your views, opinions and conclusions, they don't diminish the great attraction this game still has on me. If only I could find a way to transfer myself into the World of Unreal - and stay there. Permanently.

Vlaphor

Speaking of Cliff Blezinski, he released an announcement today that his company, Boss Key, was shutting down.

Anonymous

Wait Digital Extremes? That Digital Extremes from Warframe? Huh. Cool

Anonymous

I also got Unreal when it came out and I had a Voodoo card of some sort. I was also amazed. However, I never liked playing it in the normal mode because I didn't like all of the dark areas. So I often wound up playing specific maps that I liked and just playing against bots.

LazyGameReviews
>>12319292

Correct, at least not to the first to hit retail! Unreal was supposed to be out in 1`997, had early demos released online, but was delayed. So Klingon Honor Guard got the honor (pun intended.)

LazyGameReviews
>>12323661

I saw that, what odd timing. Unfortunate thing too, I lament it a bit more being that's he's local to me and we don't have a ton of game devs around here.

LazyGameReviews
>>12323670

Correct! NoClip recently did a great documentary on DE and Warframe where the devs talk about creating Epic Pinball and Unreal. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOE6528pwFc" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOE6528pwFc</a>

LazyGameReviews
>>12323726

I do not blame you there, there's so much of the game that was arguably too dark. Botmatch was fantastic though, really enjoyed going back to it for this video.

Anonymous

"So you're not DOOMED to shuffle between the two." I see what you did there... Unreal is the bane of my existence. Like you, the first time I exit outdoors is what I remember the most of the game, but for different reasons: I had to stop playing after that. When I first installed the game I too was amazed by the intro, and when I started playing, it was pure bliss. But then, a few minutes later, something happened. Something that has never happened to me before playing a videogame: I started to get motion sickness. The very first time it happened I thought I had eaten something bad, but when I tried to play again and again after calming down and feeling the same effect each time I realized it was the game that was causing it. When my character finally exited outdoors, the effect was multiplied (I assume the darkness of the inside lessened the problem), so I just had to abandon the game altogether. To this day there's a bunch of games I just cannot play because of this (Half-Life 2 is another one). Most of the time I don't have any problems, or if I do it's only after several hours of playing. But games like this one affect me almost inmediately. I know there's a bunch of different things to try to fight this issue, but I get mixed results.

LazyGameReviews
>>12324228

I have the same problem with the first Half-Life. I've only ever been able to get through the game due to modern patches that "correct" the camera and allow for a much higher FOV. There are more than likely patches or command lines for Unreal to accomplish this, but man that stuff is tricky I know :/

Kris Asick

I find it interesting how you missed System Shock yet I completely missed Unreal. In fact, I'd never even seen gameplay footage of it until just now. Granted, I didn't even have a 3D accelerator on a PC until late 1999. Going from a P120 with no GPU to a P3/600 with a Voodoo3 was quite the jump for me, but since I had friends with GPUs on their computers I kinda already knew what to expect and was just glad to finally be able to play such games at home! :)

LazyGameReviews
>>12325156

That's a big jump indeed! Got to see a friend of mine make a similar jump to a P3/700 and 32MB S4Pro+ card, those were such fun times just exploring every 3D game we could get our hands on.

LazyGameReviews
>>12323177

Quite welcome, I'm glad you enjoyed! It continues to hold a great attraction to me as well, just a special game from a special time.

Anonymous

HaHa! The days when 3D acceleration meant effects matching a combination of Chinese New Year and Carnival in Mexico City under Northern lights during a solar storm! LOL I'll be watching this one later tonight, but I'm sure glad to see it. People are kind of forgetting about where Unreal came from. I've actually got the original PC Gamer magazine where I first saw the debut in-game image of a temple surrounded by water; which I insisted at the time MUST have been pre-rendered. Haha.

Anonymous

Unreal Tournament is still my first love of this franchise, but man did I have a blast playing the Unreal campaign back in the day. It still plays so well today too, once you put yourself in that time period and let yourself get immersed into the graphics as they are, you just have a dang good time.

neuroflare

Man, I love unreal and UT so much. You can tell based on the avatar I've been using since as early as 2000 :D Used to make weapon mutators for UT, back when I wanted to be a game developer. I miss those days, beyond unreal had such a fantastic community back then.

Anonymous

While Unreal was a great looking game for its time, does anything really compare to how it felt when Doom first came on the scene? I don't think I ever got the same rush as I did back then. Which is a shame.

Anonymous

Never played since FPS wasn’t my thing, it damn I forgot how nice this game looked at the time

Anonymous

UNREAL! Mmmm... my first entry back into PC back in 1997 after being "offline" for years (we didn't have much money and couldn't afford having a both an expensive PC AND a professional synth/keyboard at the same time. Being a musician I of course chose the musically direction at the time). But at this point in time my mom's school had an offer of an Zenith Data Systems or Bull computing if you will (Clint, did you do a piece on this PC company already?) desktop PII 266 MHz for a super bargain of NOK 8000,- back then! :D I remember buying Unreal several months before getting the actual PC and drooling over the box and manual. Finally getting the machine and setting it up and running it in Software rendering mode - it still blew my mind with its awesome atmosphere... but I soon sprung for my fist Righteous 3D VoodooII 12MB accelerator card and HOLY MOTHER my mind was blown at 800x600 in millions of colours! &lt;3 It was indeed an epic game in every aspect at the time and I get warm fuzzy feelings going back to it despite its quirks and outdated looks today. I guess it was just the right game at the right moment thing. And Unreal Tournament with Futurama Mods (Bender bots and voices of Leela, Bender and Professor Farnsworth) while playing the Quake II soundtrack back in College... such good memories! :D

Anonymous

Unreal was the awakening for me as a PC tweaker and hardware enthousiast. That castle flyby demo was a very easy way to benchmark back then. Modify settings restart game if required and see what you got. I think I spent about as much time in the settings menu tweaking as I did playing the game.

Anonymous

What an outstanding video. I remember seeing that castle sequence at many a computer shop… and just being utterly impressed. I'd put more time into UT over this though, but it felt like such a leap with the more challenging AI, and those outdoor scenes. (And I was probably not of sound mind getting either this or UT going on an unaccelerated P166 at the time. But gosh, seeing boundaries broken for the first time… is ever so alluring…)

Anonymous

I never actually got to play Unreal when it first came out. Unreal Tournament, however, soaked up hundreds of hours of my young life. I'm definitely gonna check it out now, after watching this.

LazyGameReviews
>>12341581

Definitely do if you've played a lot of UT, if anything just to see the earlier versions of classic multiplayer maps like Deck16

Lindsay Michelle

That opening is still amazing in a way even today, so I wasn't surprised in the slightest when you were in complete awe of what you saw the first time you ever loaded the game years ago. I can see why this is the namesake of the Unreal Engine. See you next year for the 20 year retrospective on Unreal Tournament...? Maybe? ;)

Anonymous

I remember staying on the opening way too long before even launching my saved game. My eyes have been permanently impregnated by this atmosphere. The reflection of the bridge, the flames, the bricks of this castle, the fluid movement of the camera like I was flying with such a feeling of liberty. And yeah that music, goddam that music.

Anonymous

And same as you said, my first time leaving the prison was memorable. The outside... I stood for minutes watching the sky, so beautiful, detailed and it was moving! The sky is animated! Technorevolutionnary! And I was flabbergasted by the fact that some texture was more detailed when getting closer like the doors. Anyway, unreal for ever &lt;3

Anonymous

Man this was my favorite time for FPS games, I still sneak in a few games of Unreal Tournament here and there :) I feel old but I dont think facing worlds will ever get old haahha.

Anonymous

I still remember playing this on my old Pentium-MMX 166mhz comp with Voodoo 2 and 32 mb of ram(Win 98SE). I was amazed that I could get it to run at 10-15 fps

Mac84

Yesss! Fantastic video. Unreal and Unreal Tournament were some of my favorites growing up. Since I had a Mac I was very pleased to play a popular game like Unreal Tournament and play online against my friends on a PC. (Although sometimes the custom levels, or sounds, and things didn't work well... especially over dial-up...) Very nice in-depth retrospective of the series. I never played Unreal or Unreal II that much (when compared to UT), so it was nice to get a play-through of the story. I can't believe it's been 20 years! :O