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John Romero Discusses Why id Software Made Quake so Fast

There was a time when FPS games were lightning fast, and while that time is all but gone, John Romero talks about why Quake 1 was so speedy.

gamerant.com

According to an interview with PC Gamer, Romero has gotten round to answering the question of why Quake is so fast, something that he and the rest of id Software have perhaps been asked by fans for years. The answer given is seemingly quite typical of what fans would come to expect from the young, rebellious studio. Romero says that the team wanted to do something that games weren't doing at the time. In this instance, most other games were quite slow, so Romero said he wanted to do the opposite and make games as fast as possible, to show what gaming could be.

In the interview, Romero does say that Quake isn't the fastest game they've made. That title is reserved for id's earlier work, namely Wolfesnstein 3D, followed by the first Doom game. That said, the moody mid-90s FPS is still pretty slick, and that slickness has carried forward into future projects, with 2017's Quake Champions being one of the most fast-paced games in recent history, alongside other heart-pumping titles, such as Killing Floor 2 and Overwatch.

Romero also said that, despite it being considered quick, he finds the original Quake to be a little "sluggish" when compared to other games he helped make, adding that he still plays Doom deathmatch from time to time. He also name-dropped a couple of newer titles that have not lost that speedy FPS philosophy. Games such as Ultrakill, Dusk, and even Doom Eternal are evidence that studios are still wanting to put out first-person shooters that subvert the more sluggish pace of the modern era.

 

[Aldynes]

Perhaps when they shifted the original concept "Quake the fight for justice" to what we got, they felt the game needed to increase it's overall speed to make it fun and responsive?

Was it not supposed to be an RPG dungeon explorer in first person ? I guess when you get rid of that and it become a shooter you can speed up everything.

 

[Danknugz]

John Romero Discusses Why id Software Made Quake so Fast

There was a time when FPS games were lightning fast, and while that time is all but gone, John Romero talks about why Quake 1 was so speedy.

gamerant.com

According to an interview with PC Gamer, Romero has gotten round to answering the question of why Quake is so fast, something that he and the rest of id Software have perhaps been asked by fans for years. The answer given is seemingly quite typical of what fans would come to expect from the young, rebellious studio. Romero says that the team wanted to do something that games weren't doing at the time. In this instance, most other games were quite slow, so Romero said he wanted to do the opposite and make games as fast as possible, to show what gaming could be.

In the interview, Romero does say that Quake isn't the fastest game they've made. That title is reserved for id's earlier work, namely Wolfesnstein 3D, followed by the first Doom game. That said, the moody mid-90s FPS is still pretty slick, and that slickness has carried forward into future projects, with 2017's Quake Champions being one of the most fast-paced games in recent history, alongside other heart-pumping titles, such as Killing Floor 2 and Overwatch.

Romero also said that, despite it being considered quick, he finds the original Quake to be a little "sluggish" when compared to other games he helped make, adding that he still plays Doom deathmatch from time to time. He also name-dropped a couple of newer titles that have not lost that speedy FPS philosophy. Games such as Ultrakill, Dusk, and even Doom Eternal are evidence that studios are still wanting to put out first-person shooters that subvert the more sluggish pace of the modern era.

is this talk and the recent remaster evidence of something looming on the horizon?

 

[WitchHunter]

is this talk and the recent remaster evidence of something looming on the horizon?

Daikatana 2 imminent.

 

[JohnnyFootball]

is this talk and the recent remaster evidence of something looming on the horizon?

Don't know why you would think that. I didn't get anything along those lines from the interview. Just someone who loves reminiscing.

I've always imagined Romero would have salty feelings towards Quake since that was the game that more or less ended his career.