Quake II

I've been playing this game at least occasionally since I got it in 1998 and I consider it my all-time favorite video game, thanks in large part to all the user-made addons and levels. (And I've made a few of my own.) But I never did get the Reckoning and Ground Zero mission packs. This GOG edition was a quick and convenient way to obtain them, compared to trying to scrounge up copies on ebay or hoping to run across secondhand copies at the thrift store. The original version of the game runs fine on newer computers as far as I can tell (at least on windows 8.1), as does this version. Don't forget to go to the video menu and select "default OpenGL". Some users, however, do like the rougher look of the software mode, although transparency became completely broken with version 3.20 (and resolutions higher than around 1024x768 may crash). The GOG version includes a launcher program that simplifies starting the mission packs or the mods in the Quad Damage package. As for Quad Damage, it's a collection of user-made multiplayer mods originally freely available as downloads but which may be difficult to find now. Also included are the TRDM* and ZTNDM* map series (these appear to be part of Quad Damage) and the 64-player id Software DM maps.

Seems to become habit that the manual isn't included. Still a great game but bring in the manual please.

Would have given this a higher review but hey, playing the Reckoning my saved games stopped loading and when I tried some Yamagi mod, those same saved games disappeared. We don't live in an age where someone should have to mess around with nonsense like this to play a game. As for the base game. No music. Music files are supposedly included, but why aren't there programs included that mounts or uses that music automatically? Why do users need to again, futz around to get stuff working? Whether its Steam, GOG, or Bethesda that's at fault, there should be a soundtrack with these games. Do the extra work, and get it done. As for the game itself. Pretty bog standard marine sci-fi shoot 'em up. Same id Software weapons that you see in most games, the guns could fit right into Doom 3. The story is completely throwaway, and while the technology in the game was probably very impressive for the time, it's also completely overshadowed by Half Life that came out a year later. The game itself, can be fun at times. But as with the first Quake, the problem is the enemies. They're just not that interesting, for the most part. A lot of cyborg soldiers which aren't that distinguishable from one another. One prime example is the flying enemies, which consist of a VTOL-suit guy, a spaceship type drone and a garbage can drone. These enemies all seem to fire the same gun. The only difference is hitpoints and target size. Why do they all exist? Compare it with Doom 2's three unique flying enemies, the Cacodemo, Lost Soul and Pain Elemental. It's night and day. You can argue maybe that the enemies in Quake 2 are more granular, but they are less iconic. I don't think the game rides the tension line very well either, maybe it was because I was playing on Normal but the game was pretty easy once you get the gear. But I don't think there are a lot of big fights and big moments, and with the exception of the railgun enemies, most enemies don't feel that dangerous. It's OKAY.

I just finished a playthrough of this remaster's main campaign and it's incredible. I played at 1440p with my 6650XT and I love how everything just works. No need to fool around with ini files or external downloads anymore, no more interface scaling problems or bad FoVs. Ofcourse the game looks better than ever, particularly the lighting pops more and the textures are higher res. I would recommend turning off the bloom lighting since it will remind you a little too much perhaps of games from the mid 00's (it's a bit tacky). Apart from that though the visuals are a huge hit and the game ran like a train on my modest video card. But above all I appreciate the gameplay changes. Some monsters are more reactive than they used to be and in later parts there are also more spawns. I was skeptical about the nerf to the railgun, but now having actually played the game I have to admit it's for the better. It does make other weapons like the rocket launcher (which seems to have a higher rate of fire now) and grenade launcher more purposeful. I would say that this careful re-balancing applies more broadly: the game is more dangerous and in terms of feel more reminiscent of Quake 1. There was even a section in the Lower Palace where I was forced to use the BFG and Invulnerability because I was simply overwhelmed. That never happened in the original. The game feels tuned sharper than it used to, I always felt like Quake 2 had a bit of a bland, complacent feel to it and this remaster alleviates some of that without adding garbage nobody asked for. Well done! I think I'll give Call of the Machine a shot now.

Runs on potato PC which is why I bought this game. That way when I go on a trip and bring my terrible laptop I can still play. I suppose I like how I can go on a nostalgia trip while going on a physical trip as well, haha. I grew up on quake and early games of the 90s. This one happened to be one of the better ones of the time. It was one of the few games that showed huge potential of 3D games. It is still a very fast paced game, and I love it.