Quake

The Good
Quake was a technological wonder, after Doom id really had a hard act to follow technology-wise, yet they once again proved their programming prowess with Quake = the first fps with a true 3D engine.

And what an engine it was! After years of being stuck on the world of 2.5D games, Quake finally delivered true polygonal bliss. The end result was pretty much obvious: better sense of space and depth, smoother animation, use of effects like the portal or the cool underwater-distortion one, etc. etc. Quake also applied it's 3D-ness to such things as the player's Pov, which swayed and leaned around quite realistically. A feat that really made the game feel a lot different from the now static-looking 2.5D fpss; ditto the character models, which moved way smoother than sprites, and also came with the added bonus of being able to explode in little chunks of red meat, yes boys and girls, "gibs" were born with Quake.

The multiplayer area is also the other point were Quake broke the mold. As everyone knows by now, the game replaced all the hassle of multiplayer net-play with the now common server-client architecture, which was not only much more intuituive, but also much more reliable and fast, especially when you consider the setup prep-work that was usually involved with multiplayer gaming.

Also, being a metal fan I really enjoyed NIN's contribution to the game's soundtrack, tough it seems to be too depressing/experimental to most players for some reason. Still, if you don't like it, you can always pop in your own audio cd and let 'er rip while you get it on.

The Bad
What "didn't" I like about the game?? Well, there's no game to speak of!! :)). Seriously, Quake would begin id's trend of just forgetting about game design and instead providing the best technological wonders they could come up with. This is especially evidenced by the open architecture of Quake. It's set-up so you can customize it to your liking, ad mods to it, ad skins, textures, levels, sounds, etc etc. Heck, they even released the source code!

Id just figured "Why the hell bother designing the game when we just can release the technology?" It may be a reprehensible idea, but it's smart! Think about it, Quake off the box was a piece of shit. The game itself has even less story than Doom (and you thought that wasn't possible!!), the weapons are copies of Doom's (save for the Axe and the Lightning-throwing thingie) with new yet crappy 3D models (the rocket launcher is just a brown rod!!), the level of interaction was toned down to near-retarded levels with the removal of the use key in favor of a jump key, essentially trading off the ability to use things for the world's crappiest jump (primary reason for the discovery of the rocket-jump) result? You activate gigantic buttons by bumping into them... groan....

But wait! That's not all! The levels are dull techo-goth places with a heavy dose of the brown color (hmmm, crap comes to mind in more ways than one!!), populated by stupid traps (??WTF??) and seemingly randomly-placed enemies, which to be fair are the only cool things that come with the game. The single player campaign is a joke, with the only good moment being the fight against Chthon at the end of episode 1 and the initial joy of watching everything in 3D and all the Lovecraftian imagery. The multiplayer part saves the game, but then again the maps that came with the game were sorely lacking in just about every level.

...yet...

The Bottom Line
Quake sold Gazillions of copies!!! Why? Because it didn't matter whether it was good or not off the box!! You bought the game, and then turned it into whatever you wanted! And I'm not just talking about the level add-ons and stuff like that, I'm talking about serious reworkings, like Quake Rally and the like.

Quake is sort of like a piece of real estate, get it? It's what you put in there that eventually turns the game a worthy experience. It's a piece of remarkably well made technology, with enough of an open architecture to satisfy most pseudo-designers (though it would still require a high level of proficiency to do stuff like "real" level editing). That's what you pay, and that's what you get. Not a game, but a 3D-enginered, multiplayer-capable, piece of clay. This is good, REAL good. On the other hand it's pretty shameless in the sense that the developers simply washed their hands of most, if not all, creative content... hmm. That's bad, real bad...

In the end you'll have to ask yourself what do you really want. Back on those days Quake meant 3D and multiplayer. If you wanted that, you went for that. If you wanted say... good fps gameplay, you went for Duke3D (or even Quake add-ons like Scourge of Armaggon) and the like. You had to think before you bought. Of course, nowadays it's just completely stupid to play Quake. No reason to bother with old technology when you can have the new and upgraded version: Quake 3 Arena, even less of a game than this one, and destined to the same oblivion as soon as Quake 4, 5, 6, etc. get released.

The Good
The 90’s were the golden age of FPS. The earlier days of the decade gave us Doom, and Wolfenstein. Midway through the decade, Duke Nukem 3D, Blood, and Hexen, were our dark masters. However, 1996, ID Software would release a game that would usher in a new era of FPS’. That game was Quake.

In Quake, you are a soldier working for a team of scientists that are researching dimensional portals, when they accidentally stumble on the haunted realms of Quake. Now the horrific dimensions are going to invade the Earth Realm. It is up to you to stop them. The plot is pretty light, there are no cut scenes, or any thing like that. But the story is rather dark, and supposedly inspired by H. P. Lovecraft.

There are 4 terror filed realms of Quake. Each with multiple levels. In the levels you fight monsters collect keys, find secrets, and eventually find the rune of the realm you are in. There is an array of weapons at your disposal. From an Axe, to Shotguns, and my all time favorite, the Nail Gun.

Monsters seemingly inspired by the nightmares of madmen, also fill levels. Each has a particular weakness, and best weapon to take down. Finding the weakness is another story. Boss fights are rare, but always impressive.

For the time the graphics of Quake were amazing. It was the first true 3D FPS. Levels are dark, and foreboding, and the monsters are truly scary. Nice lighting effects abound as well. If you can get Quake to run with even an older 3D card it will look much better almost like a new game!

The sound really shines in Quake. Both the music and sound effects were done by Nine Inch Nails. The music itself is more ambient, than in traditional FPS’. The sound effects are creepy, to say the least. Each monster has a distinct sound, so you will come to dread what is around the next corner. Weapon sounds are very good as well. Try playing the game with surround sound. Or in the dark with headphones on. You’ll swear that you can hear things with the headphones that you could not hear with out them.

The Bad
Quake is not an easy game. So not for those not looking for a challenge. But otherwise not a bad thing.

The game of course is dated, it’s been 10 years after all.

Getting Quake to run on newer machines is a challenge.

The Bottom Line
This is one of the best FPS and a landmark, not only in it’s genre but for games in general. If you have the means play it. Or if it has been awhile play it again.

The Good
Quake literally revolutionized almost every aspect of the FPS genre apart from storytelling and level design. The 3D engine was not simply the first of its kind, it was also the smoothest and fastest for many years to come. It was also one of the most modifiable, giving rise to an endless surge of modifications. It was the first to feature gravity variables, thus opening the portal of physics to videogames.

The game itself was fast and atmospheric at the same time. The rusty, brown colour palette might not appeal to everyone, however it gave the game a distinctive look and oppressive feel. The music by the Nine Inch Nails was equally dark and industrial sounding and fit well with the theme. It was obvious id was trying to leave behind Doom's bright colours in favour of something darker and more subliminal.

Id also simplified the interface somewhat by introducing touch sensitive buttons and walls instead of colour coded keys and toggled switches. The point was to eliminate all the pointless search-button mashing while strafing with the face to the wall, a common practice for veteran Doom players looking for elusive secrets. The real secret of Quake was that it removed most obstacles between action, atmosphere and the player, thus providing an almost exhilarating experience while blowing enemies to bloody chunks, wading through murky water and trying to avoid the traps.

And multiplayer. The only game that could really stop gamers from blasting themselves for endless hours in Doom Deathmatches was Quake. We owe the existence of Capture the Flag, Team Deathmatch and class deathmatch variations to the huge community that the game amassed. However, Quake's own Deathmatch mode was a complete experience into itself and is enjoyable even today.

The Bad
Level design was good, but not quite on par with Doom's masterful levels. Still, it was far from "boring" or repetitive and offered some truly memorable moments. Quake is not "perfect" is the same way that no classic game is: however its strengths far outweigh its shortcomings.

The Bottom Line
Purity of form.

Quake had no story because, much like Doom or Duke Nukem 3d, it did not need one. The fun it offered was pure: when you are really thirsty nothing compares to pure crystal water and there is no replacement for that. It took Epic many years to learn this lesson and reach the peak that UT 2004 has. In effect, the Golden Rule that id set with Doom and Quake is that an FPS needs focus in order to be truly enjoyable. Thus it either has to offer the raw thrill of action that Quake epitomizes or the cinematic experience that Half-Life pursued. Either unhindered, non-stop blasting fun or realism and the restrictions which it imposes. The middle ground does not really work here and the pinnacle of pure action is truly the legacy of Quake.