4.0 on the Frag-Scale (Quake 3 Arena (PC))

Member Name: Moominpapa

Product:	Quake 3 Arena (PC)
Date:	05/01/01 (41 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Revolutionary 3D graphics and mind blowing fast-paced action

Disadvantages: no mission-based single-player mode

One more time, one more match, 30 more frags – just one more victory and I’ll be ready to call it a night. Yeah, right. I’ve been here before…many times…long ago.

A hell of a lot of you will know what to do when you play Quake III Arena for the first time. You’ll know how the controls work, how to operate each weapon, when to run for health, and when to rush into a crowd of competitors with guns blazing. Some of you will even be highly skilled players in your very first Quake III Arena Deathmatch. This is because very little has changed in terms of gameplay here. This is Quake. Rocket launchers, machine guns, rail guns, lightning guns, and shotguns light up the space around you and splash the entrails of nearby foe in all directions. You have to strafe, jump, duck, and focus on replenishing your health. Learning the layout of each map is also crucial. Hogging the armour and quad damage is a must. Find those hotspots, launch a shitload of rockets into a crowd of novice players, and watch your frag count soar. It is a no-holds-barred frag-fest to the finish and although it’s far from revolutionary it is ‘jolly good fun’.

But when it comes to technology Quake III is somewhat of a pioneer. The latest effort from Quake’s creator is a remarkable balancing act between advanced 3D graphics rendering and network performance. Keeping players happy by making Quake III playable over a 28.8kbps modem while giving id’s talented artists and designers the freedom to experiment with their artistic abilities without worrying about frame rates, is truly an accomplishment. And my god does it show.

The graphical appeal of Quake III is a mix of hi-tech and gothic art, and sometimes these styles intersect, resulting in a high degree of originality. Walls, floors, and ceilings are covered in dirt; pentagrams are painted on surfaces; organic columns reach from the floor to the ceiling; and a deadly
red mist creeps along the lowest regions. Luminescent columns spanning from wall to wall flow with brilliant electricity; metallic surfaces shimmer gracefully; and pulsating circular platforms rocket you to higher ledges above upon impact.

These fitting settings are all backdrops to an unending war fought by a cast of some of gaming’s most original and well-animated character models. And along with their looks and motions, each character model has a unique persona. Cybernetic eyeballs with two arms for legs sprint, leap and squeak as they pump lead into their foes. Highly acrobatic female soldiers float on hover boots and perform splits as they jump through the air.

But there is absolutely no chance to enjoy this extra-rich eye candy when participating in a Quake III Arena Deathmatch. Everything screams by at death-defying speeds; the game’s pace is relentless, and your view is usually blurred by flying rockets, spent shotgun shells, glowing plasma balls, and chunks of polygonal flesh.

Flying solo

For the new Quake player, a single-player tournament mode lets you enjoy a deathmatch without a network connection. It’s you vs. bots in an intense battle to the death across 3d maps. The maps are divided into tiers, each ending in a boss battle, which must end with your victory if you wish to progress to the next tier. Eventually you face Xaero, who is supposedly the ‘most dangerous enemy in the arena.’

But Xaero, as well as many of the other bots in the game play like fools on any difficulty level below “Hardcore.” Winning is a matter of finding an Achilles heel, and Xaero’s is pretty damn obvious: stay on the opposite side of the map, grab a Rail Gun and snipe him while remaining still. He’ll try and hit you with whatever weapon he has loaded, but he’ll almost never hit you. Was this really the last boss.?

Bumping the difficulty level up to Hardcore or even
worse, Nightmare, produces dramatically different results. Xaero never misses, no matter what you are doing. In fact, nearly all the bots hit their targets with the utmost accuracy, which makes very tough opposition.

Die Friends, Die

However, not too may players really bother with merits of the single player game alone. Not until recently did I start playing Quake III online, and it’s kicks ass. There are four modes: Free for All, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, or Tournament. This is also where Quake III’s level design really shines. For the most part, the lay of the land in all of the maps is very well thought-out and the spacing is ideal. For example, spots from which players can lob grenades or launch rockets always surround large rooms.

The verdict

I personally would have preferred it if the game also featured a single-player mission-based game, which thankfully id software have announced will feature in their next title. It is also said to feature an in-depth story, something which id have never achieved before.

Summary: