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[Apocryphon]

QuakeCon 2024 is just weeks away and we can obviously expect to see more of Doom: The Dark Ages, but no doubt in some corners people will once again ask; ‘when Quake tho?’.

For a long time I have wanted a Quake 1 successor or reboot. When Doom (2016) hit my desire for another Quake game exploded and the prospect of a 2016-esque reboot of Quake in modern id Tech was something I haven’t been able to get out of my head until very recently. When the Quake and Quake 2 remasters were released I figured it was inevitable that Quake would be what id moved onto after TAG2 given how that story ended.

But I no longer care. Doom: The Dark Ages looks great and I’m 100% convinced it will be amazing, but my opinion on what I want id to take on next has changed and I no longer hope they go back to Quake. I just don’t see how the existing team under Hugo Martin could ever do the series justice.

id, Bethesda, or Microsoft may own the IP but the reality is that Quake no longer belongs to them. Quake belongs to the community and the future of Quake is now and it is fucking glorious:



For years I have played amazing Quake map packs and mods while actively waiting for id to return to the property. I have taken part in countless discussions about what a modern Quake could look like and whether it should include the Strogg or not. I have fantasized about soulslike and roguelite takes on the Eldritch inspired original game in the series and how a studio could make it appeal to modern audiences. Only to come to the conclusion that I don’t actually want id or anybody else to reboot, remake, sequelize, or prequelize Quake.

Quake will turn 30 in 2026 and yet there has never been a better time to play the game. The modern Doom games are not going to have the same kind of legacy as the classic Doom games or as Quake. Their communities won’t persist whereas id’s early games have only gone from strength to strength. Releasing the source code to early versions of id Tech is the best decision id ever made. Doom Eternal is a fine game but in 30 years it will be long forgotten and if I’m still alive I will still be playing Quake.

 

[Griffon]

Quake

 

[unclbenn]

The immortal lock looks amazing. I'll definitely be trying that out this weekend.

 

[LazyParrot]

The shit that made games like Quake or Doom last decades (freely available source code, development tools and the ability to run your own servers) used to be fairly common on PC, but it all pretty much disappeared when consoles became the dominant platform for FPS games in the PS3/360 era, and it ain't coming back. Why would they give players the ability to make their own content when they can get them to pay for it instead?

 

[Crayon]

Quake

No arguments here.

 

[Guilty_AI]

i have to play Quake

 

[bender]

I kind of hope we don't see another Quake reboot. You just can't top the original from a single player experience and Q3A from a multi-player experience and I don't think any of the other efforts come close.

 

[intbal]

Quake

Source?

 

[simpatico]

Downloading that Immortal Lock right now. Really looks great! Couple of my favorite Quake-likes are Dusk and HROT. Both are terrific start to finish.

 

[Guilty_AI]

Source?

id tech 2

 

[Apocryphon]

The immortal lock looks amazing. I'll definitely be trying that out this weekend.

It’s really hard. Go in on Normal first. Nightmare is basically impossible.

i have to play Quake

I mean it costs basically nothing and there is a wealth of community created content available. It isn’t for everybody but it’s definitely worth checking out.

Some stuff (like The Immortal Lock) doesn’t work with the remaster though. Fortunately Ironwail and vkQuake are free.

I kind of hope we don't see another Quake reboot. You just can't top the original from a single player experience and Q3A from a multi-player experience and I don't think any of the other efforts come close.

Yeah this is what I have come to realize. The clusterfuck development of the original game resulted in something that is so unique nobody has ever been able to replicate it. Quake II was a great game but it fell short in many areas IMO. Quakes atmosphere, sound design, and visual aesthetic are better than any other game in the series.

I wouldn’t say no to a 30th anniversary expansion by Machine Games though. They did good work with DOTP and DOTM.

 

[bender]

Quake II was a great game but it fell short in many areas IMO.

I really didn't enjoy Quake II when it released and replaying it recently thanks to Nightdive hasn't done anything to change my mind. I think I had more fun replaying Q4 which is saying something.

 

[Apocryphon]

Downloading that Immortal Lock right now. Really looks great! Couple of my favorite Quake-likes are Dusk and HROT. Both are terrific start to finish.

Somebody described it as Dusk meets Half Life Xen which for some of it is a pretty accurate description but it’s so much more than that. If Hell exists it probably looks a lot like The Immortal Lock

It’s brutal though and I don’t recommend playing it on Hard or Nightmare at first. Some parts require advanced movement techniques.

 

[Chuck Berry]

Quake II

 

[Guilty_AI]

I mean it costs basically nothing and there is a wealth of community created content available. It isn’t for everybody but it’s definitely worth checking out.

Some stuff (like The Immortal Lock) doesn’t work with the remaster though. Fortunately Ironwail and vkQuake are free.

i've been on a binge of boomer shooters and both Q1&2 are sitting on my backlog. There's just too many.

 

[Apocryphon]

I really didn't enjoy Quake II when it released and replaying it recently thanks to Nightdive hasn't done anything to change my mind. I think I had more fun replaying Q4 which is saying something.

I understand, though I personally dislike Quake 4 more.

 

[Lux R7]

I really didn't enjoy Quake II when it released and replaying it recently thanks to Nightdive hasn't done anything to change my mind. I think I had more fun replaying Q4 which is saying something.

i did like the n64 version back in the day. However yeah the first one was a superior game.

 

[Anthony Soprano]

What's the best way to play Quake online in 2024?

 

[LordOfChaos]

Quake

 

[Wildebeest]

I do think Doom Dark Ages looks more like a cross between Painkiller and Serious Sam than Quake.

 

[LordOfChaos]

Source?

Quake

 

[intbal]

Quake

Ah, the famous Reflexive Property of video games.

 

[IDKFA]

I really prefer the gothic horror of the first Quake to the sci-fi sequels.

I'd love a reboot of the series, especially a reboot of the first one.

 

[intbal]

I really prefer the gothic horror of the first Quake to the sci-fi sequels.

I'd love a reboot of the series, especially a reboot of the first one.

I suspect Doom: The Dark Ages is meant to fill that role. I doubt Microsoft goes back to Quake for a very long time since the major shareholders now appear to be making all the strategic decisions.

 

[MiguelItUp]

Excited about new DOOM, but man, a part of me was really hoping it was going to be a Quake reboot or something.

 

[twilo99]

id tech 2

Top tier coding that

 

[IDKFA]

I suspect Doom: The Dark Ages is meant to fill that role. I doubt Microsoft goes back to Quake for a very long time since the major shareholders now appear to be making all the strategic decisions.

Yeah, I can see original Quake vibes in the new Doom.

Shame. I think there is room for both.

 

[Miyazaki’s Slave]

id, Bethesda, or Microsoft may own the IP but the reality is that Quake no longer belongs to them.

I remember playing Team Fortress when the mod was released for quake.
Then Valve bought...sorry "hired" the mod team, had them release "team fortress classic", and then they made team fortress 2...seems like it totally belongs to a huge corporation that gobbles up content.

Microsoft very solidly OWNS Quake and they will do whatever they want with it. Probably release a XXth anniversary edition then charge for access to community content on consoles.

 

[64bitmodels]

Quake

 

[64bitmodels]

I remember playing Team Fortress when the mod was released for quake.
Then Valve bought...sorry "hired" the mod team, had them release "team fortress classic", and then they made team fortress 2...seems like it totally belongs to a huge corporation that gobbles up content.

Microsoft very solidly OWNS Quake and they will do whatever they want with it. Probably release a XXth anniversary edition then charge for access to community content on consoles.

It's a metaphorical thing dude. Of course the fans don't literally own quake, but one thing we do own that Microsoft doesn't is an actual interest in the IP. I think that's what that guy was referring to.

 

[Hudo]

Yes. Quake.

 

[Melon Husk]

Doom Dark Ages is Quake (1).
Quake might come back some day as a multiplayer franchise (I hope).

 

[Miyazaki’s Slave]

It's a metaphorical thing dude. Of course the fans don't literally own quake, but one thing we do own that Microsoft doesn't is an actual interest in the IP. I think that's what that guy was referring to.

I did a poorer job of illustrating my point, which is Quake has always been elevated by a committed community of folks that love the game and make top tier mods/tc's for it.

Can you use the word "reality" when you are speaking metaphorically? I guess someone could actually "drown in a pile of cash"...I don't know but I might just not understand what a metaphor is or how they are used properly.

 

[deriks]

Since Eternal is way closer to Quake III than Doom, and Dark Ages has the vibe of the first Quake, I'm fine

 

[Guilty_AI]

I remember playing Team Fortress when the mod was released for quake.
Then Valve bought...sorry "hired" the mod team, had them release "team fortress classic", and then they made team fortress 2...seems like it totally belongs to a huge corporation that gobbles up content.

Microsoft very solidly OWNS Quake and they will do whatever they want with it. Probably release a XXth anniversary edition then charge for access to community content on consoles.

It's a metaphorical thing dude. Of course the fans don't literally own quake, but one thing we do own that Microsoft doesn't is an actual interest in the IP. I think that's what that guy was referring to.

I think the major point here is that the quake engine (and doom engine for that matter) has open source code under GPL. Anyone can use it and anyone that does use it must also release their own source code. It quite literally belongs to the community.

 

[Apocryphon]

What's the best way to play Quake online in 2024?

The remaster.

I do think Doom Dark Ages looks more like a cross between Painkiller and Serious Sam than Quake.

Yeah it looks nothing like Quake. We haven’t seen enough to really say yet but I certainly expect a higher volume of enemies. I think it will basically be Ikaraga in a Doom skin.

I remember playing Team Fortress when the mod was released for quake.
Then Valve bought...sorry "hired" the mod team, had them release "team fortress classic", and then they made team fortress 2...seems like it totally belongs to a huge corporation that gobbles up content.

Microsoft very solidly OWNS Quake and they will do whatever they want with it. Probably release a XXth anniversary edition then charge for access to community content on consoles.

Fuck you and your mega corporations. Quake belongs to me and my friends now.

Doom Dark Ages is Quake (1).
Quake might come back some day as a multiplayer franchise (I hope).

It looks nothing like Quake. Pacific Rim bullshit and mecha-dragons (retarded name) are the furthest thing from Quake imaginable.

Since Eternal is way closer to Quake III than Doom, and Dark Ages has the vibe of the first Quake, I'm fine

Eternal is closer to Quake 3 in terms of its acrobatic nonsense and speed. As you say, it isn’t very ‘Doom’ as we knew it. But no, Dark Ages from the limited content we have seen so far isn’t very Quake. I think people hear/see medieval and immediately think about Quake because Quake had castles and knights. Most of Quake isn’t medieval though.

 

[Heimdall_Xtreme]

Whenever I see the word Quake, I imagine the captain of the oatmeal brand.

 

[Cert.in.Death]

Some things to never forget:

Quake inspired Gabe Newell to make Half-Life. And the Q3 Engine is what powered COD.

 

[nkarafo]

I think one of the reasons you see something like a Quake map today and it still looks good, even though it's low poly and boxy looking compared to modern games, is the lack of stupid post processing effects.

There is no motion blur, no bloom, no vignette, no piss filter, no auto exposure, no chromatic aberration, no upscaling or TAA artifacts, etc. Just sharp, clean objects and textures.

We used to have that in the old days but nowadays it can be combined with very high resolutions and very fast frame rates.

So yeah, you lose detail and realism but you have a clean, sharp looking game that doesn't hurt your eyes and runs faster and smoother than anything else.

 

[JohnnyFootball]

Quake 2 > Quake

I said what I said

 

[Astral Dog]

I was about to buy Quake remaster the other day, but stoped since i love the new DOOM games(most awesome FPS ever), but didn't enjoyed any of the other games.
DOOM 64,DOOM3,etc just found them frustrating instead of fun

 

[64bitmodels]

I think one of the reasons you see something like a Quake map today and it still looks good, even though it's low poly and boxy looking compared to modern games, is the lack of stupid post processing effects.

There is no motion blur, no bloom, no vignette, no piss filter, no auto exposure, no chromatic aberration, no upscaling or TAA artifacts, etc. Just sharp, clean objects and textures.

We used to have that in the old days but nowadays it can be combined with very high resolutions and very fast frame rates.

So yeah, you lose detail and realism but you have a clean, sharp looking game that doesn't hurt your eyes and runs faster and smoother than anything else.

i mean yeah but there's also just the artistry behind the map and it managing to look good thanks to all the advancements in modifications made to the engine and artistic improvements from custom mappers. All that you said isn't really special or exclusive to quake, most pre 2014 games didn't have a lot of that junk you just listed

 

[Sojiro]

I actually really like the Strog angle Quake 2 introduced, and carried on into Quake Wars and Quake 4, so I wouldn't mind them continuing with that. Or hell I would be just as happen with a continuation off the first. Basically, I just want to see Quake again in any fashion.

 

[Apocryphon]

I think one of the reasons you see something like a Quake map today and it still looks good, even though it's low poly and boxy looking compared to modern games, is the lack of stupid post processing effects.

There is no motion blur, no bloom, no vignette, no piss filter, no auto exposure, no chromatic aberration, no upscaling or TAA artifacts, etc. Just sharp, clean objects and textures.

We used to have that in the old days but nowadays it can be combined with very high resolutions and very fast frame rates.

So yeah, you lose detail and realism but you have a clean, sharp looking game that doesn't hurt your eyes and runs faster and smoother than anything else.

I agree that layers of post processing can certainly be detrimental to the look and feel of a game. Quake is extremely clean in that sense and while it does date it visually, it’s an aesthetic I’m particularly fond of. One of the thinks I love about Quake is that it’s able to communicate a dark, surreal, often foreboding atmosphere and a sense of isolation and otherworldliness through simple lighting, textures, and sound design. The gameplay is frantic and additional effects would only get in the way.

It also helps that Quake environments are mostly just brushwork. Nothing overlaps, nothing clips, there’s no awful LOD scaling. Everything just fits together perfectly. Community content like Tears of the False God or Dwell blow my mind with how elaborate some of the brushwork is:

I was about to buy Quake remaster the other day, but stoped since i love the new DOOM games(most awesome FPS ever), but didn't enjoyed any of the other games.
DOOM 64,DOOM3,etc just found them frustrating instead of fun

Doom 2016 and Eternal are much closer to Quake in their design and gameplay than to any of the other Doom games. I love both Doom 64 and Doom 3 but I understand why some people just can’t get into them. Quake feels completely different. It’s fast, it promotes an aggressive play style, it has more verticality than games like Doom 64 and Doom 3, and it forces you to be hyper mobile, especially on Hard and Nightmare. I think if you liked the newer Doom games you’d find a lot to like about Quake.

Quake 2 > Quake

I said what I said

Nah.

 

[Hudo]

Quake 2 > Quake

I said what I said

You are entitled to your wrong opinion

 

[Phobos Base]

The sound of the bouncing grenade is forever burned into my skull.

 

[Tarin02543]

There is also a RT mod that looks fantastic

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Just bought a physical copy of Quake 2 Remastered... but man, I so want for id Software to release a new Quake. Just let the Doom guy sleep for a while, lol.

 

[nkarafo]

most pre 2014 games didn't have a lot of that junk you just listed

No, the problem started well before that. Heavy post-effects usage reached a peak with the XBOX 360/PS3/Wii generation but started well into the PS2/XBOX/GC era. So i would say anything after around 2002 could be affected. The last system that didn't make much use of that crap was the Dreamcast which is another reason (other that it's sharp output) why it's games tend to look so clean and easy on the eyes.

Just one example of a very popular late 2000's game that looks worse because of that is Mario Kart Wii (2008). It's heavy use of bloom makes it look worse than Mario Kart on the Gamecube, despite both games looking almost identical in terms of detail and polygon usage. There's a gecko cheat that lets you disable it and you can immediately see the huge difference in clarity and color.

This is just one game on top of my head that i happened to tinker with recently.

i mean yeah but there's also just the artistry behind the map and it managing to look good thanks to all the advancements in modifications made to the engine and artistic improvements from custom mappers.

I don't disagree but i think even the original, simpler looking maps look great because of the reasons i posted.

Even before the remaster, i would use an engine that allows the og Quake to run at 200fps+/1080p and the result is a game that still looks good despite it's simple geometry.

 

[Spukc]

Quack