14 DAY TRIAL // The newly announced Unreal Tournament from the team at Epic Games might not be playable for a while yet, but it seems that the final product might benefit from a soundtrack that’s created by the composers that have long been associated with the series.
On the official forums of the title, Michiel van den Bos introduces himself to the community and expresses his willingness to work on the coming experience and he is quickly joined by Alexander Brandon.
He states, “I’m writing here because I was getting messages and e-mails telling me I should, due to the announcement of the new UT. I was wondering if there is any interest in me getting involved and I’m sure I can get Alex to join in too.”
The pair makes it clear that this was not a joke and that they were actively working with Epic Games to see how they could collaborate on the new Unreal Tournament.
The reaction from fans was very positive.
Senior Programmer Steven Polge adds, “Of course we would be thrilled to have you and Alex involved in this project! The music you guys made always invokes tremendous nostalgia for me – I’m always instantly transported back to playing UT.”
It’s unclear exactly how the composers and the smaller Unreal Tournament development team will work together or whether the first version of the shooter will have any kind of sound and music or will only be used to show the core mechanics.
Epic Games announced a new title in the long-running series last week and explained that it wanted to offer the entire experience to gamers for free, with no microtransactions or any other elements associated with the free-to-play genre.
The game will remain at its core a competitive first-person shooter focused on pace and precision, but the fan community will be able to talk to the team throughout the process and tell them exactly what the final title needs to deliver.
At the same time, Epic Games has made it clear that it will take time to launch a playable version of Unreal Tournament and that at the moment, its focus remains on the development of Unreal Engine 4 and its associated Fortnite.
The shooter has a long and glorious history and its 2004 version has long dominated competitive play, but it’s unclear whether it can succeed again in the much more fragmented market of the moment.