Quake Champions

Last updated

Quake Champions
Cover Art of Quake Champions.jpg
Developer(s)
Publisher(s) Bethesda Softworks
Director(s) Tim Willits [1]
Producer(s)
  • Brandon Riffe
  • Matthew Charles
Designer(s) Adam Pyle
Programmer(s) Billy Ethan Khan
Artist(s) Shinichiro Hara
Composer(s)
Series Quake
Engine
Platform(s) Windows
ReleaseAugust 18, 2022
Genre(s) First-person shooter
Mode(s) Multiplayer

Quake Champions is a first-person arena shooter developed by id Software and published by Bethesda Softworks. It is the fifth main entry in the Quake series, following 2005's Quake 4 . The game was first released in early access on August 22, 2017; [4] since August 10, 2018, the game has been free-to-play. [1] [5] The game's full version was released on August 18, 2022. [6]

Contents

Development

Quake Champions was announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2016. The game features a large quantity of playable characters, with each having access to one or more 'passive abilities', and one 'active ability' [7] that must be triggered by a key-press. [5] The game was promised to be a "fast paced arena based shooter", and would not be released on consoles due to hardware limitations. [1]

At QuakeCon 2016, creative-director Tim Willits revealed that Quake Champions does not run on the id Tech 6 game engine, but instead works on a hybrid engine made up of id Tech and Saber3D Engine, which means a number of the features seen in Doom are not native to Quake Champions, [8] such as virtual reality, Vulkan API, SnapMaps and mod support, [9] although mod support is potentially planned after initial release. [9] It was revealed that Quake Champions was originally considered as an expansion to Quake Live , a revamped version of Quake III Arena released in 2010. [10] The game went into closed beta on April 6, 2017, [11] and was released onto Steam's early access program on August 22.

It is stated that the game would feature a free-to-play option, allowing players to play as Ranger, with additional characters available for purchase, similar to the model used in Killer Instinct . [12] [13]

At E3 2017, B.J. Blazkowicz of the Wolfenstein series was announced as a playable character. [14]

At E3 2018, Bethesda announced the availability of a free-to-play trial downloadable on Steam. Players who signed up during the free trial period would be able to keep playing for free after the game launch. [15] [16] Early access to the game was available for purchase at $30 on Steam. [17]

Andrew Hulshult announced on his Twitter that he will be composing new music for the game. Hulshult previously composed music for the modification Brutal Doom and Apogee Software titles like 2013's Rise of the Triad and 3D Realms' Bombshell . [18]

During Quakecon 2018, it was announced that Quake Champions would be free-to-play and open to all players on August 10. [19] At launch, the game made use of loot boxes containing random cosmetic items. It later transitioned to a battle pass model in December, with players earning "shards" from weekly challenges to unlock new cosmetics. [20]

Reception

The game has been well-received by fans of the Quake series, but has failed to keep the player's attention for longer than other free-to-play games. [21]

The game was nominated for "Fan-favorite Shooter Game" at the Gamers' Choice Awards, [22] and for "Best Action Game" at the Titanium Awards. [23]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Barrett, Ben (June 18, 2016). "Quake: Champions "is not a MOBA" insists id studio director Tim Willits". PCGamesN. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Chris Vrenna writes OST for Quake Champions". PlusForward.net. January 25, 2017. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  3. ↑ Boyle, Joshua. "New Soundtrack Preview". Quake. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  4. ↑ "Quake Champions is now Free to Play. Get in the Arena and enjoy Early Access now!". Bethesda.net. Retrieved February 21, 2022.
  5. 1 2 Hussain, Tamoor (June 12, 2016). "Watch First Trailer for Doom Dev's Quake: Champions". GameSpot . Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  6. ↑ Bailey, Kat (August 18, 2022). "Quake Champions Finally Exits Early Access Five Years After Its Release". IGN .
  7. ↑ "Abilities". Quake Champions Wiki. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
  8. ↑ Stead, Chris (August 11, 2016). "Quake Champions 'is not on Id Tech 6'". Finder.com.au. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
  9. 1 2 Stead, Chris (August 12, 2016). "No SnapMap or mod support for Quake Champions". Finder.com.au. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
  10. ↑ Savage, Phil (October 3, 2016). "Quake Champions aims to bring characters to id's arena shooter, will it succeed?". PC Gamer . Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  11. ↑ Peñaflorida, Rexly (March 30, 2017). "New 'Quake Champions' Video Highlights Arnaki, Closed Beta Set For April". Tom's Hardware . Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  12. ↑ Hall, Charlie (March 10, 2017). "Quake Champions will be free, unless you want to buy it". Polygon . Vox Media . Retrieved May 31, 2017.
  13. ↑ Nunneley, Stephany (March 11, 2017). "Quake Champions will be free, unless you want to buy it". VG247 . Retrieved June 3, 2017.
  14. ↑ Hall, Charlie (June 12, 2017). "Quake Champions adds Wolfenstein's B.J. Blazkowicz, announces $1 million tournament". Polygon . Vox Media . Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  15. ↑ Wilhelm, Parker (June 10, 2018). "Quake® Champions Official Website | Get into the Quake Champions Free-to-Play Trial!". Bethesda.net. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  16. ↑ Wong, Alistair (June 10, 2018). "Quake Champions To Get Free Trial This Week Only". Siliconera . Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  17. ↑ Dayus, Oscar (June 10, 2018). "E3 2018: Quake Champions Is Free Forever If You Download This Week". GameSpot . Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  18. ↑ Hulshult, Andrew [@AndrewHulshult] (July 5, 2018). "I am incredibly honored to be making new music for Quake Champions" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  19. ↑ McWhertor, Michael (August 10, 2018). "Quake Champions now permanently free-to-play". Polygon .
  20. ↑ Tarason, Dominic (December 5, 2018). "Quake Champions frags loot boxes and spawns in battle passes". Rock, Paper, Shotgun . Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  21. ↑ Bailey, Kat (August 18, 2022). "Quake Champions Finally Exits Early Access Five Years After Its Release". IGN . Retrieved October 26, 2022.
  22. ↑ Glyer, Mike (November 19, 2018). "2018 Gamers' Choice Awards Nominees". File770. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
  23. ↑ "Titanium Awards 2018". Fun & Serious Game Festival. December 10, 2018. Archived from the original on July 7, 2019. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
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