Quake II is the 21st selection of year 2 of the UUGPGC! Finish by October 9, 2023! Spoilers open!

SPOILERS OPEN!

Welcome to the Unsanctioned Unofficial Game Pass Game Club. Our 21st game of 2023 is Quake II. The target completion date is October 9, 2023.

We ask that until that date you use the forum software to mark any spoilers, either story based or mechanical, in the discussion below. Ideally the bulk of the discussion will occur after October 9, but if you want to comment before then you are welcome to so long as the spoilers are marked. We ask that if you leave a comment before that date you also come back to the thread after it to read other people’s comments and respond to them, though of course we cannot force you to do so.

All are welcome to participate regardless of whether you have stated a preference to or not and there is absolutely no commitment. You do not have to finish the game to participate but please let us know if you have not.

You are also free to come back any time after the completion date and share your thoughts! This club is meant to be open to all whenever you want to join in the fun!

You can find out more about the Unsanctioned Unofficial Game Pass Game Club or suggest future games for it here.

What is Quake II?

The classic FPS has been remastered for current platforms with an added campaign episode and all the modern fix 'uns.

How long is Quake II?

How long to beat lists it as 7.5 hours long.

Asking people to mark their spoilers for Quake II is something that got a chuckle out of me.

I have been playing the PC version of this off and on, between games and while shooting the shit on Discord. I had a lot of fun with the original campaign, but I think Quake 64 is kinda meh and I'm really not keen on the original two expansions. Machine Games made Call of the Machine, though, which I haven't yet played but which I hear is good. Still, I'd tell you that the original game is the star of the show here by far.

One of the things that has ensured my continued fun even when Quake 2 is at its worst is the quick menu "Compass" tool. I like old school shooter level design when it feels clever and fun and does a good job of leading you along. I don't think I like it so much when I get stuck pixel hunting for something I missed, or when the game has no map and I can't remember how I got here because I was busy murdering things. The Compass tool ensured I never spent all that long wondering where I should go. As a side effect, I didn't find all that many secrets while playing, but that's more a problem with self-control than with the game - taking a few minutes to look around can be good for you. Still, I never really got all that bored or annoyed with the game...

...with one exception. There's a fast melee enemy type that takes a lot of bullets and deals a lot of damage. It can jump and slam the ground next to you in an AOE and frequently I felt like there was nothing I could do about it except reload and dump more lead into those guys. Maybe I just suck at Quake 2, but these guys became my immediate priority over all other enemies in the game whenever they appeared, and this jump-slam AOE attack is by far the most annoying thing to deal with in any of the games.

@justin258: I take this very seriously. For example a lot of people might not want it spoiled how the plot ends in case there's a cliffhanger to continue the epic story in a Quake III!

I WILL tell @zombiepie if you step out of line here!

And it's spoiler time! Spoil the game rotten and let's have some speculation as to whether there will ever be a Quake III and what the thrilling story will be!