Latest awful games you played

[Leo T_C_K]

I did create a mutator that sets u2 player speed back to what U1 was set to, including air speed, ground speed, water speed, air control and acceleration. It turns out the biggest difference was acceleration, iirc. which makes a HUGE difference.

It's significantly more playable imo when you move like a U1 player, but my mutator doesnt cover monster speeds so they are trivialized...

I'm reading through the changelog of the unreal 2 patch and there are some interesting bits:

· Fixed player dodge speed and height. Can be modified via user.ini
settings (see DodgeXYVelocityScale and DodgeJumpZScale in the [U2Pawn]
section).

AI

· Mod authors can once again enable script warnings / errors by setting
bDisableErrorMessages=false (by default all script warnings / errors
are silent). These were completely disabled for RC7 with the intent of
re-enabling these for the patch. Note that you have to enable the
Component=Console.MessageArea line in UIScripts\UI.ui (remove the ";")
to see debug messages in-game.

Editor

· Fix for not being able to paint on terrain in editor.
· Fix for terrain build crash if no terrain map in level.
· Fixed editor "first run" (UnrealEd.ini added to system folder).
· Fixed WBrowserStaticMesh::UpdateMenu crash.
· Fixed crash if you clicked on delete in the decolayer terrain tool,
without a decolayer actually being selected.

See what a mess Unreal2 was on release? They forgot to re-enable things before the game release, etcetera etcetera.
And only one patch came out, the amount of fixes is really incredible and long.
But here is the bit about playerspeed:

· Added support for modifying player movement speed via Unreal2.ini
setting (for the duration of the game). For example, to increase the
player's movement speed by 50% set PlayerSpeedRatio=1.5 in the
[U2GameInfo] section.

[[]KAOS[]Casey]

Still better than 226f

[Leo T_C_K]

Still better than 226f

As we all know by now, there is no 226f. It was a lie.

226a with ut drivers made to look like it was a new version.

[[]KAOS[]Casey]

Did 226a also break join with password?

[Leo T_C_K]

Did 226a also break join with password?

It's absolutely identical, all the files except drivers. I'm not kidding. They didn't conform the files to 226b or anything, it was really identical.

All the bugs are the same. But 226a wasn't supposed to be a stable patch.

[Hellkeeper]

One of the level designers working on the game even hated what he was doing.

Well if that one guy didn't like what he did, then it sure means the whole thing is a disaster.

You bought into the hype at the time

I strongly resented the release of UT2004 at the time. I still think many things should have been kept as in UT2003, starting with camera height.
UT2004's just superior in every way and you know it. But please, continue.

[Leo T_C_K]

I don't think you have the emotional capacity to understand this.

It wasn't just that, the line was that the new levels for deathmatch were gonna be designed in a way that has the pro-flow going, as in z axis, very similar looking levels. Not much of art was put into it and that's the issue here. Most of the new levels were generic and boring and the only reason that Hourences levels stood out was because he had a higher standard and they were still cut on the detail!

It was really a cash-in idea to begin with. Believing the lies is not gonna help. It was something for the masses, something heavily advertised and many have bought into it.

These days it's like whatever, but seriously nut2004 ran poorly compared to ut2003, even on my previous laptop there were times some of the effects didn't show up due to lag that wasn't present, the bot AI also suffered if you got lower FPS, they started going all retarded and spasmy.

There were some improvements, but almost none of it justified a whole new game and also ut2004 became the most childish/cartoony of the entire series. There is some cringe-worthy content in it that I wish I could forget about.

The primary reason why I played ut2004 was the better invasion community than in ut2003 and the fact that I had some friends there and ran a server for a time being too. But it was only really fun with mutators and the right setup.

[[]KAOS[]Casey]

I don't think you have the emotional capacity to understand this.

Soulless Automaton

[Leo T_C_K]

[Hellkeeper]

It wasn't just that, the line was that the new levels for deathmatch were gonna be designed in a way that has the pro-flow going, as in z axis, very similar looking levels.

True, maps had a much more flow-centered design. I wouldn't say it's a bad thing.

Not much of art was put into it and that's the issue here. Most of the new levels were generic and boring

I largely agree.
But guess what made this game popular in the end? Maps like Ironic, Rankin, Torlan, Deck, etc. They all had forgettable visuals.
Despite all my grief, the maps people loved were not Magma, ElecFields or Face 3.

It was really a cash-in idea to begin with. Believing the lies is not gonna help.

I don't even know who lied and what the lies were.

It was something for the masses, something heavily advertised and many have bought into it.

Ah, UT and UT2003, the cryptic niche games only known by a happy few. :^)

There were some improvements, but almost none of it justified a whole new game

Everyone knows this, everyone said so back then, even Epic knew it and you could have UT2004 for cheaper if you had UT2003.

and also ut2004 became the most childish/cartoony of the entire series. There is some cringe-worthy content in it that I wish I could forget about.

[Leo T_C_K]

That particular intro was made late in the developement and yes it kinda makes me chuckle...

The stuff about Lauren and energy...when they can't say boobs or something? I didn't say this was great but compared to some other stuff...

oh don't get me started on the money system in ut2004 single player tournament. That tournament was the worst one ever because they took the system straight out of ut2003 beta and made it even worse. This is not what made it for me. Those games diverse as much as what I think Unreal game should really be.

You say everyone knew that and that, well no not everyone. It was advertised as a new game, the trailers lied about it too and made it seem it was much more. It mentioned space fights and all and got you hyped up but there was only one space fight and another one in a bonuspack....and none of the bonus maps even appeared in the tournament. That's just not enough imo.
The original UT and GOTY at least had some of the maps appear in the ladder.

The maps you listed didn't have that forgettable visuals. Torlan was much more detailed when Hourences first made it but it still looks good compared to most of the other maps and it plays well. Those are not the maps I talk about even though they were dumbed down as well.

Ironic was made originally for ut2003 as well, Deck17 was a custom map you could download with the difference of it having jumpboots instead of the hot air launch pad...and that ut2004 added the sniperrifle with the unreal warfare zoom graphics...

Rankin and Torlan were both in ut2004 demo which on itself weren't that bad but the two other maps were either a beta/bonuspack content:


or in case of deck17 a custom map:
I can't find a video of it, but you can find the map around, the original before ut2004 version.

[Kajgue]

I do have to agree in regards to UT/ut2003/ut2004 map culture though. It seems like all maps are created with 'this must be an orgy of generic, interlocking ramps and corridors and more ramps. And with different assets for each.'

[Hellkeeper]

I didn't say this was great but compared to some other stuff...

I love UT2003, but this intro was totally stupid.

oh don't get me started on the money system in ut2004

Well I didn't but it seems you're going to harp on it anyway.
I'm not going to defend it because it felt tacked-on and I found it never got in the way since I almost never lost and so I had all the cash I needed.
The solo campaings of UT were always an afterthought anyway.

You say everyone knew that and that, well no not everyone. It was advertised as a new game, the trailers lied about it too and made it seem it was much more.

Woah stop, all the trailers clearly showed this was the same engine as UT2003. You had the game cheaper if you had UT2003. The screenshots at the back of the case show it's the same engine with new maps, models, weapons and vehicules, which it is. Nobody lied about anything, the only people who thought this was a whole new game were people who had not played UT2003 (and I guess they didn't care if it was UT2003++ since they didn't have the original UT2003).

It mentioned space fights and all and got you hyped up but there was only one space fight and another one in a bonuspack....

Right, so they delivered on this point. Next.

and none of the bonus maps even appeared in the tournament.

Yeah, it's a bonus pack, not a complete revamp. Don't see the problem.

That's just not enough imo.

Well I guess you're just totally spoiled then because UT2004 had a support I've not seen in many games and Epic has been royal in this case: UT2003 hits, good review, lukewarm reception, they issue a game that fixes pretty much everything with more of everything. Some changes were less happy than others, notaby regarding balance but UT was never balanced. UT was always ASMD-fest.

The maps you listed didn't have that forgettable visuals.

Ironic barely even has a theme. Rankin is nice derelict indus we've seen a million times, even though it's the best effort to date. Torlan is... Grass and a big grey tower. I'm awed.

I do have to agree in regards to UT/ut2003/ut2004 map culture though. It seems like all maps are created with 'this must be an orgy of generic, interlocking ramps and corridors and more ramps. And with different assets for each.'

That's true, but that's a mechanical problem in this kind of shooters: for the map to be interesting to play, you need a layout that pretty much only looks like a UT/Quake map layout and not a real place. :-/

[Leo T_C_K]

*insert triple facepalm here*
just forget it...

If I wanted to respond then I'd have to say that my experience used to be the opposite and boy did I lose in the first playthrough of ut2004 due to the inbalance between bot skills and the ppor framerate and everything....so yes I had to fight so many times to get the money needed to play next match and do challeneges every so often. It crappity smacked me up completely! I finished ut2003 on the same skill level just fine and then this happened! JUST FORGET IT.

Perhaps someone should make a Hellkeeper game...

EDIT:
Btw I should mention that while being otherwise stable ut2004 keeps crashing at the ladder at multiple points, even making the agony further because it takes as if you lost a match if you crash. That is unacceptable. Completely. And I wasn'sucking, I was just playing at high skill and even got calnlord in the end...
calnlord? canllord? KHANlord?!
KAAL LORD! KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLL!!!!!!

[Hellkeeper]

If I wanted to respond then I'd have to say that my experience used to be the opposite and boy did I lose in the first playthrough of ut2004 due to the inbalance between bot skills and the ppor framerate and everything....so yes I had to fight so many times to get the money needed to play next match and do challeneges every so often. It crappity smacked me up completely! I finished ut2003 on the same skill level just fine and then this happened!

That's unfortunate but I understand why. The difficulty level in the campaign up a steep slope at the end and the bossfight is indeed a tedious experience. Framerate and botskil, on the other hand, are just your problem.

Perhaps someone should make a Hellkeeper game...

It's called UT2004. And thank you for being one of the very few to not add a capital K in my nick:

Btw I should mention that while being otherwise stable ut2004 keeps crashing at the ladder at multiple points

That's strange, I never experienced crashes in the ladder. I guess you were just unlucky about that and I imagine how frustrating it would be.

[makemeunreal]

I had no problem finishin' the ladder on Godlike nor had any framerate issues durin' my playthroughs.
The game has never crashed which is pretty marvelous given the fact I played it for countless hours since it came out.
(Not countin' deeckin' around with custom content.)

[makemeunreal]

Btw, playin' challenges to earn money makes the ladder a lot more enjoyable. Gives it a somewhat sportish feelin'.

[Leo T_C_K]

Yes, we heard you.

Now could this somehow actually go back to topic? This wasn't meant to go into discussion of all kinds of Unreal games, even though I can easily prove it crashes in multiple instances, probably in resumed tournament games only. As I said it was the only time it ever crashed on me, in the friggin ladder and yes it was patched version up to date. No other UT game crashed on the ladder.

The framerate is only fine with this laptop, but on older machines it was slow even though better graphic engines ran smoothly on it. So it was probably only intended to run well with really mainstream IBM PCs which is a shame.

I rest my case on it and you can hate my opinion all you want but I really think UT2004 was the weakest link. Of all the Unreal games there was the least real effort or art put into it or atmosphere, not to mention it didn't start as a fresh coherent concept.

All the other games except UT4 had some design doc to come by. UT2004 and UT4 are the only exceptions where there wasn't a clear guideline or "Unreal Bible" to come by. And that's why. It was a community effort, UT4 is even more so. But it's less of actual game.

But sometimes it can be good as a casual game to calm you down. Better than counter strike and such sorts I have to admit.

[dustinechoes849]

BACK ON TOPIC!!!
BACK ON TOPIC!!!




I REVISITED THIS MESS RECENTLY

IT'S REALLY BAD

If you're a connoisseur of bad games, this is VERY guilty pleasure.

[Leo T_C_K]

BIGG RIGGS feels like someone quickly cooked up something in UE2 Runtime and disabled all staticmesh collision......

[jaden88]

BIGG RIGGS feels like someone quickly cooked up something in UE2 Runtime and disabled all staticmesh collision......

I'm still not sure if Big Rigs was a complete disaster on purpose or by accident.

[Leo T_C_K]

Perhaps it was really the publishers pushing too much and it ended it worse than in Unreal2's case.....

[AFreakinProblem]

You wanna see some trash? Here you go. IllFonic's bastardization of Nexuiz not only was a terrible game, but it also had some nasty controversy surrounding it.


A short summary of the controversy: Nexuiz (pronounced Nex ee us btw, name is actually a typo) was a community built GPL game running on heavily modified DarkPlaces (which in itself was a heavily modified Quake 1 engine) that was through some shady deal sold off to a new studio called IllFonic. Development team was oblivious to it up until it was announced and the community responded by forking the game into what is now known as Xonotic. The IllFonic game was originally going to use the engine and some code from the GPL classic, but through legal threats they were forced to ditch that and made the switch to CryEngine 3 and in the process ditching most of the game mechanics of the original game and making the game run terrible on top of it. Funny enough the game flopped, and after THQ dissolved the game servers for it went down completely and didn't come back up until recently.

This is the Nexuiz a lot of PC gamers knew and loved before it was forked:


This is Xonotic, not much has really changed since 0.6 and sadly the game isn't totally ready for the masses yet:

[Kajgue]

I remember seeing screenshots of that in development several years ago, isn't it by the same guy who runs and made coopordie?

Either that or it could be by Berserker who made the Berserker Q2 sourceport, I think I remember something like that while I did some lighting shaders for Berserker during my sperradic time lingering around some quake communities.

[AFreakinProblem]

No, those are different projects. The only thing they may have in common is the DarkPlaces engine which was developed by a guy named Forest Hale aka Lord Havoc. Hale believe it or not got signed on by Illfonic for a little bit to help port the engine to the XBox 360 and PS3 before they decided to switch to CryEngine 3. Now he works for Valve I believe.