Unreal Tournament 3 - M

Frenzied first-person shooter with gory visuals.

Publisher: Midway Category/Genre: Video Games - First Person Shooter Platform: PlayStation 3, Windows, Xbox 360 Price: $59.99 Online Enabled: No Graphics: High. Landscapes and character details are striking. Playability: Medium. Not difficult to learn after practice and adjusting to speed. Reading Level: Medium Release Date: 12/12/2007 ESRB Rating: M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language

Common Sense Note

Parents need to know that as a first-person shooter, this game is violent and gruesome. Blood splashes on environments on every kill. In some instances, players are literally blown to bits, with flesh strewn across landscapes. Players will use a wide variety of weapons including handguns, rifles, and rocket launchers. Very strong language is used as well. This title is best played by mature audiences.

Families can talk about the game's use of customizable characters and maps. While you can customize your characters in the PS3 version, if you want to customize the maps in the PS3 version, you will have to also own the PC version. Does that feature warrant owning two copies of a game? How does the violence in this game compare with other titles available? Did you like the game's fast pace?

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Brett Molina

Xbox 360 fans have Halo 3. Wii owners have Metroid Prime 3. And now PlayStation 3 devotees have a first-person shooter to call their own.

Epic Games, the company behind Gears of War, makes a frenetic debut on the PS3 with gory shooter UNREAL TOURNAMENT 3. The atmosphere is intense and incredibly fast-paced, arguably the fastest shooter on any console. Unreal Tournament 3 also boasts impressive customization options that have bolstered a fan base cultivated in prior PC releases.

From the moment you start, it's clear the multiplayer element is king. A single-player campaign seems like a warm-up for the more robust multiplayer modes. In it, you work as a mercenary seeking revenge against an alien race who wiped out your colony. All battles within that campaign are a series of offline matches on a wide selection of maps.

Most battles follow the standard format, like Deathmatch and Capture the Flag. Warfare is perhaps the game's best option. You must overtake a series of small nodes that link to your enemy's power source. Once linked, that core is vulnerable to attack. The first team to destroy their enemy's core wins.

At times, the campaigns feel repetitive. However, Unreal Tournament 3 quells those concerns with a unique set of weapons, multiple maps, and challenging opponents. Players also have access to solid squad-based commands to help maximize team strategy.

An intriguing feature is the ability to create maps and other modifications on the game's PC version and transfer them onto the PlayStation 3. However, one drawback is you'll need to own both the PC and PS3 versions of the game to take advantage.

PS3 owners seeking a first-person shooter may also enjoy Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Resistance: Fall of Man. If you prefer a less mature title, consider Metroid Prime 3: Corruption or Lost Planet: Extreme Condition.

Platform Notes

Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 version features some new content including split screen, exclusive maps, and two new characters.

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Content		CS	adults	kids
Content
Sexual Content
Violence Players utilize handguns, rifles, rocket launchers, and other weapons. Blood spews freely after killing an opponent. In some cases, you can see flesh scatter.
Language Quite a few curse words appear, like "s--t" and "f--k." However, their inclusion in the dialogue isn't gratuitous.
Message
	Social Behavior In campaign mode, you portray a character seeking vengeance against an alien race after they decimate your home.
	Commercialism This is the PS3 version of an established PC gaming franchise.
	Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco
	Educational Value