Quake 4

If you got the time, try this one out. Quake 4 is a fast paced, run-and-gun shooter that takes a lot from its predecessor. Is it the best? Not even close. But it's a step up from Doom 3. If you want a solid, old school shooter in the realm of Quake 2 it should not disappoint.

When Quake 4 released, I never had the chance to play it. Being a big fan of the previous entries, I was excited to get this one started and see why many seem consider Quake 4 to be the lowest point in the series. I'll say, for the most part, it's aged fairly - though, some technical issues that require a little bit of fiddling in the games files certainly holds it back for those who just want to run the game right after the download. It's definitely a game of the era; but, it's hard to call that a negative, since it's almost exactly what you'd expect a shooter from 2005 to play like. You kind of know what you're getting into, mechanically. The story starts right after Quake 2, with some opening dialogue mentioning a "lone marine" going behind enemy lines and defeating the commander of the Strogg army. Though, other than that small token, the story is mostly standalone and doesn't rely too much on knowledge of its predecessor. Much of the plot revolves around the player's squad making their way to the core of the enemy's army. The enemy being Strogg, who are alien bio-mechanical Frankenstein's monsters of sorts, destroying the core means punching a hole in the army wide enough to shut them down. At the half-way mark of the game, there's a twist that only mildly affects the overall gameplay and is, frankly, something I wish they would have expanded on further - if not, fullsend, turn the game and story on its head. But, alas, other than a cool sequence on rails, it's not much more than a boost in health and speed gameplay-wise. Completing the game in about 7 hours, it is rather short by today's standards. And it does feel a bit rushed toward its endgame, yet still verging on overstaying its welcome with some padding of bullet-sponge enemies and a lackluster end boss battle. Overall, I'd recommend it, even if it's your first time playing. It's not a mindblowing experience, but one you can find some joy in and admire some of the tech from the day.

when trying to play multiplayer its asking for my cdkey on jewel case, and i do not believe its included in my files (i checked). and of course, i dont have the jewel case because i bought on gog lolol

The last Raven FPS turned out pretty impressive. Unfortunately, the medieval theme was scrapped, and the game was set in the Doom sci-fi world. This makes Doom 3 players feel at home, but it might not have convinced Q2 fans. Despite this, it's a great piece of craftsmanship. Even though the gameplay already felt outdated at the time, it's still perfectly fine for nostalgia or a playthrough, even though the game is almost 20 years old.

And I LOVE Doom 3, so this is perfect.