Unreal Tournament 3 Available for Preload

Unreal Tournament 3 is now available for preload from Direct2Drive.

Gamers can download the encrypted version of Epic’s highly anticipated multiplayer FPS and be ready to unlock it and begin playing the moment it is released to the public at 12:01 a.m. EST on November 21 in North America, and November 23 worldwide.

“We are pleased to add the latest AAA videogame, Unreal Tournament 3, to Direct2Drive’s download lineup,” said Steve Allison, chief marketing officer at Midway Games, publisher of Unreal Tournament 3. “Our working with Direct2Drive allows consumers the ability to preload the game via digital download and be ready to get online on day one, which is crucial to the core Unreal Tournament fan base.”

Jamie Berger, senior vice president at Direct2Drive parent IGN, added, “Unreal Tournament 3 is one of the most anticipated games of the year, and Unreal Tournament is surely one of the greatest PC game franchises of all time. By offering immediate preload of Unreal Tournament 3 today we can satisfy the many thousands of Unreal Tournament fans who want to be the first online to play this incredible game. Direct2Drive offers the broadest selection of AAA games for download anywhere, and adding the worldwide exclusive to preload Unreal Tournament is a big win fro our loyal customers.”

Unreal Tournament 3 is the fourth entry in the Unreal Tournament series, following the original release and the 2003 and 2004 entries in the series, but is named for Unreal Engine 3 that powers it. Versions of the game for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Mac OS X are planned to follow the initial Windows release. The Direct2Drive preload link is available here, and more information can be found at the Unreal Tournament 3 website.