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System:
PSX
Genre:
FPS
Publisher:
Activision
Developer:
Hammerhead
Players:
1-4
Release date/year:
1999
Other systems:
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- Quake II
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1999 Hammerhead - Activision - PSX
*Bear in mind that this is one of my older reviews...
Mentioned as "impossible", the general public along with videogaming press/media and PC users alike believed that Quake 2 simply could not be produced on the 32bit platform without the editting of many of the features from its PC counterpart... however, almost 2 years later, Id, Hammerhead and Activision proved the mainstream wrong with the PSX version of Quake 2.
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"BEFOREWARNED!!"
One should not expect Playstations Quake 2 to stand against the PCs version and should see it as what it is... a First Person Shooter (FPS) based on a PC title. This review compares Quake 2 to a few other FPSs for the PSX, so there will be no other comparisons made with the PC version. However, if you own Quake 2 for the PC, disregard the review.
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Features-
Quake 2 sports a decent number of options including Single Game (the normal 1 player game) and Multiplayer. The later features 12 environments for up to 4 players! Yes, 4 players via quad portional screens! These environments are not too large, but provides a fair amount of hiding places and zoning spots. The layout for these levels present challenges within a level. For example, in the Aquaplex, there are small bodies of water scattered about which mask weaponry; so one must swim to find them, but if the stay is prolonged, that player will lose hit points due to drowning. There are Deathmatches- where every player fends for themselves (a free-for-all) for "Frag Points", Team Deathmatches- where opponents play for Frag Points also, however it can be played 2 on 2, 2 on 1, or even 3 on 1, and finally Verses- which has rules similar to the previously mentioned two, but there are no health or ammo powerups availble in the levels, and when a player dies, they are out for the rest of the round (the last player alive recieves a point). Every kill is worth a single frag point, but if (in Team Deathmatches) a player mistakenly (or otherwise) kills their partner, a frag point is subtracted. The player or team which has the most frag points toward the ending of the match wins. The number of rounds, frag points, or time needed to complete the game-mode can be altered as can the color (purple, green, red and blue) or the name of the player. By completing the game under the three difficulty settings, "unlocks" or cheats become available for use in the multiplayer games! Make sure that this game is played with a dual-shock controller, because the rumble feature is one to be experienced! Firing weapons, falling of of ledges, explosions, and even the approaching of large mechanisms produce different vibrations! And when combined with the claustrophobic atmosphere along with incredible lighting - fear will definitely become all who choose to take this journey into the fright inducing enviroments of Quake 2 (no, that is NOT an advertising plug)!
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Graphics- 9.8/10
Reminiscent of those of Disruptor (an antiquated FPS by Insomniac), Quake 2s visual quality is without the plague of heavy pixelation, however unlike Disruptor, Quake 2 surpasses all of the shooters on PSX to date in accordance to graphic clarity! No seams breaks (that I have seen) and excellent lighting! Each location contains many destroyable and/or interactive objects... all laced with shading and light effects which generate a feeling of realism (or at least believability) so a pipe resembles a pipe and a torture chamber resembles a... well, the torture chambers appear as, um... well, as I assume they should look (but remember, this game does not take place on Earth). The weapons used provide a spark of some type which affects the lighting (to a certain extent), but should the weapon be for instance be a Blaster (the initial weapon which fires energy and needs not ammo, but is relative weak), the light generated from the blast travels through the room! In addition to this method of illumination, lava, water and many other light reflecting objects provide there own flare as well! The weaponry in Quake 2 contain incredible detail and animation in accordance to weapon use; so the Grenade can be seen activated, held back, and then thrown... though the Granade Launcher eliminates the delay. The levels themselves are oftentimes multi-layered with elevators (type machines) and ladders to assist in reaching these new heights (or depths) which will usually shield the enemy (Stroggs) from the players visual prowess. Similar to Tenka (another FPS), the Strogg are completely polygonal, however, unlike Tenka, encircling the enemy while attacking should not be an adopted full-proof tactic for bettering the opposition. The reason? Well, these enemies have weapons which need not precision aiming to injure their target... and they take full advantage of this feature. Anyway, even when viewed in close proximity, the Stroggs are not heavily pixelated and still possess detailed features such as armory and weaponry. After being killed-off, the Stroggs corspe remains on the ground (until the immediate area is depart from) unless the final shots are made by the player which complete destroys it (however its remnants are present for a brief period of time) or if it happens to be one of the larger mechanical forms of Strogg (which remains until the ENTIRE area is departed from)! And if a corspe is left on the later levels of Quake 2, a medic Strogg aptly titled, "Medic" will revive them to battle the player once again! In the 4 player mode, the graphics are a bit more rough... as is the action since the environments are somewhat spacious (but still small to me), but is still a blast to play with a few friends. The lighting effect have not been lost due to the quad-sectioned layout also! These are indeed the best visual representation that I remember noticing on a FPS for Playstation!
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Sound- 9.0/10
The ambience of Quake 2 constist of various weapon samples, explosions, grunts from both the player and Stroggs, and the musical tracks. Each weapon generated its own light source for an instant (as previously mentioned), and has its own sound based on the moment of impact. In particuar the Grenades (once again) when thrown can be heard bouncing across the environment until it reaches its intended target. This sound effect alone will send players running for cover in fear and extreme cowardace (or defense)! The music was provided by Sonic Mayhem and seems to fit the game very well, however, it appears as if they are arranged and is not played continuously throughout. These musical tracks consist of mostly metal compostions which (to me) were drowned-out by the atmospheric distractions such as Stroggs and more Stroggs... (emptying-off rounds and lobbing grenades).
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Control- 9.8/10
Excellent use of the Dual-Shock contoller! Every weapon generates its own rumble based on recoil, release, and re... (um, well... cannot seem to come up with another "re-" word) moment of impact. To deepen the experience, the Tanks (large mechanical Stroggs) produce their own rumble as well which adjusts to determine whether or not it is near a player or is distant! The control of the player can be customized via preset control-schemes and analog support is available for those who prefer not the typical digial controls. The default setting is as stated or digital control: "O" (switch weapons down), "Triangle" (switch weapons up), "X" (fires weapon), "Square" (jump), "R1" (look up), "L1" (look down), "R2" (sidestep right), and "L2" (sidestep left). With previous experience with FPSs, difficulty in controlling this Space Marine is miniscule, however, without prior experience... this game is definately problematic (especially since looking up and down is required, but takes some time adjusting to). Peeking from behind corners must be mastered before at least
the second level - as few Stroggs will leave their back to the player for an open shot (or open shots). Once these issues are addresses and conquered, the main game will be enjoyable and the multi-player games will ruin friendships with extreme competitiveness.
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Overall- 9.6/10
With a few of multi-player options initially (and more to unlock), a challenging single-player game (along with 3 different difficulty settings each unlocks their own cheats) and astounding visual and lighting quality meshed with impressive sound and Dual-Shock use, this game will indeed be compared with the likes of the rest of the upcoming, next generation FPSs.
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Complaints?
Well... not many. Actually, the only real problems that I had were the in-game loading between varying areas within a level (but it takes less than 3 seconds and is bearable) and the saving locations (which pauses the game for a bit and then proceeds with the typical "would-you-like-to-save" information). Though it does interupt with the flow a bit, it is not enough to completely distract from the gameplay. Also, there are no specified points of damage, so the player is not given the opportunity to injure a particular portion of the enemy. But given the noted accomplishments, these gripes are not sufficient enough to subtract from such a great FPS (especially since most are wishes and are not short-comings worthy of flaming).
//Soloist
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