The shotgun remains as transcendent as ever, hitting far-off enemies with a wide scatter of pellets while lumping the whole mass into one concentrated flesh wound when used up close. This is, bar none, the most effective finishing weapon in the arsenal. Nothing closes a deal more resolutely than hitting an enemy with the splash damage of the RPG, then switching to this instant hit weapon for the signature gibbing. Two weapons do emerge as choice favorites: the aforementioned RPG and the Lightning Gun. At The Frag 3, I spent four mind-numbing days watching people chase each other down with these implements of battle. Id uses the powerful Lightning Gun, which has a limited range and requires a steady hand, to balance out the RPG and ensure the game is more than a one-weapon romp. Its electric stream strips health at an alarming rate, but can be temporarily countered with a good build-up of armor.

Perhaps no weapon emphasizes the extreme dexterity needed to be successful more than the Rail Gun, which fires a single laser-thin beam at its target and can accomplish its mission with one spot-on hit. There is a brief pause between shots while the firing mechanism powers up, which again demonstrates the careful thought that went into balancing the weapons. The Rail Gun is a gamble to use, but can earn the capable soldier a lot of respect. The BFG is almost a throwaway weapon and is not at all similar to previous versions. This time it lobs small plasma bursts that have a limited range but do a considerable amount of damage when they hit home. It’s great for tossing into swirling masses of opponents, but is often hard to reach and is rarely placed in the maps. I should also mention the Gauntlet, the requisite melee weapon, which does considerable damage but is hard to use with precision given the dizzying pace of the action. Id has graciously given us a decent starting weapon this time--the Machine Gun--which, while not too potent despite chewing through its ammunition at a high rate, does a good job of finishing off an almost-dead opponent.

Offering temporary protection and giving fleet-footed warriors an edge in battle is a basic selection of powerups, including: two varieties of armor, without which gladiators will not survive long; a battle suit similar to the Shield Belt in Unreal Tournament that protects the wearer from environmental and weapon splash damage; a terrific bit of juice called Haste, which increases a player’s speed; invisibility; MegaHealth; QuadDamage; and Regeneration, which gradually increases a user’s health to 200--if they are good enough to survive. When players of equal talent are facing each other down in a shower of electric death, the powerups can be the difference between life and death, and therefore introduce the strategic element of map control into Q3A.

One of the highlights of id’s titles has always been the well-designed but aggressively abstract maps, and Q3A is no different. While other development teams concern themselves with fashioning real-world environments, id continues to focus largely on how the environment impacts gameplay. Powered at the hand of amazing new architectural tools that include curved surfaces and moving textures, the mappers set their wild design tendencies loose, with mixed results. There are 30 maps, including 26 deathmatch and four Capture the Flag maps, that range from small horizontal arenas consisting of a few connected rooms to larger and more vertically-oriented battlegrounds that can squeeze in 24 players in a tight fit. Overall, the maps are classic id material: circular in nature with the most powerful weapons and powerups in open places or areas that are either tough to reach or a huge gamble.

Practiced navigational expertise and careful control are necessary because id chose to generally replace lifts with acceleration and bounce pads that jet players into the air and toward new places. Although there is some semblance of control while airborne, this is the least desirable features I have ever encountered in a 3D action offering. It gives Q3A a Mario-esque arcade feel that is completely inconsistent with the heavy tone of the combat. Nevertheless, the maps are constructed with archetypal id flair for flow and balance, and the designers use lava, slime, fog, water, teleporters, bottomless voids and more to create visually stunning maps that suit a wide range of ability levels and gameplay preferences. There were a couple of mind-bogglingly bad levels, such as the cubic Q3DM10, which featured nothing but poorly chiseled stairs and corridors, but overall, Q3A is another lesson from id in strong map design.

Deathmatch fans are going to love Quake III Arena for what it offers, and truth be told, the online deathmatch is fun, if wholly unoriginal. Capture the Flag is also engaging, but there needed to be more unique styles of competition and a stronger Arena Eternal to flesh out the gameplay. While the graphics and animation are outstanding and set a new standard, the title comes up short, especially with the amazingly brief single-player ladder. There is a lot here for fans to build on, but out of the box, Q3A does not offer the ultimate online experience nor come out on top with its single-player deathmatch.