Quake II Mission Pack: Ground Zero (PC)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 3.5 stars Very good
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 7.9 (3.5 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Elliott Chin
• Reviewed on: 09/30/1998
• Updated on: 11/09/2000
• Released on: 08/31/1998
• Originally published on GameSpot: Quake II Mission Pack: Ground Zero (PC) Review

It's been almost a year since Quake II infected me with its eye-catching graphics and addictive deathmatch, but to be honest, I haven't played it in a while. I've always loved Quake and Quake II, but I grew tired of deathmatch after six months of constant play (either that or the competition no longer gave me any challenge). But even when I hung up my hat, I knew I'd come back once the Ground Zero mission pack released. I heard about this mission pack months ago, looked at some of Rogue's early work, and was excited. Now that it's released, I'm glad I've gone back to Quake II, even if only for a short while. While Ground Zero doesn't promise anything drastically new, as expansion packs go, it's pretty good.

As Quake games go, the story for Ground Zero isn't too bad. The Earth fleet attacking Stroggos is stranded in orbit due to a Strogg gravity well. You've landed on the planet (presumably before the gravity well went up) with one mission: destroy the gravity well.

The thing to remember with this pack is that it's not a new game. If you buy this mission pack expecting something radically different from Quake II, you'll be disappointed. This is still Quake II, but with a few new weapons, monsters, and levels. The textures aren't anything new, except for a little more colored lighting and glowing patches in rock walls. For the most part, you'll think you've seen these levels before. The sound also isn't noticeably different. The new levels generally follow Quake II's design, but there are some surprises in store in several of the levels (falling rocks and monster-triggered traps), and more logical level transitions. Granted, there are the mandatory red keys to grab, but you'll also have to turn on the power for a subway train to take you to another part of the base or shut off all the valves in a cooling plant to overheat a Strogg power plant.

The new weapons aren't too bad. The new default weapon is the chain saw, which brings back some fond memories. The second weapon you acquire is the ETF (explosive-tipped flechette) rifle. It's basically the nail gun from Quake, except that it pierces armor. This is great in deathmatch against plated human opponents, but in the single-player game, the ETF rifle isn't a sure thing by any means, even with its armor piercing capability. The unfortunate thing is, this weapon looks and sounds just too much like the original nail gun. The other two new weapons are the proximity mine launcher and the plasma beam. Of these two, the plasma beam is by far the most impressive. It fires a continuous beam of scorching energy. Not only does it have unlimited range (unlike its inspiration, the Quake lightning gun), but it doesn't use energy cells too quickly, and its knock-back ability also helps to keep enemies away. The proximity mine, which fires mines that explode when an enemy approaches, is more useful in deathmatch than in single-player mode.

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