History VideoGame / UnrealI

Of course, the main reason why everybody who saw the game was left with wide-eyed, open-mouthed astonishment were the graphics, which ''heavily'' exploited 3D acceleration and offered levels of detail and SceneryPorn previously only dreamt of. The [[AwesomeMusic/{{Unreal}} excellent soundtrack]] (made in [[UsefulNotes/{{MOD}} ScreamTracker]] by the same people who made the music for ''VideoGame/JazzJackrabbit 2'' and later on ''VideoGame/DeusEx'') greatly helped the general atmosphere, too, and it all made for a sense of immersion no game had achieved before.

Ultimately, ''Unreal''[='=]s greatest merit is perhaps more in what it spawned than in what it was; the engine was so advanced and efficient that many developers ended up licensing it for their own productions, and Epic decided to continue development of the UsefulNotes/UnrealEngine separately from the ''Unreal'' series itself. Since then it has evolved through five generations, powered hundreds of games from independent titles to huge triple-A ones, been adapted to genres wildly different than the one it was born to run (including [=RPGs=], racers and simulators) and ported to every modern gaming platform under the sun (including ''[=HTML5=] browsers''). It eventually achieved such resounding success that Epic decided to release it for free to everyone and only profit from a small royalty, which simplified development enormously for independent studios. It's no exaggeration to say that it revolutionized gaming development on the whole.

* SceneryPorn: The game that started it all. The first level fools you into thinking it's just another shooter in enclosed spaces with prettier graphics (for the time). The second level... doesn't. If you played the game without first reading reviews of it, the surprise was mindblowing. Lush vegetation, colourful moving skies, animals hopping and flying about, and the sheer ''size'' of all the scenery was something completely unseen for the day, along with some perfectly fitting music to set the mood. It remained exclusive to ''Unreal'' for a while, too, as everybody else's [[UsefulNotes/GameEngine engines]] weren't geared for open spaces and would choke on the sheer number of polygons.

* MisguidedMissile: The player pulls this on [[spoiler:the UMS Bodega Bay]] in the closing cutscene of RTNP.

* DataDriveMacGuffin: During Prisoner 849's inspection of the UMS Prometheus, not only 849 stumbles upon the Data Cores, but also a transmission where [[spoiler:the UMS planned to dispose of her for [[HeKnowsTooMuch knowing too much]]]]. So she decides to [[spoiler:rebel against the UMS, fending off the invading waves after she transmits the cores, and finding an alternate way to escape from Na Pali]]. She also decides to keep recording her happenings during the whole ordeal in order [[FlingALightIntoTheFuture for anybody to learn the truth]] should she die at any point. By the end of the game, [[spoiler:849 successfully defeats the UMS Bodega Bay and escapes with the data]].

* FrictionlessIce: The level "Gala's Peak" features this in a bridge, though you can keep from accidentally falling off a ledge by crouching.

* CreatorCameo: The map "Neve's Crossing" from ''Return to Na Pali'' might be named after Epic's programmer Erik de Neve.

On December 14th, 2022, Epic Games pulled off from both Steam and Website/GoodOldGames the digital distribution of ''Unreal Gold'', thus the game, outside of auction sites, [[KeepCirculatingTheTapes can no longer be bought legally]].

** Later, the game became a true source of stock screams when one of them was recycled in ''VideoGame/UnrealIITheAwakening'', and several more in (of all things!) the 2018 BBC series of ''Franchise/LesMiserables''.

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

** [[MoreDakka Automatic Weapon]]: The Stinger and the [[GatlingGood Minigun]]. ''Return to Na Pali'' adds the Combat Assault Rifle.

** Gimmick Weapon: The GES Biorifle, which fires sludge in a short arc, and the Razorjack, which fires [[PinballProjectile blades that ricochet off any surface]] and can [[BoomHeadshot Headshot]]. The ASMD's combo attack can fall under this as well.

* ArtificialBrilliance: The enemies and the Botmatch mode bots had their AI designed by Steve Polge, creator of [[https://quake.fandom.com/wiki/The_Reaper_Bot the Reaper Bot]] multiplayer AI mod for ''Quake'', and it shows: they show the ability to dodge non-hitscan projectiles, can lead their target, and stay on the move constantly. Relative to most of the AI in games at the time, which favored "charge at the player while shooting", they felt far more like fighting an actual human.

* ArtificialBrilliance: The Skaarj reportedly had their AI designed by Steve Polge, creator of [[https://quake.fandom.com/wiki/The_Reaper_Bot the Reaper Bot]] multiplayer AI mod for ''Quake'', and it shows: they show the ability to dodge non-hitscan projectiles, can lead their target, and stay on the move constantly. Relative to most of the AI in games at the time, which favored "charge at the player while shooting", they felt far more like fighting an actual human.

* ArtificialBrilliance: The Skaarj reportedly had their AI designed by a creator of ''Quake'' multiplayer bots, and it shows: they show the ability to dodge non-hitscan projectiles, can lead their target, and stay on the move constantly. Relative to most of the AI in games at the time, which favored "charge at the player while shooting", they felt far more like fighting an actual human.

Ultimately, ''Unreal''[='=]s greatest merit is perhaps more in what it spawned than in what it was; the engine was so advanced and efficient that many developers ended up licensing it for their own productions, and Epic decided to continue development of the engine separately from the ''Unreal'' series itself. Since then it has evolved through five generations, powered hundreds of games from independent titles to huge triple-A ones, been adapted to genres wildly different than the one it was born to run (including [=RPGs=], racers and simulators) and ported to every modern gaming platform under the sun (including ''[=HTML5=] browsers''). It eventually achieved such resounding success that Epic decided to release it for free to everyone and only profit from a small royalty, which simplified development enormously for independent studios. It's no exaggeration to say that it revolutionized gaming development on the whole.

Ultimately, ''Unreal''[='=]s greatest merit is perhaps more in what it spawned than in what it was; the engine was so advanced and efficient that many developers ended up licensing it for their own productions, and Epic decided to continue development of the engine separately from the ''Unreal'' series itself. Since then it has evolved through five generations, powered hundreds of games from independent titles to huge triple-A ones, been adapted to genres wildly different than the one it was born to run (including [=RPGs=], racers and simulators) and ported to every modern gaming platform under the sun (including ''[=HTML5=] browsers''). It eventually achieved such resounding success that Epic decided to [[DoingItForTheArt release it for free to everyone]] and only profit from a small royalty, which simplified development enormously for independent studios. It's no exaggeration to say that it revolutionized gaming development on the whole.