Epic has ended Master Server Support for all Unreal Tournament Titles - How to play Online

[darksonny]

I have contacted Epic and GOG about the situation on behalf of 333networks, so I should have some news to share at some point.
I am also pushing for the allowance of supporting UT2004, but that is more of a technical issue.

what will happen to the people who are developing ut469c patch with these negative news?

One, actually two, words Open Source!

It be the only way forwards, in my POV!

Epic will not let you doing that

[Shrimp]

So, UT is abandonware now, it can't be purchased legally anywhere any more.

Better preserve some clean installs for later use.

Ahoy mateys.

[Buggie]

On GOG it still in place: https://www.gog.com/ru/game/unreal_tournament_goty

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And they even add note with current info. But game is still here. This can point to fact it left here for good.

[Shrimp]

https://www.theverge.com/2022/12/14/235 ... ansactions

Looks like they're playing silly buggers with UT3 too.

"PC crossplay between the Epic Games Store, Steam, and GOG". Holy shit "crossplay" now applies between stores on the same platform.

Epic are really messing up the PC gaming ecosystem. I have absolutely zero respect left for them.

[Leo(T.C.K.)]

As I said on OU:
So back to being abandoware with Unreal? I'm stopping to understand all this honestly.

I suppose that means they'll shut down the master server for UT (again) after they reinstated it after gamespy one fell...

But @Shrimp:

Honestly, Epic had a lot of skeletons in their closet even with things going behind the scenes. They often overpromised and it was actually a big part of their fault why Unreal 2 failed because they kept pushing Legend into one direction while Atari/Infogrames in the other and they were owned by Atari. The pressure to keep updating the game to match the latest Epic's build wasn't good for the game despite them often surpassing Epic in earlier builds when it came to lighting and other effects (this sadly doesn't hold true for the released game).

[JimmyCognitti]

Whoa, I didn't see this one coming (but it's not surprising either, Epic is obviously pulling classic UT games offline because they cannot be "milked" the same way Fortnite can be).
It's good to know that UT99 will be safe (as Ferali already mentioned); however, I do have some questions concerning Steam UT3, if the game is planned to be brought back online via Epic Online Services that means you'll have to install that sh*tty Epic Store Launcher in order to play it, and it could render Steam UT3 totally unplayable (I might be wrong though).

[Chrysaor]

This is such a gut punch. If I bought the game on Steam, will I be able to reinstall it or install it on a new computer after January 24th?

Who can I talk to or what can I read to understand Epic's arrangement with OldUnreal?

[Buggie]

if the game is planned to be brought back online via Epic Online Services that means you'll have to install that sh*tty Epic Store Launcher in order to play it, and it could render Steam UT3 totally unplayable (I might be wrong though).

According to https://store.steampowered.com/app/1321 ... ament_3_X/

- Download and launch from where you want; play with who you want. Unreal Tournament X supports crossplay between all PC players, whether they’re logged into their Steam, Epic Games Store or GOG accounts.

This mean not only EGS, but Steam and GOG versions too.
If so, then EGS launcher not need for last two.

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For UT2004 exists OpenSpy implementation of master server:
http://beta.openspy.net/en/howto/ut2k-engine/ut2004
Some servers already use it:
http://beta.openspy.net/en/server-list/ut2
http://beta.openspy.net/en/server-list/ut2004
It is open source:
https://github.com/chc/openspy-core-v2

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If I bought the game on Steam, will I be able to reinstall it or install it on a new computer after January 24th?

According info from Steam users - they still able see UT games if buy it before. So I think you able it reinstall or install on new PC.
This is current situation, IDK what be after 24th Jan. But game already hidden for buy on Steam.

[Diablo]

damn.

Good thing UT and Unreal are gonna still be alive, but what about the others? I don't care about UT2k3 or UT3, but UT2004? That's my favourite game next to UT.

Do ya wanna know the reason why?

Fortnite. This dumb kid game was the reason why we lost UT4 and now it does THIS? The sussy trash kids who are mortgaging their parent's houses and stealing their credit cards so that they can buy skins is why Epic sees Fortnite as profitable, and UT absolutely useless. Sadly, most (if not all) capitalist companies are like this, and in the end, we can blame MONEY

Sorry for the rant, just was pretty mad about this. Thank god for ut99.org and the other UT players who still care about this 22+ year old game in 2022.

Peace.

-Diablo

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Re: Epic is turning off online services and servers for UT99

This is such a gut punch. If I bought the game on Steam, will I be able to reinstall it or install it on a new computer after January 24th?

Who can I talk to or what can I read to understand Epic's arrangement with OldUnreal?

You could just download the ISOs on archive.org for free. It's not like we're stealing anything now that the game is essentially abandonware.

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Re: Epic is turning off online services and servers for UT99

https://www.theverge.com/2022/12/14/235 ... ansactions

Looks like they're playing silly buggers with UT3 too.

"PC crossplay between the Epic Games Store, Steam, and GOG". Holy shit "crossplay" now applies between stores on the same platform.

Epic are really messing up the PC gaming ecosystem. I have absolutely zero respect left for them.

No wonder Inoxx and Cliff left the company. They knew better than to work their asses off for this greedy company.

[UnrealGGecko]

If you have bought the UT games in Steam before, and have them in the library, they are still downloadable.

[papercoffee]

Soooo and now try to get any Unreal Tournament game on steam when you are from Germany...
not even the non indexed versions are viewable... the UT3X page is not reachable.

Nice dickmove Epic.

[Buggie]

what about the others? I don't care about UT2k3 or UT3, but UT2004? That's my favourite game next to UT.

Currently there working OpenSpy master-server which mention above.

It not ideal but I think it be polished enough for time when official off.

Also we already have some time before it happen. So possible appear some other alternatives.
Like 333network can add support for UT2004.

Will see.

Soooo and now try to get any Unreal Tournament game on steam when you are from Germany...
not even the non indexed versions are viewable... the UT3X page is not reachable.

From I heard latest, Germany unban UT. Possible it need take time for it appear and be unlocked.

[nickelo]

Hi from Spain,

Bad notice, I played again with patch 469c (good thing), but Epic Games decided to shut down the master server...

I decided to host a Linux server at home 24/7, with lots of maps, uz compressed and served from apache, and Team Speak (Voice says Epic Games :you:)... I planned to serve everything (UZ, UT99, TS3) on various ISP connections and improve these...

I make server report to 333networks.com and other new sites...

I've been playing since 1999, let's not let this game die for fortnite...

Thanks and go ahead...

[Leo(T.C.K.)]

No wonder Inoxx and Cliff left the company. They knew better than to work their asses off for this greedy company.

I'm not sure if Inoxx wasn't officially under DE come to think of it, he might have been, but either way, the first one to leave was actually Myscha (apart from dr.sleep and Eric Reuter during unreal's developement, Eric still made levels for an OEM pack that might not have been released at all or very limitedly, but some of his brushes got reused in the released game to my knowledge, both went onto make stuff for unreal psx).

And with Myscha it was even worse because he had a bad contract and he never got any royalties for the sales of the game, he only got paid for his work, but never for the sales of the game, never seen a single profit from that. He went onto to Collective and then some other companies, like even though he didn't stick around until the end of DS9 developement, he might have worked on the Aeon Flux game (cancelled) also under Collective and then even made levels for the brother bear game lol, until he went to some better studios and worked himself up from there.

Most people don't know about this but really a lot of people got shafted working for Epic in practice, especially in the early days.

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Re: Epic is turning off online services and servers for UT99
There were also two other level designers considered for Unreal and left shortly. One of them was actually David Kelvin who ended up working on return to na pali, the second one was a guy who worked on the quake mission pack I and...oh yea it was Mike Wardwell. I did speak to him about it and he created a few levels and then left actually.
While Kelvin (aka Nivlek) didn't get to actually make much due to technical problems as his computer was too slow reportedly to run UnrealED fine. By the time of UPak developement that was all different though, but it is interesting what could have been.

[darksonny]

While im pissed off with these bad news, whats the real value or advantage for relaunching againg ut3 with changing name to X and f2p? Are they intend to try to wash or put some visual lifting to get rid those gow effects lights and image (blurry also) to get a cleaner image to play without being a dick?

More questions: Do this move be interpreted as abandonware all unreal series minus ut3 keeping in mind they will be deleted on digital stores? what this move implies legally?
What will think those modders, mappers or mutators admins etc... when they read this new?
I blame Tim cos this f***** decision and his f**** fucknite. Only now gets more difficult to locate servers and having or search more deeply where they are.
band of ***holes