Slashdot Mirror
The Art and Design of Quake 4
Gamespy has a feature discussing the upcoming first person shooter Quake 4. More details about the title are revealed in an interview and screenshots provided by some of the folks at Raven. From the article: "I think we have a lot of diversity throughout the entire game. We have some dark areas, and we have outdoor areas that are brighter. I think how diverse everything is will really go a long way. We didn't really set out saying, 'This game is going to be dark, this game is going to be light' -- we set out to make a cohesive environment where you go through different extremes and you'll see a bunch of different stuff."
One of my good (internet) friends is a programmer on Quake 4, and I know a few other guys on the Activision tech team and such. The story is a continuation of Quake 2, but you can expect Q3A style multiplayer awesomeness as well. It's going to be a great game.
Quake not dark and brown? Blasphemy!
Just what we need; a politically correct multicultural FPS!
Cooperative mode makes "single-player" games better!
I'm not a solitary gamer, and as such, never make time to play single player games. However, if I could have my wife (and/or our friends) play with me, it would make the game much more appealing!
I understand the difficulties in providing content that is achievable by both single and multiple players, but that's why I pay for games-- for innovation!
Am I the only one who thinks like this, or are there other people out there who have been disappointed by the lack of a coop mode in most games?
Online Starcraft RPG? At
Dietary fiber is like asynchronous IO-- Non-blocking!
... the name quakenet will make sense again!
Are the lighting subcontractors in the Quake universe as horrible as those in the Doom 3 universe?
We have some dark areas, and we have outdoor areas that are brighter.
Wow!! They have both bright AND dark areas! You can't beat that binary diversity! A pinnacle of innovative game design, I tell you.
I've heard rumors that your character will also be able to move both left AND right, but shhh, you didn't hear it from me, I don't want to get sued for releasing trade secrets.
Id software really needs to do something different this time. Their old recipe is getting boring. I would like to see Quake 4 in a more festive environment like maybe a circus with lots of clowns and bright colors everywhere. Instead of shooting weapons that explode monsters, maybe the first person character could walk around and give flowers to people. Or casually listen in on the conversations of strangers in the crowd until they can tell when one of them is going to go to Hell like a Catholic or a Jehovah's witness. Then you could score points by proselytizing them to evangelical christianity and saving as many of their souls as you can before the game ends with the Rapture! But look out for those evil mooslims in the crowd or they may blow you up before you finish God's work. Family fun for everyone!
Liberals call everyone Nazis yet they are the closest thing to it.
1) Thief. Note that Thief 1/2 are considered better than Thief 3. True stealth gameplay: outsmart guards, be a ghost or knock out everyone, leaving them lying around in compromosing positions for the Lord of the Manor to find. As little violence as you want. At highest difficulty level, the game forbids you from killing anyone.
2) Deus Ex (1, not 2). Near-future nanotech conspiracy fun. Ignore the comparisons with The Matrix. Very high replayability, it's a game about making choices, both practical as ethical. Even on your 5th way through you'll discover new ways to achieve your goals. The locations are great too.
3) System Shock (2 is on Home of the Underdogs, 1 might be hard to get running). Another shooty RPG, like Deus Ex, but on a creepy spaceship. Amazing atmosphere, great sounds (the monkeys are after me), fascinating story, easy to use interface too.
Each of these takes a while to get in to, but once you're there you're hooked. And they are all fun. The graphics are a bit dated, but this is only noticable for the first 5 minutes.
And if you really don't like FPSes anymore, try Fallout. Awesome post-nuclear RPG: if you're tired of Wizards, Elves and Dwarves this is for you. Great sense of humor too. Doesn't treat the player like an idiot.
Each of these is several years old, but still refreshing and unique.