Yes, Eurogamer are finally up to their eyes with their fresh review of Quake 4, rating it a decent 7/10. Here's a quota:
"Cunningly, Raven has even included a widescreen mode - making the effect even more cinematic if you've got the kit. Curiously no widescreen resolutions are supported, but it doesn't matter at all, so even playing at 800x600 on a 1360x768 screen looks breathtaking, allowing us to enjoy the full spectacle without having to endure too many performance hits on our 6800GT-powered 3.2GHz system. There are times when it really does look like the Hollywood blockbuster of videogames, but we're talking Independence Day crowd-pleasing cheese here, as opposed to, say, the dark malevolence of Aliens."
"Quake IV also benefits from a color palette that strays beyond the shades of brown and gray featured in the early games. Like Doom 3, there's plenty of mighty fine texture work on display. Behind the scenes, the game makes the most of modern high-spec graphics hardware to give an impressive depth and presence to even the most mundane and ordinary of objects. While it's not as photorealistic as Half-Life 2, the world it creates is almost as convincing."
TeleFragged have snuck up their review of Quake 4, rating it a superb 90%/100% overall.
"Boss fights in Quake 4 are a mix of full-on shootouts and gimmick fights (where you've got to dodge the bosses' attacks and do something goofy to win instead of just shooting them in the face), and for the most part I'm quite impressed with how these went. And it's always a good move to have really fun boss fights, because more than anything, that's what players will remember about your game. Good work, Raven and id."
Firstly, UpsetChaps have thrown up their official Quake 4 guide, very reminiscent of their DOOM 3 guide, covering the HUD to help with your graphics card and its OpenGL 1.4+ display drivers, and etc.
And secondly, the GNU/Linux version client/server port of Quake 4 has been released! Don't forget to head on over there and check it out and the readme Linux users!
Gamespot have rather quickly flung together their review of Quake 4, scoring it a decent 8.0/10.0. Here's their overall, final verdict:
"The Good Sharp single-player campaign; Some of the best graphics around; Weapon upgrades make you rethink how you use your arsenal along the way; The Bad Multiplayer sticks too close to Quake III's blueprint; Kind of a resource hog; Vehicle sequences are a little too basic;"
Plus, over at AMDZone have thrown up their first benchmarks of Quake 4 FPS rate performance results on their AMD Athlon 64 3800+ X2 2.0 GHz, 256MB G-DDR 3 ATi Radeon X850 PT EE and 256MB G-DDR 3 nVidia GeForce 7800GTX, GeForce 7800GT SLI, and GeForce 6800GT graphics cards, plus with 512MB of cosair PC3200 dual-channel 6.4GB/s of memory bandwith pumping DDR400 SDRAM system setup, check the page(s) out.
Yep, today is the day we've been anxiously and impatiently awaiting Quake fans around the world! The press announcement:
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Oct. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Global Defense Force has been given the green light to invade the Strogg home planet as id Software(TM) and Activision, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI - News) announced today that QUAKE 4(TM) for the PC has shipped. The long-awaited sequel to QUAKE II®, QUAKE 4 enlists gamers in the role of Matthew Kane, a member of the legendary Rhino Squad, to penetrate deep into the heart of the Strogg war machine and engage in a series of heroic missions to destroy the barbaric alien race. QUAKE 4 for the PC is available at retail outlets nationwide for a suggested retail price of $49.99. Additionally, fans can purchase the QUAKE 4 Special DVD Edition for a suggested retail price of $59.99, which includes QUAKE II, the QUAKE II expansion packs, and exclusive behind-the-scenes content. Both versions carry an "M" (Mature) rating by the ESRB.
"Fans can now buy QUAKE 4 and jump right into the epic battle between mankind and the Strogg," said Todd Hollenshead, CEO, id Software. "The single-player campaign has the excitement and feel of a blockbuster action movie, complimented by an addicting multiplayer component featuring all the speed and excitement of QUAKE III Arena®."
Developed by Raven Software and executive produced by id Software, QUAKE 4 begins only moments after the events of QUAKE II, with the Earth's fleet launching a massive offensive to the planet Stroggos. As Matthew Kane, gamers invade the alien stronghold, fighting alone, along side other Marines, and in mechanized walkers and hover tanks as they encounter the Strogg and their disturbing amalgamations of man and machine. Built on id Software's revolutionary DOOM 3® technology, QUAKE 4 also features fast-paced multiplayer competition modeled after the speed, style, and feel of QUAKE III Arena®.
Head on over to the official website for more of the finally available goodies.
IGN have fired up their review of Quake 4, rating it a solid 8.2/10.0 score. Here's a bit on the story:
"The Quake 4 story picks up where Quake 2 left off, with the Space Marines fighting the Strogg, this time on the enemy's home planet, Stroggos. You'll take the role of Corporal Kane as the Marines attempt to basically annihilating their Borg-like nemesis. You'll crash land in the middle of trench warfare, and it's off to the races as one superior officer after another sends you off to retrieve people, destroy key locations, and infiltrate deep behind enemy lines. Sometimes you'll be accompanied by game-controlled team members -- typically a technical officer who can repair your armor, and/or a corpsman who can heal you up to full health. you and talks about how he’s seen you his dreams and how great things will happen to you."
