December 17, 1999 Web posted at: 3:39 p.m. EST (2039 GMT) by Nash Werner

From...

(IDG) -- Quake III Arena has so much potential. It has what I believe to be the best 3D engine on the market and the best graphics I've ever seen in a first-person shooter. It's come a long way since the days of Quake 2.

But is it fun? Do I ache to play it every stinking minute of my life -- the way I did when I first installed Doom? Has it made me fall out of my chair laughing, the way I did whenever I'd shrink one of my buddies in Duke Nukem 3D? Has it changed my life?

No.

Q3A's storyline is simple. Xaero, the grand champion of The Arena, has yet to be beaten. You must fight your way through The Arena and do so.

MORE COMPUTING INTELLIGENCE

IDG.net home page

More gaming news, reviews and cheats from GameProWorld

Download free game demos

Game controllers, console systems and more hardware reviews

PCGamePro from GameProWorld

Reviews & in-depth info at IDG.net

E-BusinessWorld

Year 2000 World

Questions about computers? Let IDG.net's editors help you

Subscribe to IDG.net's free daily newsletter for computer geniuses (& newbies too)

Search IDG.net in 12 languages

News Radio

Fusion audio primers

Computerworld Minute

The breakthrough here is a game engine that provides incredible graphics and Internet play. The graphical engine supports curved surfaces, which allows landscape elements like the giant demonic tongues to appear life-like. Internet play is remarkably lag-free even over a 56.6k modem. Some ghost images crop up, but, overall, Q3A is a major improvement.

In single-player mode, you'll progress through the game's 26 levels -- each more challenging than the last -- in an attempt to be crowned grand champion of The Arena. In your way are Q3A's 32 AI-controlled gladiators -- human marines, undead skeletal warriors, and hovering rocket-troopers.

The AI is sharp. Enemies dodge your rockets and lead you with their own fire.

But I couldn't shake the feeling that, on the medium to hardest difficulty settings, I was fighting bots. They rarely missed. Later in the game, circle-strafing gunfights became an almost no-win-situation and I was forced to fight dirty.

By comparison, Unreal: Tournament's bots have so much more attitude that they feel closer to the real thing.

In multiplayer mode, you'll choose from Free-for-all, Team Deathmatch, and Capture the Flag (CTF). Yawn. With passe fare like CTF, who cares if Q3A screams over the Net?

And, save Q3A's graphics and Internet play, Q3A's single- and multiplayer offer nothing groundbreaking. At least not until fans design Q3A mods that improve the lackluster fun factor of this store-bought deathmatch utility.

Until then, you'll find me playing Unreal: Tournament. Quake is no longer numero uno in my book.

Tips