Quake Advent Calendar 2013 - Part 4

Quake inspired the hearts and minds of fans in many ways; for some it was the rich diverse atmosphere with blood thirsty monsters and to others it was the intense multiplayer game play with Doom style weapons. There were even fans that customized the game with creative mod/engine updates, but for me, it was all about the Third Dimension!

Nowadays that sounds like a trivial thing, but at the time it was ground breaking, literally! Gone was the fake platform landscapes of Doom and crazy sector hacking, Quake was 3D and the world was truly vertical!

You could look down and see the world below your feet, walk under and over structures, feel the sensation of height as you peered over the edge of cliffs into the abyss. Something so simple, but yet had such a big impact on how the player moved throughout the environment.

I still play the original id maps and I love the feeling of how the landscapes were designed to make you look up at towering castle facades or look down into the depths of giant lakes of water wondering what architectural wonders are longing to be discovered.

For the past couple of months I have been creating a new Quake map called “The Horde of Zendar” which is based on a large city layout with high roof tops to run across and look down upon the cobbled streets below. The map is about trying to capture the vertical essence of Quake, the desire to climb and explore the world while dealing with the minions of Chthon!