Quake is a series of video games that propelled eSports to the mainstream when the first title launched way back in 1996. It is fondly remembered for its online features and fully 3D environments.
This is a bi-weekly feature in which we revisit games that influenced the future of gaming and established their position as a classic, so that we still reminisce them years after their original release. Head over to Neowin’s Gamers’ Hangout to share your own memories of classic games and you might get featured next time!
Two weeks ago, we revisited Max Payne, a game which revolutionized gunplay. This time, although we are reminiscing a game from the shooting genre, it’s very different from the Max Payne trilogy.
Quake is a first-person shooter that was developed by id Software — the studio behind many other popular game series such as Doom and Wolfenstein — and released in 1996. Despite borrowing elements from the aforementioned titles, it offered an entirely fresh experience that is still the inspiration for many games today.
Quake enjoys a special place in gaming history mainly because it popularized online multiplayer in a fully 3D environment. Granted, games like Doom offered a 3D-esque environment, but Quake was the first title to bring 360-degree views into the gaming world.
Although Quake boasted a single-player campaign mode, the title grew in popularity primarily because of its multiplayer features. It introduced dedicated multiplayer maps, a concept that was unheard of prior to this endeavor. Previously, whenever a title offered multiplayer, the mode took place on single-player maps from the campaign. Quake took a different approach, one that has become the norm in games like Call of Duty now.
Similarly, it made popular the concept of «clans» and online multiplayer. People could join these groups, enhancing social interaction with people who you played the game with. It infamously also contributed to the rise in the term «camping», a controversial tactic in which players position themselves in well-populated places from where they can take out the competition without being easily spotted.
All of this helped in propelling eSports to the mainstream audience. In fact, Quake kicked off one of the first nationwide competitive eSports tournament in the US way back in 1997, dubbed » Red Annihilation » — the event was sponsored by Microsoft.
While Quake truly did popularize multiplayer, its gameplay was quite fantastic too. It offered options to maneuver your character with abilities such as «bunny hopping» and «rocket jumping».
Together, all of these features contributed in making Quake become one of the most popular first-person shooters of its time. That said, the title still enjoys a special place in the hearts of gamers, so much so that it has spawned an entire series of Quake games, with the latest, Quake Champions, expected later this year.
Have you played any of the Quake games? What is your opinion on the series? Is it worth the admiration and laurels that it receives? Let us know in the comments section below!
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