Reviewed: January 21, 2001
Reviewed by: Mark Smith

Publisher
Activision

Developer
id Software

Released: December 19, 2000
Genre: Action
Players: 64
ESRB: Mature

8
8
7
7
8.1

System Requirements:

Epic Games quickly followed up with their release of Unreal Tournament and two camps were formed to battle out which was the better of these two huge hits. Quake 3 Arena offered superior online connectivity, optimized network code, and excellent Open/GL graphics while Unreal Tournament featured excellent AI Bots, large levels, and exciting new team modes. While this ongoing battle for online gaming supremacy wages on, id Software follows up its original hit with Quake 3: Team Arena; an expansion pack that destroys all previous distinctions and could possibly end the feud once and for all.

Quake 3: Team Arena adds all of the team-based game modes that UT fans have been gloating about for years while at the same time adding some new twists of its own to possible make the UT guys start drooling. While Q3TA may look like a stand-alone release in quality and content, it is an expansion pack and does require the original Quake 3 Arena to run. The game installs quickly and easily into your existing Q3A directory with a hefty 500mb space requirement. The Q3TA CD comes with its own unique CD code to authorize your client to play online and the codes are not interchangeable between the original and the expansion pack.

The expansion pack features two new characters; Pi, a cybernetic female space pilot and Fritzkrieg, a dismembered-then-reassembled (not necessarily from original parts) Nazi snatched from WWII. These characters can be used in the original game but are unavailable in the new team modes due to the established clans. There are five clans made up of five characters from various races. These teams battle it out on 13 new and exciting levels playing one of four new team games. There are also two new levels for the traditional tournament play.

Capture the Flag
This is probably the most popular and familiar mode to everyone. Red vs. Blue and each team tries to get the other's flag and return it to their base. The only catch is that you can only score if your flag is also at home. This was the first mode I played (mainly because it was the first to pop-up in the menu). Initially this mode proved to be quite difficult until I learned the intricacies of Bot-management (which I will cover shortly) then the gameplay started to level out and I started to win some matches.

One-Flag Capture the Flag
This is similar to CTF but your objective is to capture a neutral (white) flag located in the exact center of the level. So initially there is a big race to get to the flag then a huge melee to steal the flag from the other team. If a flag carrier dies the flag remains at that location unless the death was due to falling into the void/space whereupon the flag is returned to the starting location. Strategy becomes increasingly difficult, as you will want to order your team to attack and defend certain locations through the mission.

Harvester
This mode combines deathmatch and CTF into a cleverly designed game. In the center of each level is a Skull Generator that spits out a red or blue skull each time someone is fragged. You must then collect and carry this skull back to your home base and put it in the glowing shaft of light to score. So essentially you start off in DM mode trying to kill the enemy then you must quickly revert to CTF mode to collect and return the skull and score.

Overlord
This is one of the most difficult modes and features a large skull obelisk at each team's home base. Your goal is to invade the opposing team's base and fire at the obelisk until it's destroyed. The only catch is that the obelisk heals itself at 15hp /sec so you must be prepared to deliver lots of damage with your current arsenal of weapons. You can also be sure the opposing team won't just stand around and let you fire into their skull. Strategy gets tricky when you have to decide between assigning your teammates to defend your base or watch your back as you make your own assault.

Getting started is as easy as picking a game mode and a level. Nothing is locked and all levels are available at the start so you can pick from any of the 13 new and challenging levels. Level design is fresh and colorful and some of the arenas are huge, capable of supporting 20-40 players without getting too crowded. Of course this also means that in solo play your 5-on-5 teams may rarely interact on some of the larger levels.

I completed the Overdose level (a huge outdoor arena) capturing three of the five required flags and only shot (or got shot at) six times. Multiple paths lead along the twisting mountainside or you can take the obvious valley path and fall prey to snipers from above. The levels are huge and the possibilities are endless. Fortunately, these large levels have been divided up into sectors and each one has a name that is displayed in the HUD so you always know your current location and those of your teammates.

In addition to the increased size of some of the levels, there are also multiple paths through each arena. Often there are two or more possible routes you can take to the enemy base. These could range from underwater passages to catwalks high above or jump pads to launch you across large chasms. Discovering the optimum path for each arena is part of the ongoing strategy for this game.

A new feature in Q3TA is the portal system. These colored portals will transport your character great distances. Some levels are even designed so that you must use these portals to even reach the opposing team's base. Sometimes these portals are obvious and others are hidden away in secret areas of the arena. Finding and using these portals can greatly increase your chances of winning a match.

There are some new and devastating power-ups. These include team pick-ups and the traditional one-use inventory items. Team power-ups are personal power-ups that enhance your character until you are fragged at which time you can collect another. There are four types of power-ups and each has its advantages and disadvantages.

Scout
This gives your warrior super-speed allowing you to quickly infiltrate a base, return a flag, or just dodge enemy fire. The main disadvantage is that you are unable to collect or use Armor while under the influence of this power-up. You may also find that controlling your character at such speeds is considerably more difficult, especially on narrow ledges and such.

Guard
This instantly boosts your health and armor to 200 and also regenerates any health damage taken. There is no real downside to this power-up and it can be used no matter what role you take in your team's activities. Its intended use is for the person that remains behind to guard the home base.

Doubler
Another power-up with no downside; the Doubler simply multiplies all damage by two for as long as you live. You can increase this even further by collecting the Quad Damage timed power-up and for a few devastating seconds deliver 8x normal damage.

Ammo-Regen
This powerful enhancment will automatically regenerate ammo for all your weapons to their default capacity. It also increases your base rate of fire. When used with certain weapons such as the Prox-Mine Launcher, this power-up can create a very unbalanced game and a lot of angry gamers.

Item pick-ups are just like the ones in the original game and include items such as, Medkit, Teleport and two new and deadly items; the Kamikaze and the Invulnerability Sphere.

Kamikaze
The bottom screenshot says and shows it all. When used, the owner and everyone in a large section of the level will die from the resulting anti-matter sphere and resulting shockwave. If you are far enough away from the center of the blast you may be able to outrun the expanding sphere of black death, but normally if you can see the blast you are dead.

Invulnerability
When this item is used your character is encased in a purple sphere of energy and rendered immobile. You are however, able to pivot in all directions much like a gun turret and can fire on anyone in the area. While the force field lasts only a few seconds you are virtually impervious to any enemy attacks except for Prox Mines, which will pass right through the shield and explode.

And finally we come to weapons. While the only truly new weapon is the Proximity Mine Launcher, the Chaingun and Nailgun both make their triumphant return albeit slightly modified. The Chaingun is as devastating as always for the 2-3 seconds that your ammo holds out. Unless you are standing on an ammo spawn point or have the Ammo-Regen power-up this weapon is out of ammo before you ever get to have any fun. The Nailgun is back but instead of rapid firing a single projectile this new version spits out a cluster of spikes much like a buckshot blast. It's only effective at very close range and you are usually dead by the time you are close enough to inflict any real damage. The Prox Mine Launcher shoots small mines, which stick to the floor or walls and then trigger when someone walks into their sensor grid. It a good concept but when combined with the Ammo-Regen power-up you can essentially have one player mine the entire level in a very short time throwing the balance of gameplay totally off.

Bot-management is easily done using the in-game menu system. You can issue orders to specific teammates or the entire team using the pull-down menus. You can also announce your own actions as team leader. Using the HUD, you can monitor the location, status, and current orders being followed by any of your teammates. Learning how to issue orders is easy, but knowing which orders to give and when is the true challenge in the single-player mode. It takes a team effort to win some of the harder levels and there is simply no place for a lone wolf in these team games.

While the Bot-AI in Q3TA is adequate, it is not nearly as advanced as that found in UT. The characters in Q3TA simply don't work well when left alone. You are constantly forced to micromanage the team, either as a whole or member by member. While issuing orders is easy it is also very invasive, taking you "out of the action" while you plan your strategy and order your troops around. You will inevitably resort to ordering the entire team around issuing global orders to back-up your position as you take charge and do most of the grunt work. Then again, Q3TA is designed as a multiplayer experience. The AI and single player mode is offered mainly to appease the no-modem or bandwidth challenged gamer.

Despite these minor improvements the graphics still do not even come close to other games using the Quake 3 engine such as the colorful Heavy Metal FAKK2 and the recently released Alice, which showcases some of the best textures and level design in any 3D game to date.

The interface has been thoroughly updated and given a futuristic facelift; of course anything would be better than the lackluster menus of the original. As shown in the previous screenshot, your best score is displayed in the center ring while the left portion of the screen contains map and scoring information. The bottom shows your commendations awarded for that level, and the right portion of the screen displays a looping demo of that level. This is a great way to remember a level since the thumbnail image is not always enough of a reminder. Along the top are thumbnails of the arenas you can select. My only complaint with the entire interface is the fact that the thumbnails do not display the Quake logo indicating that map has been completed. I guess they are relying on the fact that the score displayed in the middle would indicate the same. While the interface is of minimal importance to the overall success of this particular game, it's nice to know that id Software has taken the time to make their new menus as informative as they are functional.

On the downside, the character models in Q3TA are pathetic. Your player model is limited to the clan you select and one of eleven characters. Picking a character merely sticks a 2D head on top of the clan-body giving you 55 possible combinations and a very poor excuse for a custom character. It even looks cheap as disproportionate heads are swapped onto various bodies during the character creation process. With everything else looking so polished it's a shame they skimped on this part of the game, especially when creating your own unique persona is such a big part of the online Quake experience.

The larger levels and CPU requirements of the new Bot-AI seems to be more taxing on the system. On my P3-700 with a GeForce 2 GTS card I have always been able to play Q3A at 1600x1200 at very fluid frame rates. Upon installing the Q3TA expansion pack I immediately had to lower my resolution down to 1280x1024 to maintain these rates. There is a beta patch available at the Quake 3 website which can reportedly increase your FPS by up to 20fps on some systems, but I faired no such luck. I quickly adapted to the lower resolution and am now quite comfortable with my current FPS status, which is actually higher than my previous rates prior to the installation of Q3TA.

The music is simply there and becomes part of the ambience rather than becoming a repetitive distraction as in many games in this genre. As always, the best sound in the game is the deep booming voice that announces the item-pick-ups and match status.

Quake 3 Arena is synonymous with Online Gaming and Unreal Tournament has been synonymous with Team Online Gaming...until now. With Quake 3: Team Arena, the team play goodness of UT is now available to Quakers everywhere. Once you have perfected your strategies for the various game modes and levels you can take these skills online and team up with human players.

Finding and joining an online game of Quake has never been easier thanks to the new and improved look and functionality of the Multiplayer Game Menu. Special filters allow you to show only original Quake Arena, Team Arena, or other specialty games like Rocket Arena or Alliance. Sort tabs allow you to sort the list of available servers by map, ping, players, or game type. You can even create and maintain a list of your favorite servers.

Unlike the single player game, the first thing you need to do is vote for your team leader. You can also use the voting menu to democratically resolve any other team-related issues no matter how serious or mundane. Once a leader is chosen that person is the only one who can issue orders. Everyone else is limited to reporting his or her own personal status using the same menu. Online commanders beware! Unlike the AI Bots in single player mode, humans are free to disobey your commands and probably will. Only a well-organized and obedient team with a good strategic commander has a hope of competing with the hardcore fraggers you will be up against in the real world of online Quake.

Out of the box, Q3TA is great for playing by yourself, but as soon as you go online you are plagued by random and frustrating problems ranging from fatal texture errors to random disconnects. The aforementioned beta patch fixes many of these online problems while at the same time introducing several new bugs into the single player game such as random lock-ups and game freezes including crashing back to Windows. While I have every confidence that id Software will eventually release a patch to make this a perfect 5-star game I am forced to rate this game on how it is and not what it might be after the patch.

Aside from the various bugs that inflict the shipping version plus the horrible player models and disappointing dialog, I can find nothing terribly wrong with this game. Q3TA offers loads of content, new features, and as much gameplay as the original making it more than worth the $29.95 price of admission.