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| The following is a meta-article, which explains a concept which usually falls out of one of the wiki's categorizations, yet it's still important to explain something. |
If you're looking for more, general information, you might want to check wikipedia:Spawning (video games).
Respawning is the concept of a player re-entering the game after dying. It also applies to objects such as vehicles that have been destroyed and weapons that have been collected and then reappear. Sometimes, particularly the first time this occurs for an object, it is referred to as spawning.
Unlike many other games, players can respawn immediately after being killed without having to wait, thus avoiding downtime. Along with features like respawning at convenient locations in team-based games and the inclusion of the Hoverboard, Epic aims to minimize downtime for players. Weapons, ammunition, and other items, as well as vehicles, follow a countdown timer after being picked up. Generally, more powerful items take longer to respawn than weaker ones.
Single-player games[]
In Unreal, respawning does not exist within the game's story. If the player dies in the single-player campaign, the entire game must reset to an earlier state. Killed enemies are permanently removed from the game, and collected objects will never reappear. The multiplayer component does include respawning, although without explanation, though respawn points are sometimes marked with small pedestals.
Unreal II's similar single-player nature means it also does not feature respawning, although XMP has a respawn mechanic similar to that of Unreal Tournament's described below.
Multiplayer games[]
Due to Unreal Tournament's multiplayer-centric gameplay, respawning is a prominent feature. Player spawn points are no longer indicated, making spawn camping (waiting for other players, particularly those who are lightly armed, to respawn only to immediately kill them) more challenging. While the story of the Liandri Grand Tournament includes respawning, little detail is provided about its mechanics.
Respawning in UT2003, and consequently UC and UT2004, functions similarly to Unreal Tournament. A new feature is that weapon respawn points are indicated with a weapon base, making it easier for players, especially newcomers to the map, to locate weapons even when they are not currently available. Ammo and other items do not have bases. The game introduces a new type of weapon base called a Weapon Locker for the Onslaught and Assault gametypes. Weapon Lockers provide multiple weapons at once but respawn those weapons for individual players. In other words, if a player uses a Weapon Locker, they won't be able to use it for a while, but other players can still use it, initiating their own respawn timer for that Weapon Locker.
In UC2's story, respawning is explained as occurring through technology installed in the arenas to prevent competitors from actually dying after being defeated. Respawning does not occur outside of the Tournaments. It is revealed in the final match of the Ascension Rites that the respawners can be disabled at will in each arena.
UT3 explains that Respawners, originally used in the Tournaments, are now employed in actual warfare to reduce casualties by keeping soldiers alive. However, some portable Respawners require Field Lattice Generators (flags) to operate, allowing them to be disabled by capturing flags and depleting the energy of enemy Respawners until they deactivate. In deathmatch-style battles, Respawners have a finite energy source that is utilized only when Respawners are operational (respawning individuals), enabling them to be disabled simply by continuously eliminating enemy team members until the enemy power is depleted.