A clear example of Spencer's Survival of the Fittest.
Unreal Tournament 2003 starts off simple enough; the single player option which basically is moving up the ladder in a tournament style (funny that), gather your army of destruction then prove that you are the dominate specie (like the lion fighting off other lions to become the dominate lion of the pride), nurture them, cherish them then hit the big league of conquering four styles of game play being Team Death match, Domination, Capture the Flag and the new game in the park Bombing Run (similar to a futuristic basketball game) to meet the ultimate foes of Brock, Lauren and godlike Malcolm and then challenge the god himself, Malcolm on a one-on-one death match! As I said, it's the survival of the fittest.
And that's the easiest part.
The hard part is to jump online and meet other members of the species for an all out fragfest. Here talk is cheap and stats don't lie. The rules are simple and everyone is treated equally - you spawn, you pick up a weapon, you kill, you die, you spawn again. None of this rubbish 'leveling up' thing and collecting 'rare' items as you can spend some 1000 plus hours online. Here you can spend your 1000 hours and won't find any unique items at all. We are all equal save your skills and your ability to survive. It's the only way.
Graphically the game is a masterpiece. Carrying on the tradition of UT1999, UT2003 stands out like a herd of elephants trampling on the African Savannah. You cannot miss it! It's loud, aggressive, beautiful and yet bashful all rolled in one! How can one truly remarkable beast be so beautiful and yet so malevolent!
Sound wise is a similar tale. The music score, the taunts (ahh the taunts, so beautiful, so tactful), the explosions, the splatter of dead bodies...I'm in heaven. Even the AIs have a distinctive voice. And what's new in this game (comparing to UT1999) is the commentator. He/she/it is a wealth of information. You can even change the commentator's voice to suit your listening pleasure (like a seductive voice?). However as the saying goes 'beware the wail of the banshee'.
As mentioned before, there are four styles of game play however it's definitely does not stop there. Like inter-racial breeding, you can alternate the game as much as you like fit. Mutations (like your head grows to reflect more kills), brighten skins, more combos...well it's like placing a limit on who you can make love to...another words minimal limitations. And this does not stop here. Considering Epic Games released the UnrealScript the modding community can place their creative touches so it's as limited to one's imagination.
There is also an 'easter egg' where you can get a sneak preview of UT2004; namely the vehicle. You really cannot do much with the vehicle however like a new-born child it will grow; another words UT2004.
So if you think there is nothing much about UT2003 then I might wonder 'what the heck are you thinking?' Ok, you are right in saying that UT2003 is a 'watered-down' version of UT2004 and rightfully saying 'where is Assault?' Or you might say 'this game is slower in comparison to UT1999'. Like creating a new life-form it takes time. And like life it needs to adapt to the rigidness of competition. In saying that, the game once released was not riddled with diseases (like some I won't mention) and did not die due to hunger. Actually it has a very large appetite, so large that the Unreal legacy is still growing from limb to limb.
3...2...1...play!