I've had no problems so far technical wise.  A few minor bugs but nothing that is a deal breaker and they've been fairly timely in getting a patch out.  In my old age I've been burned too many times by buying on release day so I just won't buy then anymore.  My rule of thumb is until the game hits $40 and has mostly decent reviews (Not everyone can be happy.) I don't buy anymore PERIOD!  PC gaming has suffered over the years because us gamers have been willing to put up with shoddy products & support we have noone to blame but ourselves.  Now on to my review.

Wow it's been a while since I've played any Unreal.  This version is like going home.  The game has returned to it's roots.  UT2003 was graphically pretty but felt way too slow, too floaty, and the weapons too inaccurate.  I never gave UT2004 a chance after playing around with the demo and seeing what appeared to be more of the same, but with vehicles.  It's like they fell in love with Quake 3 and Halo, both of which I never liked, and just kept copying everything those guys were doing.  I was probably being unfair to 2004 since much of what is "new" interesting in UT3 to me most likely came from that game.

It took all of an hour or so to start falling back into the old groove, the game feels that much like the original.  Most of the weapons are old hat, though they've tweaked some of them down in range (alt flak cannon, translocater)

The sniper rifle is pretty much you see it you shoot it (and you can see a LONG way on some maps), though they added a tracer to it so no camping with impunity.

The enforcers are tight enough and just like the original, nasty with a pair of them and more than lethal enough at most reasonable (close/medium)

The chain gun is about the same but only usefull at long range on fliers or wearing down groups of bunched up opponents.  The alt-fire mode is much more accurate and more like shotgun slugs, but they aren't insta-hit so it suffers at long range.

The shock rifle is the shock rifle, nothing more to say, though the vehicle mounted versions can cause you pain and suffering.  (Think 10-15 cores coming at you then shock combo'd all at once.)

The plasma-rifle is the plasma-rifle.  Use the primary against vehicles, it eats pretty quickly through their armor and for infantry suppression.  The alt-fire is nastier than I remember it and repairs vehicles.

The only one that did not make it back from the grave was the Razor-Jack.  That one was mostly a solution to some of the maps back in the day that had too many inpenatrable camping spots.  Those tend not to show up anymore, so it didn't really have a place in the game.  Still I miss it since it was such a challenge to use, that and playing the "explosive ammo crate" mutator would make razor ammo death traps to anyone unlucky enough to pass near them.

The Bio-gun is no longer a one hit insta-kill with the alt-mode.  It is still pretty much a guarenteed frag.  It just takes the sludge a while to "eat" your opponent.

The translocator is pretty wimpy in range compared to the old and is a little harder to kill with since it moves slower too (A little faster than you can run.)  (I never was that good with it anyway.), but it's twice as big now and glows the team color so dealing with someone who likes to tela-frag is pretty easy.  Just snap shoot it out of the air to damage it and they'll die as soon as they port.

Vehicle wise I couldn't tell you, I hardly ever use them.  Vehicles can dominate but aren't too hard defeat as long as you don't try to go toe to toe with them.  Get up high and chew them up with your favorite flavor of weapon.  There are some pluses compared to other games out there.  Vehicles don't instantly expode on contact with water or when flipped over or 20 seconds after they are abandoned.  You can get stuck, but in a more realistic ways then just the common stupid clipping errors you usually see.  Vehicle physics looks good and they are fairly tight to control.  They behave the way you think they would in terms of mass, velocity, acceleration, and momentum.  They can't be stolen until driven off the lot by the enemy team, but they can be destroyed at the spawn points.

Phys-X.  I have a hardware card, but don't see things one way or the other, all physics in the game is smooth and looks good.  I downloaded the two demo-maps from Ageia, they are cool to play with, but are not much more than toys.  The shear number of objects are too much at times for my graphics card (880GTS 640mb 1900x1200)

Speed wise UT3 is about as dead on with the original UT as one could hope, thought it still feels a little slow.  After the original nearly every other shooter that game out felt like walking through mud, so this is a refreshing surprise.

For all you young-in's who cut their teath on Halo, UT2003, etc.  you are going to have to step it up to keep up.  This is your Dad's (uncle's, older brother's, etc) FPS and he's going to trounce you.

My advice crank your mouse sensitivity up and once you are used to that, crank it up again, load up a bunch of bots to practice, practice, practice.  When you get sick and tired of the announcer saying "Godlike" with the bots set to Insane  then maybe, and that's MAYBE you'll be somewhat of a minor challenge to an experienced UT player.  (If he/she has been playing UT  since 99' bring 3-4 friends along for them to shoot between your respawns so they don't get bored.)

Time for me to dig up the old crew and drag them out of retirement.

See you on the battlefield.

Akula.
I've had no problems so far technical wise. A few minor bugs but nothing that is a deal breaker and they've been fairly timely in getting a patch out. In my old age I've been burned too many times by buying on release day so I just won't buy then anymore. My rule of thumb is until the game hits $40 and has mostly decent reviews (Not everyone can be happy. ) I don't buy anymore PERIOD! PC gaming has suffered over the years because us gamers have been willing to put up with shoddy products & support we have noone to blame but ourselves. Now on to my review. Wow it's been a while since I've played any Unreal. This version is like going home. The game has returned to it's roots. UT2003 was graphically pretty but felt way too slow, too floaty, and the weapons too inaccurate. I never gave UT2004 a chance after playing around with the demo and seeing what appeared to be more of the same, but with vehicles. It's like they fell in love with Quake 3 and Halo, both of which I never liked, and just kept copying everything those guys were doing. I was probably being unfair to 2004 since much of what is "new" interesting in UT3 to me most likely came from that game. It took all of an hour or so to start falling back into the old groove, the game feels that much like the original. Most of the weapons are old hat, though they've tweaked some of them down in range (alt flak cannon, translocater)

The sniper rifle is pretty much you see it you shoot it (and you can see a LONG way on some maps), though they added a tracer to it so no camping with impunity. The enforcers are tight enough and just like the original, nasty with a pair of them and more than lethal enough at most reasonable (close/medium)

The chain gun is about the same but only usefull at long range on fliers or wearing down groups of bunched up opponents. The alt-fire mode is much more accurate and more like shotgun slugs, but they aren't insta-hit so it suffers at long range. The shock rifle is the shock rifle, nothing more to say, though the vehicle mounted versions can cause you pain and suffering. (Think 10-15 cores coming at you then shock combo'd all at once. )

The plasma-rifle is the plasma-rifle. Use the primary against vehicles, it eats pretty quickly through their armor and for infantry suppression. The alt-fire is nastier than I remember it and repairs vehicles. The only one that did not make it back from the grave was the Razor-Jack. That one was mostly a solution to some of the maps back in the day that had too many inpenatrable camping spots. Those tend not to show up anymore, so it didn't really have a place in the game. Still I miss it since it was such a challenge to use, that and playing the "explosive ammo crate" mutator would make razor ammo death traps to anyone unlucky enough to pass near them. The Bio-gun is no longer a one hit insta-kill with the alt-mode. It is still pretty much a guarenteed frag. It just takes the sludge a while to "eat" your opponent. The translocator is pretty wimpy in range compared to the old and is a little harder to kill with since it moves slower too (A little faster than you can run. )  (I never was that good with it anyway. ), but it's twice as big now and glows the team color so dealing with someone who likes to tela-frag is pretty easy. Just snap shoot it out of the air to damage it and they'll die as soon as they port. Vehicle wise I couldn't tell you, I hardly ever use them. Vehicles can dominate but aren't too hard defeat as long as you don't try to go toe to toe with them. Get up high and chew them up with your favorite flavor of weapon. There are some pluses compared to other games out there. Vehicles don't instantly expode on contact with water or when flipped over or 20 seconds after they are abandoned. You can get stuck, but in a more realistic ways then just the common stupid clipping errors you usually see. Vehicle physics looks good and they are fairly tight to control. They behave the way you think they would in terms of mass, velocity, acceleration, and momentum. They can't be stolen until driven off the lot by the enemy team, but they can be destroyed at the spawn points. Phys-X. I have a hardware card, but don't see things one way or the other, all physics in the game is smooth and looks good. I downloaded the two demo-maps from Ageia, they are cool to play with, but are not much more than toys. The shear number of objects are too much at times for my graphics card (880GTS 640mb 1900x1200)

Speed wise UT3 is about as dead on with the original UT as one could hope, thought it still feels a little slow. After the original nearly every other shooter that game out felt like walking through mud, so this is a refreshing surprise. For all you young-in's who cut their teath on Halo, UT2003, etc. you are going to have to step it up to keep up. This is your Dad's (uncle's, older brother's, etc) FPS and he's going to trounce you. My advice crank your mouse sensitivity up and once you are used to that, crank it up again, load up a bunch of bots to practice, practice, practice. When you get sick and tired of the announcer saying "Godlike" with the bots set to Insane  then maybe, and that's MAYBE you'll be somewhat of a minor challenge to an experienced UT player. (If he/she has been playing UT  since 99' bring 3-4 friends along for them to shoot between your respawns so they don't get bored. )

Time for me to dig up the old crew and drag them out of retirement. See you on the battlefield. Akula.