This series is honestly a love it or hate it style of gunfight. If you have not liked the Quake or Unreal Championship series up to now, quit reading this as there is not much that will change your mind. For the fans of the series, a few new additions have been made since the last time you have had the chance to venture into this world, but some innovations from the PC have yet to be carried over, like vehicles for instance. In my opinion, it would be better to include such a feature if you are trying to take on Microsoft’s flagship title. Thankfully, the lack of vehicles does not hinder the game one bit, and actually makes for a more fair fight. What you do get is some fast and heated action with a bit of melee competition thrown in for good measure. That’s right fans; you now can pick up a hand-to-hand weapon and utilize it against your foes. What is more surprising is how well it really works and does not keep you at a disadvantage. So is UC2 the Halo 2 killer or something just to play when you are sick of it? The answer really lies with you. Personally, I think that UC2 is more of the same with some extras, and while I like the series, the style is getting a bit stale. I found myself enjoying the PC version of the game much more because of its versatility. Don’t get me wrong, this game is very fun and very well done, it just feels done before.

The game looks fantastic and is the ideal leap above its predecessor you would want in a sequel. Fourteen unique characters move and fight with such splendid animation, that you would be awestruck if you had the time to really see it between spawning. The lighting engine is fantastic and really brings out the special effects for the weaponry. The real highlight of the game is the over 40 levels that are vastly different from one another. What’s more, the landscape and architecture is remarkable and really draws you into this world created by Epic. There are a few nice CG scenes in the single player mode, but they are quickly forgettable. Top it all off with an incredible frame rate and you have one good-looking shooter.

Audio doesn’t bring much new to the table. You have vibrant and booming sound effects from your large arsenal, all brought to you in glorious 5.1 Surround Sound. The music is both riveting and haunting and really adds quality. A surprise addition was to have the choice to use the Mortal Kombat announcer during battles… now that is using that publishing power. If you are bold enough to go through the single player missions, the voice acting is rather sad. The emotion feels stiff and the dialog won’t keep you interested for too long. Overall, good but not incredible.

Gameplay is fast and addictive. Not only is this one of the best twitch shooters on the market, now you have the ability to take on foes with hand-to-hand melee weapons. This style addition is easily a welcome one, but I have the feeling gamers will prefer either one or the other and rarely try to master both. The A.I. is fantastic and challenging, even on lower difficulty settings. This is a good thing considering that when you play the game on Xbox Live you will get a challenge from both the bots and human players. Midway has also incorporated fatalities into this title, once against stealing from MK’s thunder. If you enjoy fast gunfights, highflying jumps, and crack-like addicting matches, you will find yourself right at home with Unreal Championship 2.

UC2 offers both single and multiplayer game play, but honestly, if you are buying this title to find a fulfilling single player experience, you are playing the wrong game. The only real use for the single player campaign is to be acquainted with the gameplay, weapons, and features, otherwise the other 98% of your time will and must be spent online to really “get” what Unreal Championship 2 is all about. This is made with Xbox Live game play in mind, and everything else is really just window dressing. The biggest downer of it all is that only 8 players are available at one time. The developers must have known this going in, as the level design is not really made for much more, so you will not feel crowded or overwhelmed.

Unreal Championship 2 is a great game indeed, and whether or not it will steer gamers away from the great Halo 2 is still to be seen. It is definitely a love it or hate it style of Deathmatch game play. Which one are you?