So, according to John Carmack, id has turned down offers from publishers who wanted to create massively multiplayer version of Quake. Why? Well, to put it pretty bluntly, Carmack (and, by extension, id) doesn't have any interest in making one.
So, what do you think the biggest news here is? Is it that this a Quake MMO isn't going to happen? We don't think so. We're far more concerned that some publisher somewhere thought that making a Quake MMO was a good idea. Dearest game publishers, please don't think that "MMO" actually stands for "Tons of Free Money." It's because of that kind of thinking that Richard Garriott had to pick up a second job at Toys 'R' Us.
John Carmack loves his iPhone, so much so that the id Software co-founder has been spending a lot of time lately thinking of ways to bring his studio's tech-hungry game development to Apple's pricey portable. Forbes reports that Carmack, who still kicks himself for not having a game available for the device at launch, is currently planning to bring one of the dev's existing franchises to the iPhone as a "graphical tour de force."
But as for which one, the company isn't saying just yet, though given that the recently launched id Mobile division already has Doom RPG and the forthcoming Wolfenstein RPG to its credit, we wouldn't be at all surprised if Carmack will bring Quakeor some flavor of Rageto the small screen as well. What's more, he's apparently considering the idea of tackling the MMO market on the iPhone down the line, though he admits that he's being "conservative" and doesn't "want to be in a bet-the-company situation" just yet. Even so, as Carmack looks for ways to push the phone's visual fidelity, we take solace in the fact that for once we won't have to upgrade our video card just to play with his latest toy.
First it was Quake Zero, then it became Quake Live, and now we have a fresh new look at Quake Arena, id's free-to-play, browser-based iteration of Quake III Arena. As you'd expect, the visuals are decidedly simple, but still stylish nonetheless. We noticed a few instances of gameshow-like billboards peppered throughout levels; while they simply read "Quake Live" in the video, it's likely these are placeholders for in-game advertising.
The trailer beckons viewers to QuakeLive.com for more info, but the site is still serving the sole purpose of a gateway for beta signups. From what's shown in the footage, it will eventually become a very robust matching and ranking component of the game. With QuakeCon kicking off in just a couple of weeks we expect to find out more details soon.
If you've been waiting for someone to hold your hand through the Wii homebrew process, the folks at WiiHD have created the perfect guide for you, complete with step-by-step instructions, a downloadable starter kit with everything you need, and a video (embedded after the break) that shows you the process from installation, all the way to a trial version of Quake I. It doesn't get much easier than this.
This very detailed Simpsons Quake III mod is pretty old (video added December 2007), but we never covered it then, and the video is too pretty to miss. (Via Boing Boing; thanks, Jason C) Check out the highlights for today:
It took quite a bit of finagling, but the devs over at Drunken Coders have finally ported Quake II to the Nintendo DS. The homebrewed version contains the entire single-player game, and retains a number of fancy features like dynamic lighting, particle support, and a full ARM7 sound effects system.
According to the devs, creating Quake2DS was quite the audacious task, as the original Quake II had memory requirements that far exceeded the DS's limitations. As a result, the port will only run on flash carts with RAM expansions. Those willing to give it a go will find relevant instructions and files on the port's website.
Not to be outdone by another prominent first-person shooter with a new metallic finish, id Software's Enemy Territory: Quake Wars has gone gold. According to the press release, the game will invade Europe and Australia first on September 28, followed by North America four days later (October 2).
Though not mentioned, we're expecting the game to also be released via Steam much like the rest of id's catalog. No word on its impending release for Mac (being handled by Aspyr), Xbox 360 (Nerve Software) or the PlayStation 3 (Activision Foster City).
Even though we couldn't liveblog the QuakeCon keynote, that didn't mean we weren't taking notes. It's Sunday, the final day of this giant BYOC (bring-your-own-computer) LAN party organized by volunteers right in id's backyard: Dallas, TX. Want to see how things went down on Friday night, when they announced Rage, their first game built using the id Tech 5 engine? Or how about the status of the next Wolfenstein game (hint: they're making one). Or how about John Carmack's thoughts on cell phone game development (if anyone can get us excited ...).
6:10pm - We're all filing in.
6:17pm - Todd Hollenshead takes the stage. Sponsor thanks; QuakeCon 2008 date is already set! (July 31 - August 3, 2008). He announces that the Enemy Territory: Quake Wars beta is open to all attendees both at the BYOC LAN, and as a downloadable beta once you get home. (The crowd goes wild). An October 2nd ship date is already set for ET: QW so mark those calendars.
6:24pm - OMG! Wolfenstein news! A new game is in development! ... and that's it. We already knew that much. No other news, just the teaser. Thanks for nothing, id!
During its QuakeCon 2007 press conference, id Software announced plans to form a second development team tasked with creating Quake Zero, an updated, possibly sugar-free version of Quake 3: Arena. The 'Zero' in the title refers to the game's price tag -- it'll be made available for free (supported by advertising dollars, natch) and playable in web browsers for PC and Mac, reports Shacknews.
Said id Software CEO Todd Hollenshead, "We appreciate what you guys have done over the years in building the popularity of [Quake 3]. "We also like 'free.'" We'll keep you informed as to when you can expect to play Quake Free, er, Zero.
The PC version of id Software's Enemy Territory: Quake Wars is coming to Europe on Friday, September 28 and to North America on Tuesday, October 2, according to an announcement made at Quakecon. The public beta is still going strong, but the final product is now just two months away.
Though previously announced that the game is also coming to home consoles, no details or information have been given. We wonder if this will be made available on Steam.
Enemy Territory: Quake Wars is one of the next big shooters from Id, and GameTrailers shows some in-game multiplayer footage. We've seen better demos of the game, but this video gives an idea for some of the gameplay and style of the title, just in time for the public beta. Is Quake Wars on your FPS radar?
See the video after the break, or view the HD version if unimpressed with the embedded clip.
Enemy Territory: QuakeWars producer Neil Postlethwaite has announced on the community site that the upcoming game will feature in-game advertisement. The ad revenue is to help the developers to "provide a higher level of on-going support to the Enemy Territory: Quake Wars community than would have been possible otherwise," he said.
Postlethwaite explains that the ads will be appropriate in content and placement (e.g. the side of container trucks), non-intrusive and non-interactive. The developers have absolute approval rights. "If it's not appropriate or it's distracting, it won't go in," he said. No personal data will be collected. "All they track is if an how long you look at the advertisements."
Since we've yet to see any in-game ads in the screenshots, we don't know how well developer Splash Damage will implement them. However, that Postlethwaite is being open about the process is always appreciated, and he keeps to his word and it does mean more substantial support (e.g. free content packs in the future), it doesn't sound like a bad trade-off to us. The first sign of the advertisements will be seen in the upcoming public beta.
The community site for Enemy Territory: QuakeWars has announced that it plans on doing a public beta of the game soon; no start date has been given, but license keys will start to be given out "in the middle of this week."
There will be 60,000 slots available and only one map for testing -- Sewers, according to a dev blog post, which is said to feature "an interesting mix of outdoor and indoor, vehicle and infantry combat, deployables and counter-deployables and good old-fashioned FPS combat." It's likely the map with the most possible situations for bug-testing. All slots will go to FilePlanet users, with half of the slots set aside for those who pay for the premium subscription.
The post makes it very clear that this is not a demo. "If you want to just play a game for free you may find it a frustrating experience," it said. It also cautions that the beta will be taking data about your hardware configuration, "so you shouldn't apply unless you're comfortable with that."
Id Software is working on a new game ... and it's not Doom, Quake, Wolfenstein or even Commander Keen related -- it's new. According to Id's CEO Todd Hollenshead the company is finishing off Enemy Territory: Quake Wars and moving onto this new game with a new engine developed by John Carmack.
Hollenshead told GI.biz, "It is a new Id brand with an all-new John Carmack engine and I think that when we show it to people, once again they'll see, just like they saw when we first showed Doom 3, that John Carmack still has a lot of magic left."
Hollenshead said they aren't ready to talk or show anything of the new concept. He says they like to play show and tell when they announce a game and they're just not ready to get in front of the class just yet. Hopefully we'll get something before or right around when Enemy Territory ships for PC, and then for PS3 and Xbox 360, later this year.
Multiplatform game publisher, Aspyr Media, will stay current with its Mac roots by publishing that version of Enemy Territory: Quake Wars sometime this year. (Aspyr had previously mentioned those plans but today's statement marks the official announcement.) Aspyr has already released Doom 3-engine games on the Mac, and its port is being developed by in-house coders.
Quake Wars will be a tactical- and objective-based first-person shooter instead of the traditional Quake deathmatch. No release date has been named, but assuming that Aspyr is accurate when saying the Mac version will be out this year, PC and console versions may be out by the fall.
Posts with tag quake
Enemy Territory: Quake Wars is one of the next big shooters from Id, and GameTrailers shows some in-game multiplayer footage. We've seen better demos of the game, but this video gives an idea for some of the gameplay and style of the title, just in time for the public beta. Is Quake Wars on your FPS radar?
The community site for Enemy Territory: Quake Wars has announced that it plans on doing a public beta of the game soon; no start date has been given, but license keys will start to be given out "in the middle of this week."
Id Software is working on a new game ... and it's not Doom, Quake, Wolfenstein or even Commander Keen related -- it's new. According to Id's CEO Todd Hollenshead the company is finishing off Enemy Territory: Quake Wars and moving onto this new game with a new engine developed by John Carmack. 
_thumbnail.jpg "i am 8-bit: 2008")
