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Dom Robinson reviews

Quake II

for Sony Playstation

Distributed by
id Software Limited

Price: £39.99
Players : 1-4

Quake II is an experience that few PC gamers will have let pass them by, particularly if they're a disciple of the first-person shooter genre. It's already been released on the Nintendo 64 and finally Playstation owners get a taste of the action.

In 1994, I ventured into the PC market and started to play an engaging game called Wolfenstein 3D. Watching from the point-of-view of your own eyes, the task was to get from one level to the next and to stay alive either by killing the enemy or avoiding them, as well as topping your strength up with food and replenishing your ammo. From there I progressed with relish to Doom, Doom II and Playstation owners were eventually treated to a compilation with a few extra levels, entitled Final Doom.

Not one to call a halt to it there, id Software moved the goalposts once again and created Quake. Not only could you move around dungeons - and this time with graphics that went above and beyond the call of duty, courtesy of 3Dfx technology - but an element of multiplayer gaming (aka the "Deathmatch") was brought in. Choose to frag the 'bots in the standard lairs provided, or startup your modem and pit your wits against the elite online. This usually resulted, in my case, of having your ass whipped several times before you even knew what was going on and created gameplay that was exciting and frenetic. Quake II, while more resources-hungry, only served to improve on what had gone before it.

While PC owners have seen the release of Quake III: Arena, its predecessor is here for the Playstation owners at last. Fitting Quake II onto one CD with its wealth of hardware from shotguns and grenades to chainguns and rocket launchers, masses of complex levels and enemies galore was never going to be an easy job so is this conversion worth its salt?

game pic

Graphics, Sound and Playability

If there's one thing a Playstation cannot do it is to emulate the quality of a 3Dfx card. The Playstation 2 looks more likely to take this on, but for now what this release lacks in graphical definition it almost makes up for in lavish tones, with every new area a technicolour dazzle. It also moves a damn sight faster than you'd expect it to, porting a game across to a platform that's heading for its fifth birthday, by which time most consoles would be heading for the knackers yard.

"What about the deathmatch ?", I hear you cry. No, you can't go online but you can have up to four players killing each other not so softly with the screen split into four and multitap heaven is at your fingertips. Twelve levels have been provided and it'll take you a long time to work your way through those.

The sound is, too, almost on a par with the PC equivalent. Kill, crush, destroy and drop a grenade to get the bad guys right up the shooter. Turn up the volume for maximum enjoyment, although your neighbours may disagree.

"What's round the next corner?"
"What's that clanking noise I can hear but can't work out where it's coming from?"
*"Who the f**k is that shooting at me? There's no-one around!"*

When I played the PC original, these were the thoughts that often ran through my head. With a decent surround sound setup, games like this and Resident Evil will turn your trousers a hazy shade of brown, such is the atmosphere that can be created. I didn't get that this time round, but that's only because I've played through the PC game to the end and know exactly what's around ever corner. Playstation newbies should stock up on the adult nappies just in case.

As ever for a Playstation game when you're used to the PC controls, it will take a little while to get used to the joypad but it's nowhere near anything to worry about too much as Resident Evil proved it is possible to think fast and flick your fingers to the right button in time...most of the time.

game pic

Overall

I've given all the categories four out of five because I've been through the PC version of Quake II and nothing can compare to that one. Those with a PC and a Playstation should choose the former, but without the power of the former, the grey box owners will have a whale of a time with this release.

Quake II is the last game I ever expected to see on this platform and Hammerhead deserve a medal for their work, making this a realistic alternative for those who don't have hundreds of pounds to invest in a PC and the spectacle of colour looks sooooooo good on a 32" widescreen television!

If you're after some more info on id Software's games, you can check out their official Website at www.idsoftware.com

GRAPHICS 		: ****
SOUND EFFECTS AND MUSIC	: ****
PLAYABILITY		: ****
ORIGINALITY 		: ****
ENJOYMENT 		: ****
-------------------------------
OVERALL 		: ****

Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 2000.

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