E3 2005 and Quake IV

E3 Expo 2005 coverage begins!

This year’s E3 is over. News is still trickling in. And I am here to talk to you about it. Over the next few articles, I will talk about the things that excite me, disgust me, or simply mock my intelligence by exciting. And I am not going to tell you, which is which. Tell you what; I am not even going to spell check this very thoroughly.

Just because.

The three next generation systems, we will talk about the last, saving it for something I am not very clear about. Cream is not the only thing that floats to the top.

So… Quake 4. id has stopped, literally, doing what it did best… making First Person Shooters for the PC that raised the bar every few years or so. After Quake 2, I am not sure I can write about their accomplishments without using the words “engine-pimping”. As with RtCW, id has now built a gorgeous engine, wrapped it around a semblance of a game called Doom III, and turned it into the hands of Raven to actually clear the muck and create a game out of it.

After seeing the videos and the presentations, I can safely say that they are in no way even trying to be original. It is playing to the crowds, is what it is. BUT it has everything one would expect from a gib-smacked all out actioner that the Quake name symbolizes, and you should be grateful. Its Call of Duty in the future. With the Doom III engine. And giant bots exploding. This is where most gamers see their bowels go into prolapse and collapse (hey, that rhymes). This is what you wanted. The barrage of complaints after Doom III have ensured Raven listen in and improve upon the existing pile of features. Better and more varied levels. More outdoors. Bigger and badasser enemies. A torchlight at the end of your weapon. Rocket trails in the open sky. Destructible environments and chaos, spaceships overhead, giant battles with squad mates by your side. Smile.

It may not be the most original thing this side of Damacy, but the spectacle is overwhelming. The story is straight out of shooter hell (or heaven considering your preference); you are a badass marine. You fight the Stroggs. With me? Good. Then, they capture you and turn you into a Strogg. Yeah. This is Quake at its most brutal, vicious, and spectacular. Lemme at em!