DOOMATHON entry #17/20
List: https://www.backloggd.com/u/Mariofan717/list/doom--quake-campaigns-ranked/
Doom 3 is known today largely as the black sheep of the series, and its sister series would receive a game in the same engine the following year with a much stronger identity crisis that I imagine was overlooked because of how much Quake's legacy has been defined by deathmatch. Quake 4 is by far the most forgotten main entry in this marathon, remembered today mostly for a single scene that I saw in a WatchMojo countdown a decade ago if it's remembered at all. Because of this, I was genuinely unsure what to expect for once, and what I got is a game that's as much a product of its time as Doom 3 and just as influenced by its peers, this time for worse.
This is a linear military shooter that's as grey and brown as they come, lacking in the grotesque body horror-driven sci-fi aesthetic that makes the Strogg stand out for a substantial portion of the campaign and severely limiting movement speed in the first half without having the mechanical cohesion of Doom 3 to justify it. That last point is especially important, as I'd argue that the preservation of the original game's movement is what allowed Quake 2 to work as a sequel even though it wasn't originally intended as one. What holds Quake 4 together during the first half is its surprisingly excellent gunplay - every weapon here feels fantastic, especially the shotgun and nailgun once they're upgraded. The encounter design isn't particularly varied, but the enemies are always fun to shoot.
Once the infamous Strogg transformation occurs, things pick up significantly. You move as fast as you should have been able to in the first place, fights become tougher to compensate, and environments become more varied and make better use of the engine's atmospheric lighting capabilities. There's a particularly great section in the latter half in which you're faced with the mindless, shambling remains of failed Strogg transformations, easily the most striking bit of horror in the series outside of the one scene everyone already knows about. This huge increase is momentum is unfortunately halted by a final stretch of levels that return to the more repetitive structure of the early game, but aren't without highlights such as a much-appreciated reinterpretation of the Iron Maiden.
Quake 4 is an odd sequel, one that's arguably less faithful to Quake 2 than that entry was to its predecessor. Its rock-solid shooting mechanics are bogged down by the trends of its era more than any other game in this marathon, but if there's one thing I've learned from this experience, it's that good shooting goes a long way in making even the jankiest time capsules palatable to me.
Cross-posted on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mariofan717/status/1760796889761624405
List: https://www.backloggd.com/u/Mariofan717/list/doom--quake-campaigns-ranked/
Doom 3 is known today largely as the black sheep of the series, and its sister series would receive a game in the same engine the following year with a much stronger identity crisis that I imagine was overlooked because of how much Quake's legacy has been defined by deathmatch. Quake 4 is by far the most forgotten main entry in this marathon, remembered today mostly for a single scene that I saw in a WatchMojo countdown a decade ago if it's remembered at all. Because of this, I was genuinely unsure what to expect for once, and what I got is a game that's as much a product of its time as Doom 3 and just as influenced by its peers, this time for worse.
This is a linear military shooter that's as grey and brown as they come, lacking in the grotesque body horror-driven sci-fi aesthetic that makes the Strogg stand out for a substantial portion of the campaign and severely limiting movement speed in the first half without having the mechanical cohesion of Doom 3 to justify it. That last point is especially important, as I'd argue that the preservation of the original game's movement is what allowed Quake 2 to work as a sequel even though it wasn't originally intended as one. What holds Quake 4 together during the first half is its surprisingly excellent gunplay - every weapon here feels fantastic, especially the shotgun and nailgun once they're upgraded. The encounter design isn't particularly varied, but the enemies are always fun to shoot.
Once the infamous Strogg transformation occurs, things pick up significantly. You move as fast as you should have been able to in the first place, fights become tougher to compensate, and environments become more varied and make better use of the engine's atmospheric lighting capabilities. There's a particularly great section in the latter half in which you're faced with the mindless, shambling remains of failed Strogg transformations, easily the most striking bit of horror in the series outside of the one scene everyone already knows about. This huge increase is momentum is unfortunately halted by a final stretch of levels that return to the more repetitive structure of the early game, but aren't without highlights such as a much-appreciated reinterpretation of the Iron Maiden.
Quake 4 is an odd sequel, one that's arguably less faithful to Quake 2 than that entry was to its predecessor. Its rock-solid shooting mechanics are bogged down by the trends of its era more than any other game in this marathon, but if there's one thing I've learned from this experience, it's that good shooting goes a long way in making even the jankiest time capsules palatable to me.
Cross-posted on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mariofan717/status/1760796889761624405