"A great game, except its successors are much better."

Quake was one of those games that changed a gaming genre, well ahead of its time, yet became forgotten as newer, more sophisticated games in the genre came out. However, its successors have been far superior to the game they owe their success to. Since Quake came out, several other first person shooters, like Quake II, Unreal, and Half-Life, have came out and are far superior to it in almost every way. The only reason a person now would want to play the original Quake over the newer first person shooters now would probably be for nostalgic reasons or because they do not have a computer fast enough to run them.

Story 1/10

The story to this game is almost non-existent. Basically evil demons from another dimension want to take over the Earth and you are a one-man army sent to stop them. If it is a story you want, go read a book.

Graphics 7/10

This game’s graphics were well ahead of its time and was one of the first FPS to be done completely in 3D. Unfortunately, very few people saw them in their full glory when they were the latest and greatest because even some of the fastest computers at the time had trouble running this game. Having a fast enough computer to run them aside, they fit the mood perfectly, being dark and creepy and could make you freak out a little if an enemy were to surprise attack you. On the downside, there are few visuals to let you enjoy the atmosphere, but when you are running around shooting things and trying not to get killed, you probably will not have time to do so anyway. The other disappointment is that most of the walls and floors are almost always look the same shades of brown. Which after a while can become dull and monotonous as you are exploring the levels for the exits.

Sound 10/10

Trent Reznor with Nine Inch Nails did all of the game’s audio effects. They did an excellent job of fitting the mood. The sound effects are very good. The enemies sound as ferocious as they actually are, and you hear your bones break and body parts get damaged when you get hurt. You even hear your character struggle for air if he is underwater for too long. The music, which at times seems more like background noise fits the creepy atmosphere to compliment the graphics.

Gameplay 8/10

Quake’s gameplay is rather simple but well done. You run around shooting whatever moves because it is trying to kill you too as you try to find the exit to the level you are at. At the same time you can search for secret areas and better weapons and power-ups. The enemies happen to be rather diverse and can be rather difficult to defeat as well. The levels were superbly designed even for today’s standards. They require you to search and interact with the areas, and provide excellent rewards for doing so. By searching the areas well you will find keys to doors, the entrance to the next level, secret areas with power-ups, weapons, ammo, and other goodies to help you out later on. As simple as it is, it is very well done and comes to show that sometimes keeping it simple is a good idea. The multi-player is well designed too, and it is still possible to find people who still play online with. It is possible to play co-op with someone to help kill the enemies with, or you can try to blow them to bits in deathmatch mode. However, many first person shooters today have done all of the above better, especially the latter, which most FPS games today have more options and features to use in deathmatch mode. Even though the game was well designed, many of its successors are better. There is practically nothing in this game that Half-Life, Halo, or even Quake II improved upon. They all had well designed levels, enemies, and multiplayer modes that make this game worth skipping.


Replay value: 9/10

With the challenges the levels and enemies provide, it worth playing the game till the finish, if you can reach it. However, once you have completed it, you may want to play it again to find more of the secrets as long as you don’t play one of the newer FPS.

Lasting appeal: 2/10

Despite the challenges this game provides, many of Quake’s successors have done better. Return to Wolfenstein, Quake II and Half-Life all have better single player modes. Even with the long lasting appeal of multiplayer, Quake II, Quake III arena, Counterstrike, and Unreal Tournament all do it better. You will likely forget about this game once you try one of the newer FPS mentioned above and then you may never want to look back at this game again.

Overall: 6/10

As revolutionary as this game was during its time, every aspect of this game has been improved upon in Quake II and other successful FPS since then. This game may have changed the genre, but it did not last. If you’re looking for an excellent FPS, go with one of the other games mentioned above, unless you tried them all before and you just want to see the game that made them possible.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 10/18/03, Updated 10/21/03