Epic today announced that Unreal Tournament 3 Black, the upgraded version of the multiplayer shooter, will once again be free to play on Steam this weekend.

Players can preload the title on Steam beginning today. The promotion officially begins on Thursday, May 28.

The Unreal Tournament 3 Titan Pack for the PS3 arrives today, touts the official PlayStation blog.

This free downloadable content delivers new maps, game modes, vehicles and characters, not to mention the titular Titan mutator.

Unreal Tournament 3 on PC saw a whopping 2000% increase in players after the Titan Pack was released on March 5th--coupled with free weekends and a hefty discount through Steam.

Click through for the full feature list:... Read more

Epic's multiplayer shooter Unreal Tournament 3 has seen a 2000% increase in simultaneous players of the game following the recent Titan Pack update and various Steam sales, according to Valve.

As a result, the Steam UT3 40%-off sale has been extended through Sunday, March 22. Valve also notes that the game will again be free to play this weekend, beginning on Friday March 13.

Coinciding with the release of the big 2.0 patch and Titan Pack update for the PC version of Unreal Tournament 3, Steam plans to offer the game as a free-to-play title this weekend.

In addition to the weekend trial, Unreal Tournament 3 Black--a download including the original game and updates--has now been discounted 40% through March 15 on Steam, making the entire package a $12 buy.

Thanks to Sir_Brizz for the tip.

Now available on FileShack are the two latest updates for Unreal Tournament 3 on PC : the massive 2.0 patch and the free Titan Pack downloadable content.

Those that have activated their copy of Unreal Tournament 3 through Steam need not bother with the manual downloads, as Steam will automatically download the files.

The Titan Pack adds two new game modes--Greed and Betrayal--along with new vehicles, items, and a total of 19 multiplayer maps that are new to PC and PS3 users. Meanwhile, the patch adds Steam achievements for those playing on a Steam install, which any UT3 PC owner can have, and includes many major tweaks for the game.

In all, players will find that the two downloads deliver:

• Two new game types: Greed, a "tug of war" skull-toting team points battle, and Betrayal, a cutthroat style of play where alliances and teams can ... Read more

Epic Games today released more details on the Titan Pack it is readying for Unreal Tournament 3.

Attaching a March 5 to its release on PC and PlayStation 3, the free Titan Pack will add 11 new maps for Deathmatch, CTF, Vehicle CTF and Warfare modes. An additional 8 maps come from the first Bonus Pack and Xbox 360 version of the game. The Titan Pack will also add two new game modes: Greed, a "tug of war"-style mode, and Betrayal, a mode where alliances and teams change throughout a match.

Players will be able to use the Axon Stealthbender unit as well, along with X-Ray field and Link Station repair unit deployables.

Also expect to see new characters, turrets and a Titan mutator where, upon hitting a certain amount of frags, you become a 15-foot tall Titan, enhanced by every power-up in the game.

The Titan Pack will follow after the release of a massive patch for the game, which will bring Steam achievements support among other changes.

Valve today enabled free Steam registration for Unreal Tournament 3, allowing owners of Epic's multiplayer shooter to prepare for the the large upcoming patch.

The update will bring over 50 Steamworks Achievements, along with "a host of new features and enhancements in AI, Server Browsing, Demo Recording, Mod Support, and more." A more detailed list of the upcoming changes is available here. Steam registration is only required for the achievements.

Registration is a simple matter of clicking the main Steam menu option "Games" and selecting "Activate a product on Steam."

Any CD key should be eligible for activation, including versions purchased from other digital distribution services. Also note that the activation will require a new installation of the game, so users will want to delete the old one in order to avoid pesky hard drive bloat. [Thanks Visceral Monkey.]

Developer Epic has spilled the beans on a forthcoming major patch for the PC version of Unreal Tournament 3, which will pack Steam achievements and other tweaks.

The Steam achievements will only be available to those that installed the game through Valve's digital distribution platform, though the other changes will be available to all.

The developer also revealed that it's readying collection of bonus maps dubbed the Titan Pack, with lead designer Steve Polge telling BeyondUnreal that it will be "substantially bigger than any bonus pack we've released in the past."

No word yet on a release date, with BeyondUnreal writing that the following list of changes and fixes is "very small part" of what Epic will bring to the shooter.

• SUMMARY OF MAJOR FEATURES:
• Major enhancements to Server Browser
• Visual and menu flow overhaul for improved... Read more

Epic's Unreal Tournament 3 is set to get more content to help keep the latest incarnation in its deathmatch shooter franchise alive.

"We're working together on a major expansion that we expect will excite and grow our UT3 customer base," said Epic VP Mark Rein to GameSpot. What format the content will take is unknown, but Epic has given players free DLC map packs on the PC and a mod toolkit on the PS3.

The comment came in response to questions about publisher Midway, which announced last week that it was cancelling several games. "Midway is still very much the publisher of Unreal Tournament 3," Rein confirmed.

The PC and PS3 versions launched in late 2007 to disappointing sales before the Xbox 360 edition debuted back in July. Rein reiterated that UT3 has gone on to sell 1 million copies across all three platforms.

Epic Games has released a new patch for the PC edition of its multiplayer shooter Unreal Tournament 3.

The patch, which updates the game to version 1.3, offers a variety of gameplay changes, bug fixes, interface updates, AI improvements and more. Updates included in the 1.1 and 1.2 patches are also included.

For a full rundown of the incorporated changes, check out the full patch notes.

The late-arriving Xbox 360 edition of Unreal Tournament 3 will head to North American retailers on July 7, publisher Midway and developer Epic Games announced today.

Along with five new maps, two new characters, a new splitscreen mode and all of the downloadable content for the PS3 and PC versions--but no mod support--the disc includes exclusive Gears of War 2 (360) footage.

Hosted by Gears of War 2 design director Cliff Bleszinski and producer Rod Fergusson, the video is said to offer a never-before-seen glimpse of the "the game's multiplayer modes featuring new maps, new modes, new weapons and new gameplay elements."

Publisher Midway has provided some new screenshots from Epic Games' upcoming Xbox 360 edition of the multiplayer-focused shooter Unreal Tournament 3.

Slated to arrive later this summer, the Xbox 360 port will lack mod support, but packs five new maps, two new characters and a new splitscreen mode along with all of the previously released DLC for the PC and PS3 versions.

While attending Midway's recent Gamers Day event in Las Vegas, I had the opportunity to sit down with Epic associate producer Tanya Jessen and discuss a number of assorted topics.

Want to know if the upcoming Xbox 360 edition of Unreal Tournament 3 will include mod support? The possibility of an Epic game on XBLA or PSN? The studio's thoughts on complaints that the lead characters from Gears of War and UT3 look so much alike?

What about the possible effects of Portal on Gears of War 2? And just what does Epic think of the UE3-powered wet t-shirt contests in Surreal's This Is Vegas? Read on to find out.

Tanya Jessen: We've got a few secret projects that will be talked about I'm sure in the coming time. We love the Unreal franchise and I assure you there's more to come.

The guys are working really hard to continue to support it because this, I mean, Epic wouldn't be Epic without Unreal. This is definitely something that we're continuing to work on and continuing to improve. Read more...

Developer Epic Games has confirmed that the Xbox 360 edition of Unreal Tournament 3 will arrive this summer with exclusive content, though it will lack the support for user-created mods found in other iterations.

"Quite simply, we aren't doing [mods] for the Xbox 360 version," associate producer Tanya Jessen informed Shacknews. "Xbox is a closed platform. That's the big reason we're not doing it on 360."

That exclusive content encompasses five new maps and two new characters, with Jessen claiming that there are no plans to release that content for the previously released PC and PlayStation 3 editions.

Though Epic VP Mark Rein had previously indicated that Epic might release some mods on the Xbox Live Marketplace, Jessen indicated that nothing has... Read more

Direct from the Midway Gamers Day comes a metric ton of screenshots and artwork from many of its upcoming titles, including Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe (PS3, X360), the Xbox 360 version of Epic Games' Unreal Tournament 3, This Is Vegas (PC, PS3, X360) and more.

If available, more information can be found by clicking on a game's name. Be sure to click through for the complete list, as the full breadth of content is far too meaty to fit in a single front page post.

Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe (PS3, X360) - Fall 2008

This Is Vegas (PC, PS3, X360) - Winter 2008 ... Read more

Developer Epic Games has revealed the details on its latest $1 Million Make Something Unreal Contest, which challenges its participants to create a mod for the PC edition of Epic's Unreal Tournament 3 using the Unreal Engine 3 toolset.

Sponsored this time around by hardware manufacturer Intel, the contest offers over $1 million in prizes, with the grand prize being an Unreal Engine 3 license. Other prizes include Intel software development products and Velocity Micro PCs.

"To all you aspiring game developers out there--this is your chance to get in the big leagues," said Epic VP Mark Rein. "We have categories for all kinds of creatively talented people including programmers, artists, 3D modelers, designers and even aspiring film directors."

Rein added: "Unreal Engine 3 is used by many of the industry’s leading game companies, so this is truly a chance to prove your worth and get your foot in the door of the game business while having your work potentially exposed to millions."

Judging will begin this June and end in fall 2009. For more details, check out the official site at www.makesomethingunreal.com.

Epic sends along an Unreal Tournament 3 bonus pack, adding three maps to the PC version of their multiplayer shooter. The 160MB download includes Unreal Tournament 3 versions of the classic UT maps Morbias and Facing Worlds, as well as an all-new Capture the Flag map titled Searchlight.

A PlayStation 3 edition of the map pack will be available as a PlayStation Store download later today.

Midway has revealed that Epic Games' Unreal Tournament 3 (PC, PS3) and Midway Chicago's Stranglehold (PC, PS3, X360) have sold over a million copies worldwide.

The milestone was announced by Midway CEO David Zucker in a recent conference call. Sales milestones for both titles account for copies sold across multiple territories on several platforms.

Zelnick noted that while it may seem as though the PC gaming market is slowing, international PC sales continues to be strong in a number of markets.

"As we expected, our European PC sales of Unreal Tournament 3 are outpacing North America and, overall, the title is turning out to a success," Zucker added. "Later this year we are scheduled to launch the Xbox 360 version of Unreal Tournament 3 and expect it to perform equally well."

The CEO went on to say that Pipeworks Software's Rampage: Total Destruction (Wii), originally released in 2006, also broke the one million milestone.

Epic Games has released the Unreal Tournament 3 version 1.2 patch, which includes gameplay, interface, AI and map changes, fixes and updates. New Linux dedicated server files are available as well, as is a webadmin package. ... Read more

As expected, Epic has released the toolset that allows Unreal Tournament 3 PC mods to be converted for use with the PlayStation 3 edition of the game.

Weighing in at a paltry 2.24 MB, the PC-based tools are available over at FileShack and require the installation of the first UT3 PC patch.

To run on the PS3, the mods must use UnrealScript code with no imported models or sounds. More information on creating and importing PS3 mods can be found over at Epic's official guide.