Quake 2

by ACTIVISION

Product Features

• Larger, Mission-Based Levels: What you do in one level could affect another. One false move and you could alert security, flood an entire passageway, or worse.
• Superior Artificial Intelligence: This time the enemy have IQ's the size of their appetites. They can evade your attack, strategically position themselves for an ambush and hunt your ass down.
• In-Your-Face Sound And Graphics: Hear distant combat explosions and rockets whizzing past your head. With a compatible 3-d graphics accelerator, experience smoother 16-bit graphics and real-time lighting effects.
• Wicked Multi-player Capabilities: More than 32 players, friends or foes, can go at it in a bloody deathmatch via lan and over the internet. Or two can go head-to-head via modem

Product Details

• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B000028U28
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: February 15, 1999
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #15,090 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

GameSpot Review

Whatever else may be said about Quake II, one thing is certain: It is the only first-person shooter to render the original Quake entirely obsolete. Within moments of starting the game, it is safe to say that all but the most irrationally loyal players will acknowledge that Quake II is better than the original in every respect, and that no one who can afford to upgrade will have any reason to ever load Quake again. Considering the countless hours invested by countless players in the game, that's a remarkable achievement.

It's also significant because since Quake shipped 18 months ago, we have seen a steady stream of challengers, games that have been trumpeted by press and players alike as the successors to the first-person throne. But none of these games has actually come through on that count - not Hexen II, not Jedi Knight, and certainly not any of the half-dozen "Quake Killers" that have yet to make it out of alphaland and onto store shelves. But Quake II does come through, delivering at least incremental and occasionally monumental improvements over its predecessor.

Many gamers describe playing Quake II in semireligious terms, and when immersed in the 3Dfx version of the game, it's easy to understand why. The visual effects are awesome, as in awe-inspiring. The masterful weaving of subtle graphic effects - colored hues that blend seamlessly into one another, intricate textures cast over complex and beautiful architectural features, and realistic transitions between light and shadow - creates a graphic environment that is without peer on the PC. Of course, Quake II supports many graphics modes and 3D cards (it utilizes OpenGL), and players will surely find a combination that works well on their system (even if it's a now-ancient Pentium 150). But none approaches the 3Dfx version, and it is the only way through which one can fully appreciate the technological achievement of the game.

There are gameplay achievements, as well. Most notable, of course, is the inclusion of a well-crafted, mission-driven single-player game. As players of its previous titles know, id has never been much for storylines, and while Quake II won't win any interactive fiction awards, it does make a credible effort to pull you into the game emotionally as well as viscerally. As you advance through Quake II's multisection levels, an increasingly ominous sense of purpose takes hold. And by the time the prison doors are opened and the factory is breached, it is difficult not to experience a certain tinge of horror, and perhaps even fear - both of which spur you on in a way altogether different from the deathmatch adrenaline rush that made the original Quake so famous.

Not to worry - the deathmatch rush is still there. And although the territory is now quite familiar to most players, Quake II offers a compelling multiplayer experience, due in large measure to a much-needed recasting of available weapons. No more does the player with the rocket launcher hold all the cards in deathmatch levels. Devastating alternatives now exist, especially in the form of a new electromagnetic rail gun and more versatile grenades, which may be picked up and thrown in addition to being used with a launcher. Realistic machine and chain guns also pack a powerful punch, with the latter capable of cutting an opponent to shreds within a second or two. The weapons have also been more acutely balanced, making more powerful weapons more difficult to use. For instance, the deadly rail gun takes nearly full second to power up and fire, and requires precise aim. The damage done by rockets has been lessened, and the rocket launcher takes a few moments to reload between shots.

The deathmatch experience also benefits from always interesting and occasionally ingenious level design. Not only are the levels tremendously varied in terms of architectural composition, style, and setting, they include boundless opportunities for ambush, sniping, and close-quarter encounters. The omission of a cooperative multiplayer mode is notable and puzzling (especially in light of the enhanced in-game communication capabilities). This issue will surely be addressed in the very near future, if not by id itself, then by any number of aspiring Quake II mod designers.

Other aspects of the game are more subtlety improved and fall short of being state-of-the-art. The sound effects, especially when set to the high-quality mode, are superb - so good, in fact, so as to render the rather monotonous musical soundtrack irrelevant (if not downright annoying) by comparison. But the sound effects of the original Quake were also first-class, and one might have hoped for the employment of more advanced technology, such as surround or even positional sound in the sequel. Enemy animations are much better (taking a clear cue from the N64 shooter Turok: Dinosaur Hunter), but in general the base character designs are somewhat nondescript and certainly not a match for those of rivals such as Hexen II. And while the enemy AI often delivers what id promised, and creates opponents that are more tenacious and more cunning than before, there is still something very mechanistic about their movements, almost like if one could look closely enough, the strings connecting them to some cosmic puppeteer might be seen glinting in the light.

But none of these are substantial criticisms. Given all of the strengths outlined above, one must conclude that Quake II is nothing less than a remarkable game, and we recommend it without hesitation. Compared with the original, everything in Quake II is better, nothing is worse. But still... there is a lingering sense - especially after spending dozens of hours with the game - that something is missing, that somehow things aren't quite right. What's missing, in fact what is altogether absent - the sense of true surprise, novelty, and even fun that once existed in the first-person shooter. Or to put it another way: Although it's never been done better, it's all been done before, and that casts a shadow on the experience that no amount of technology can hope to penetrate.--Vince Broady
--Copyright ©1998 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of GameSpot is prohibited.

Product Description

After successfully completing a mission in space, your ship was hit by a stray laser blast. You crash landed on an alien world, filled with countless buildings and cities. As you look around, you realize that the only way you're going to escape is to fight your way through it all, crumble this alien empire and ultimately destroy their hopes for advancement throughout the galaxy. The world is depending on your skills as a space marine to save all of mankind. Are you up to the task? Quake II is the sequel to the smash hit Quake. The sequel features a brand new adventure that will have you swimming through the dark, murky cesspools of the alien world, entering and conquering various military-like bases and eliminating any resistance. You'll need a powerful arsenal of weapons, and luckily, you're supplied generously. Railguns, hyperblasters, grenade launchers and even a BFG (we all know what that means, don't we?) are all waiting to be found as are various items and armors to help you along the way. And of course, there is a multiplayer feature which adds so much life to this game, that people will be playing it for years to come.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still the standard-bearer of the gaming realm, March 13, 2004

By 

Daniel Jolley "darkgenius" (Shelby, North Carolina USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Quake 2 (CD-ROM)

Quake 2 is much more than a game; it's a gaming phenomenon. This game set the standards and provided the very engine of hordes of first-person shooters (as well as less kill-or-be-killed oriented games) that followed in its wake. It took online gaming to new heights with its plethora of multiplayer options. Gamers the world over designed their own maps and created their own online worlds in which to raise havoc against the Strogg hordes as well as their best buddies. Some seven years after its release (in 1997), Quake 2 is still more than capable of brazenly stealing one's entire day, weekend, week, and beyond. Quake was great fun, mind you, but there you were on defense, trying to defend your planet against these mechanistic aliens who decided that humans would make great raw material for new cyborgs (although some lucky individuals would of course find their ultimate fate in the form of exotic ingredients for certain Strogg gourmet delicacies). In Quake 2, you take the fight to the Stroggs, by gum; you smear their guts across their own walls; you add a little chaos to the uglified place they call a home planet, and you make those soldiers pay for having dared attack Earth; before you're done you bring Makron himself, the biggest and baddest Strogg of them all, to his knees before terminating him with extreme prejudice.

Those Strogg are wily, though. Oh, we all thought it was a good idea to secretly follow the brutes back to Stroggos through their black hole-generated gateway; they'll never see us coming, we said, and we'll be on them like white on rice before they even have time to blink a bio-mechanical eye. We were wrong. The Stroggs took out a majority of our pods before the invasion even got started, but you made it to the planet's surface - albeit way off target. You'll have a little help from HQ in terms of your missions, but it's pretty much up to you alone to somehow infiltrate and destroy the enemy. You'll see stuff here you never saw in Quake - new monsters, much smarter enemies (the Stroggs actually learned how to duck), more puzzles (albeit of the find button and push it variety), and - best of all - more carnage. When you get one of these guys down, you'd better make sure he's dead; a guy with no legs can still shoot a gun.

Some of these infernal puzzles can be frustrating at times, but just about any player can play this entire game in single-player mode and come out victorious (given enough time and saved games); then, once you start thinking you're all big and bad, you can play at a higher difficulty level. You'd better be good before challenging your friends to some multi-player mayhem; when you're ready to go online, though, you'll find countless multi-player options at your disposal. The world's pretty much your oyster when it comes to multi-player options, ensuring that Quake 2 will be played and played some more for a long time to come.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very good first-person shooter, May 25, 2000

By 

JOSEPH M JAGELLA (Williamsport, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Quake 2 (CD-ROM)

I love first-person shooters, but recently I've had a few disappointments. The "Wheel of Time," for example, needs some well muscled computer hardware to run decently, and my computer is just too wimpy. Also, Wheel of Time features a story with cut scenes that seems to detract from the game rather than enhance it.

Quake II was no disappointment, however. It runs well on my Pentium 266. Also, it's a good, old-fashioned shooter that allows the player to blast and blow up one's enemies in a way that's almost artistic. The enemies are powerful but conquerable, and the levels are interesting with pretty fair graphics.

To sum, Quake II is a very good game that deserves it popularity.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You must play this game!, December 11, 1999

By 

Alex (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Quake 2 (CD-ROM)

This is the quintessential first-person shooter. There are vary few people that can honestly say they haven't enjoyed this game. With a 3D card, the game goes into a new level. The multiplayer is the best you can find.