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Review

Quake 3 Arena 

Developer ID, Raster, No Cliche
Publisher Sega
Genre First person shooter
Players 1-2
Rumble Yes
Extras Mouse, Keyboard

 

Quake came out many years ago and was the apparent successor to Doom. It introduced proper 3D levels and characters along with a host of new features and play styles. It proved popular and a sequel was made, Quake 2 ditched the time travelling fantasy setting and opted for the old sci-fi yarn plot. Quake 2 had an average single player mode, and an average multiplayer mode. Soon it became obvious that many people were not bothering with playing through the story mode and instead just playing multiplayer, thus Quake 3 Arena was born.

Quake 3 Arena [Q3A] returns to its futuristic fantasy setting, meaning that the levels are well textured and not just the standard black futuristic panelling and neon nightline scenario.

Q3A is for all intents and purposes a multiplayer game. A single player mode is also available and it proves to be a good practice option for multiplayer matches. In single player you pick your character and take them through various levels or 'Tiers'. At the end of these you face a boss. Pretty standard stuff, except the AI [artificial intelligence] in the bots [cpu controlled players] is excellent. Although this may sound very linear you should not be put off as it is great fun. Q3A appeal lies very much in its 'pick up and play' philosophy, at its most basic Q3A is a battle to get the highest frag count and advance to the next round with the dream of becoming the Arena master.

Q3A has many multiplayer modes ranging from team games to capture the flag. The DC version of Q3A only supports 4 players in the multiplayer games, which is a disappointment when you compare it with the PC'S 32+. However Q3A multiplayer can be played on or offline. If you choose to go on-line and battle then it will look very similar to the single player mode, in the fact that your screen is yours. Whilst if you decide to play multiplayer offline with your friends, then the screen will split depending on the number of players. If you have no friends then the DC can control some of the bots so you don't have to play with your self, single handily, on your solo project..etc.

When Quake was released on the PC many people opted for using the mouse and keyboard set up, and those PC 'enthusiasts' will say that this is the way Quake should be played. However if you have never played Quake before then the pad is a good substitute, it is fully customisable and should not cause any problems. Contrary to what you have read, playing Q3A on-line works excellently. There is a shot lag time as with playing it on the PC, but if any bots are playing then they suffer no lag, making the game that little bit harder.

One good idea that Q3A is when you die, you are brought back with 120 health. This then counts down to 100, the reasoning is that this extra bit of health may save you if you appear next to a fully equipped player. You can still be taken down on 120 health, but normally this works well giving you maybe a slight advantage.

Q3A control does lack one feature which could have been implemented, that is an auto-aim feature. Due to the pace that Q3A runs at, and that enemy's can be above and below you, a feature to target the nearest enemy would have been a nice addition. However as long as you take time to practice Q3A this should not prove to be that much of a problem.

The sound in Q3A does its job well. The soundtrack is made up of mostly beat pumping fused with a little electronic dark rock. The music also creates the impression of urgency and survival which suits Q3A perfectly. Each of the weapons has its own sound effect ranging from the heavy sounding shotgun to the bouncing grenades rattling around the metal floor panels.

Recommending this game is not hard to do. Unlike the PC version you can get Q3A up much faster and it looks just as good, and the DC lighting effects are better. However with only support for 4 players the 'arena' idea is sorely destroyed as occasionally you can be running around for several minutes trying to find the enemy who is also running around trying to find you. There has been an ongoing debate on which game is better Quake 3 Arena or Unreal Tournament. Personally I am a Quake man, as Unreal Tournament is your standard sci-fi yarn. It's levels are dull and too big, and the character voices are very poor. However a DC version is also going to be available or is available now [depending when you are reading this] Unreal Tourny on DC will support 8 players, but has less of the levels and multiplayer options than the PC version.

So in short if you want some first person action now, get Quake 3 Arena as it will keep you entertained for ages. Q3A is an amazing game and deserves to be in everyone’s DC game collection. Put simply buy this game and I will see you on-line.

Sam Smith

Graphics

8.0

 Excellent graphics and effects, much like the PC version.
Sound 8.0 Good heavy soundtrack and suitable weapon sounds, and character screams.
Gameplay 8.0 A very simple premise which works well, kill or be killed, then kill again.
Lifespan 8.0

Each Q3A game is different, it will last you for a long time. The single player missions will be completed quickly, but multiplayer is where this game is at.

Overall

"Quake 3 Arena - a classic reborn!"

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Reviewer:

Sam

 

 

 

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