Graphically, Quake III Arena is beautiful. The controls are ultra-responsive with an incredibly cohesive feel - in a word, amazing. At times, it feels like a souped-up version of the original Quake, something many online gamers have been craving for years. It is important to mention the gameplay as Quake III Arena feels solid and the action is VERY fast. The Tournament feature is simply a Rocket Arena II (a popular Quake II modification) inspired one-on-one match-up while Capture the Flag is self-explanatory. Free for All is the standard deathmatch whereas Team Deathmatch features two teams in a heated competition for the most frags. In addition to the single-player game, a skirmish mode gives the player access to various modes including Team Deathmatch, Free for All, Tournament and the long time multi-player staple, Capture the Flag (with four additional maps). Though they have no effect on gameplay, awards come in the form of multiple kills within a brief amount of time, accuracy, consecutive hits, perfect one-on-one matches and humiliations. Naturally, there's little to no depth found within the single-player game but it is useful in learning map layouts and getting accustomed to the whole deathmatch experience.Īwards are earned by executing skillful shots and performing in a superior manor. The objective is to win each map by hitting the frag limit first some maps are one-on-one rounds while others feature a full field of opponents. Spanning seven difficulty tiers, your opponents come in the form of bots specifically created for the sake of deathmatch play. Because Epic Games' Unreal Tournament also focuses on Internet play, id Software obviously wanted to get their game on the market.įirst, the single-player game is nothing more than a progressive romp through 22 deathmatch maps. While the latter condition is not applicable, it's not the height of online gaming nor is it an original title.

And can we ever forget the uproar caused when lead programmer John Carmack announced that the single-player game would only emulate multi-player experiences? Naturally, the small development house had a lot riding on this game, most importantly their reputation.īut I'll cut to the chase because I realize all you care about is whether or not this game lives up to the hype or falls flat on its face in utter failure. From the early Internet test versions until the final retail version, this title has been hyped as the online savior for years.

Quake III Arena is the game all the loyal id Software worshippers and multi-player fanatics have been yammering for.

Quake 3 team arena