Release Notes January 23

The new Unreal Tournament update, released today, features the new Flag Run game mode. It also includes a new prototype weapon, the Lightning Rifle, as well as improvements to the Grenade Launcher prototype. UT is now on Unreal Engine 4.15, with all the associated new engine features and improvements. New user flow and training has been improved, and the main menu has also been refreshed. LAN servers can once again be launched from the menu. Quickmatch now uses a scaleable instance system and is no longer tied to hubs.

We’d love to get feedback on our new Flag Run gamemode, which combines elements of the classic Capture the Flag and Assault game modes in an intense new round-based mode. It is still a work in progress and all the playable levels are currently low poly shells. We are excited about its potential and ready to hear from you about it. Flag Run is available as a Quickmatch option, on hubs, or even offline against bots. We’ve also added a training video and tutorial to help get you up to speed quickly. You can give us feedback on the forums, in the Unreal Tournament subreddit, Discord or in the comments below. We’d love to hear from you.

The Lightning Rifle prototype is a long range hitscan weapon with clearly defined advantages and disadvantages; a sniper weapon feared when used at long range but limited at closer range. It has two very different fire modes depending on whether the weapon is zoomed in.

When the weapon is zoomed in it will automatically begin to charge as shown by a meter in the scope. If the weapon is fired before it is fully charged, it releases a low powered beam of lightning at the target which can be fired at a fairly quick rate. However if the player allows the weapon to fully charge before firing, it will release a large beam of lightning which does a significant amount of damage to the first target it hits and then chains to cause some damage any nearby targets in line of sight of the hit target.

When fired from the hip, the rifle will shoot a high speed but low rate of fire projectile which sticks to an enemy and electrocutes them for three ticks of damage over a second. This allows the player make interesting skill shots at medium to close range and defend himself. The Lightning Rifle is currently only available for play using the Weapon Replacement mutator.

We’ve continued to make progress on our Grenade Launcher prototype. The primary fire mode shoots out bouncy grenades that explode on contact or after a short delay. The secondary fire mode fires stick grenades that explode when secondary fire is pressed again. The Grenade Launcher's primary role is a choke point control and suppression tool. Its timed detonation ability also lends itself well to boosting and traversal. In the hands of a skilled user the GL is also an effective close range and prediction weapon.

There have also been a lot of AI improvements, changes and improvements to other weapons, updates to the new community maps, new sounds, and many other updates and bug fixes. You can check HERE for a detailed change list. We will also have a video coming soon for a detailed explanation of the changes, additions and updates.