Single Player a-c

Single Player Levels a-c

3-4-98 Abandon all Hope 694K SP/CO/DM 2-8 players Authored by- James Parkman aka "gloom"
You really don't need to abandon "all" hope with this level but it will be a lot of fun and a challenge as well. I really enjoyed the game flow of this level as I knew where to go almost all of the time. There is a shortcut to the end which I found the first time through... see if you can find it. The monster placement and item placement is pretty good on all difficulty levels. There are two secrets which you will definitely be happy to find and the items will be welcome as well. I would have had this up a couple of days sooner but I was having too much fun playing it! This level is should also be a lot of fun for you and 7 others in a deathmatch. Grab this level today!

4-28-98 Angron Installation 986K SP Authored by- Jonas N.P. Lindstrom
From the maker of the Sadlark series for Quake 1 comes his first offering for Quake 2. Jonas has produced a very impressive two level set for us to have fun in. I really enjoyed his architecture with a really fine job of presenting a base carved in stone. They were very realistic looking and looked better in some respects than the Quake 2 levels. The two levels blend together almost flawlessly making the player think he just took an elevator up to the next section. He did a really fine job of monster placement so in many areas they were coming at you from all directions and given the right advantages for their areas. Even the medics he uses were used correctly spawning unwanted foes if you didn't blow them to little pieces. There were only two secrets total in these levels but they were both quite useful. I only had one beef with the item placement. There was way too much health in it. When I finished on hard skill I went back through it and counted 500 health + the 100 I had but at least I know just about everyone can make it through the hard skill! The levels flowed flawlessly from the beginning to the end and the use of the messages was very well done. I liked the ambient sounds throughout the level making for a great playing atmosphere. You had better get this one today so you can get in on the tremendous amount of fun Jonas has to offer.

3-13-98 Arkanian 1.63M SP/CO Authored by- Mike Daugherty (aka Jerkoff)
Here is a three map level with a little start map, a large map in the middle and a fairly small end map that will be the source of many hours of fun for you if you have a fairly beefy computer as it can really send the slower computers to a crawl in some spots. Mike probably could have fixed this problem but ran out of time. The plot was good and worked very well with the entire level giving me a pretty good idea what I was doing there. The authors monster placement was very good as was his item placement. The architecture was great in some spots. There is a complete lack of secrets in this level but you will be too busy fighting your way through it to notice. I enjoyed the use of lighting in this level too. It was a great challenge in the hard skill as you will need just about everything you can save to finish. You will have a lot of fun playing this level so get it today!

3-24-98 The Azure Mine 1.32M SP/DM/CO Authored by- James Parkman aka "gloom"
Not to long after James offered us Bloodshrine, he comes out with these two masterpieces (the start level and the end level) which are the best set of user levels I have seen to date as they both compliment each other perfectly! This is a sequel to his last level. Here's a copy of some of the text in the file describing the mission. "Your goal is to destroy every PsiCrystal deposit in the mining compound, then escape the vile strogg by retaking a stolen viper that spies have discovered in the vicinity." The levels fit perfectly with this theme and just about every aspect of these maps was superbly rendered from the stunning architecture to the fabulous monster and item placement. You will even have to destroy the crystals to finish it as they are all tied into a sequence you will need to complete the mission objective! The gameflow was so soothe I could hardly believe it! Even the transition between the two levels was smooth as silk. He even has great secrets to find making this level very fun to explore. Is it tough? YOU BET IT IS!!! The hard skill is one of the greatest challenges I have had so far. You will no doubt be totally submerged in this map for hours as I was. Get it today.

4-23-98 Blood-red Sunset 634K SP Authored by- YooShin Yang
YooShin has come up with yet another great level for us to all play and enjoy! I found his architecture to be on the incredible side with great attention paid to details. His lighting is also done exceptionally well adding greatly to the ambience of the level and providing the spectator with a real delight. Just about every aspect of this level was perfect, from the excellent outside start area, all the way through to the ending. I even got a surprise when I went snooping around and found his author's signature. There was always something fun to do in this level. Even when the player has to back track a bit, YooShin always had some monsters eagerly waiting for you arrival. The difficulty levels were set up very well and should provide the average player many hours of great gaming. Two secrets are there if you can find them, I have only found one of them so far. This level was so fun to play I think I will go back and play it again. Be sure to grab this Killer Map today!

3-13-98 The Bloodshrine 1.12M SP/DM 8 players Authored by- James Parkman aka "gloom"
I thoroughly enjoyed playing this authors latest level since he last released the Killer Map, "Abandon all Hope". It has great architecture, some new textures and new sounds. The flow of this level was good and his monster placement just short of excellent for a good challenge as it didn't take me long to be quite dead on easy skill the first time through =). There were 4 secrets of which I have still only found 1. The level is so good I will keep looking for them. He even has an interesting story line included in the text file. Overall, this is a pretty tough level to beat but there is just enough items and ammo to get the job done. I hope to see more of this authors work in the future. Get this Killer Map and have some serious fun!

10-27-98 Bullet Ballet 1 meg approx. SP
By- Marty Howe

From a claustrophobic and highly original begining (first time used, to my knowledge) and all throughout the first level of this two-parter I was captivated by a sense of excitement and awe of which I had never before experienced in a Quake 2 level. In fact, the only thing that comes close to this is in Jedi Knight where you're in the crashing ship after moving to the dark or light side (great game, btw). Totally underwater for half, Bullet Ballet is an excersise in holding your breath. While not particularly big or difficult, the first part of this level set totally astounded me and I've played it through 10 times now because it's so damned cool. Detailed to the max, it's gorgeous and highly professional, not surprising really as Marty is heading to work on Max Payne very soon, making this and Final Drill his last efforts with the Q2 engine.
The second part, while not as interesting as the first is still a feast of brilliance. Perfectly balanced gameplay with just enough ammo and choice of guns to be kept on your toes and realistic bad guy placement (ie, there aren't 6 berserkers stading around while you waltz in with a shotgun and get torn to pieces, which I've seen a lot recently). Health is kept on a need-to-get basis. No superfluous energy boosts so turning new corners with trepidation is a must. I never got bored playing this level again, it's continually interesting and innovative. The scary Tanks are used perhaps too much and aren't really that much of a challenge. Duck, shoot, stafe, wait, shoot, starfe, etc. but this is only a minor niggle. Apart from that, top notch work from Marty, once again! (I would review Full Contact, but whenever I play till half way it crashes =(...
Sniv

10-17-98 COS2: Stroggship or here for the Geocities mirror 2.5megs approx. SP
Authored by- Brian Griffith

Castles of Stroggos 2: Stroggship to give it it's full, official name is the newest, most kickass 3 level set from Brian, authour of the amazing Castles of Stroggos. Starting straight where the last installment left, you're on a ship full of 100,000 of Stroggos' worst, hell bent on destroying Earth. Idiotic USMC has told you that you must bring down the ship from the inside. A lone marine against the hungry hordes (are the USMC stupid or something? I seem to remember the same thing happening in Doom. And Quake. And Quake 2 for that matter....) you traipse across 3 beautifully made, atmospherically lighted and brilliantly designed levels to stop the evil menace. Without hyperbole, I can say that this blows everything I've ever played out of the water. Neil Manke? Who? iD? Pah! Hypnotic? C'mon, please... This is the best. Every moment is spent in gut churning battle or running away, out-gunned and with not much health left. I managed to complete this without god mode in medium by the skin of my teeth and hard mode really is for the l33t of you out there.
Levels are lit to perfection. "Public" parts of the ship, where you'd expect Strogg scientists to work in (imagine that... big ol' strogg with a white coat and specs...=) are in a harsh, clean light, and as you go deeper into the bowels, sickly greens and oranges hue the darkness. Bad guy placement is some of the best I've seen and texturing and building is so faultlessly detailed that you really do think this is the work of professional designer working for a big company. Give this guy a game to work on please!

5-11-98    Chemical Plant (ver. 2)  2.05M    SP/CO
Authored by- Matt Barnett

The first time I saw this level it was too big for my machine and had real r_speed problems. Now the author has broken up the huge level into two smaller levels and it really paid off as you will see when you play this fine killer map! You will be under fire from the start where you were parachuted in. From there the action gets even better as you find your way through the base and destroy the reaction vessel deep within the chemical plant. From there you will have to make your way back and await extraction. These levels flowed quite nicely and very seldom will you become confused on what to do next. This is due in part to a lot of good secondary objectives along the way, and his levels were laid out very well. Most of the action is quite believable because of the detailing and some great looking architecture. The monster placement was also done quite well with only a few exceptions. There were four secrets which were very fun to explore and find. The only flaw in this level which I could see was the ability to get stuck between boxes and having to no-clip out of them, so be warned of that problem and you will do just fine. The map ran really high on my fun-o-meter as I spent hours playing it. Get Chemical Plant today!

6-2-98    Paradise Lost  3.83M    SP
Authored by- Neil Manke

Neil has of course brought you another level to a totally different dimension as he can only do! This is probably one of the funniest levels I have played for a long time! You start as PC Gamer's Coconut Monkey in a cage suspended over a pool of lava on an island volcano. You are to get your software back from the evil Pierre, a disgruntled former employee, who, with the help of a band of goons, has stolen your life's work. Pierre is not alone on this island and will have many guards helping him keep the software. At the same time the island is ready to blow its top so you must make haste and get your property back! A level like this could only come from Neil himself and is complete with plenty of outdoor effects and this time he has some really different looking monster models brought to you by Andrew Eglington to keep you grinning. I must have died a half a dozen times because i was busy looking around at the level itself which was a really nice piece of work. There are mountains and volcanoes and of course plenty of great looking lava flowing. The level flow and balance of weapons is nearly perfect making this one really fun level to play and a great challenge as well! I really got a kick out of this level and know you will too so be sure to go to the link above and get it from there.

4-16-98    Crater's Edge  1.1M    SP/CO/DM 8 players
Authored by- Alex "Mad Rex" Richardson

Another first map that is really a gem! This level is what the Quake 2 is all about. Heart pounding action from start to finish. You will love the solid construction and good architecture of the entire level. The ambience of the level was almost perfect, giving the player the feeling of actually being there. The author uses excellent monster placement and all your health and ammo is just where you need it when you want it. He has a real good feel for game flow as this level played as smooth as they come. I really liked his secret which turned out to be a totally different and interactive path through the level. I was able to play this level for hours because of a couple of different ways to get to the end. The only thing beefs I had with the map was you didn't have to kill the last monster in the end but I pretty much had to let him live so I could survive. And there is no story line in the text file for the level although it has a good, solid theme. Stealing a term from a friend of mine (crash) , "THIS LEVEL KICKS ASS!" Get it now!

5-11-98 Chemical Plant (ver. 2) 2.05M SP/CO Authored by- Matt Barnett
The first time I saw this level it was too big for my machine and had real r_speed problems. Now the author has broken up the huge level into two smaller levels and it really paid off as you will see when you play this fine killer map! You will be under fire from the start where you were parachuted in. From there the action gets even better as you find your way through the base and destroy the reaction vessel deep within the chemical plant. From there you will have to make your way back and await extraction. These levels flowed quite nicely and very seldom will you become confused on what to do next. This is due in part to a lot of good secondary objectives along the way, and his levels were laid out very well. Most of the action is quite believable because of the detailing and some great looking architecture. The monster placement was also done quite well with only a few exceptions. There were four secrets which were very fun to explore and find. The only flaw in this level which I could see was the ability to get stuck between boxes and having to no-clip out of them, so be warned of that problem and you will do just fine. The map ran really high on my fun-o-meter as I spent hours playing it. Get Chemical Plant today!

6-2-98 Paradise Lost 3.83M SP Authored by- Neil Manke
Neil has of course brought you another level to a totally different dimension as he can only do! This is probably one of the funniest levels I have played for a long time! You start as PC Gamer's Coconut Monkey in a cage suspended over a pool of lava on an island volcano. You are to get your software back from the evil Pierre, a disgruntled former employee, who, with the help of a band of goons, has stolen your life's work. Pierre is not alone on this island and will have many guards helping him keep the software. At the same time the island is ready to blow its top so you must make haste and get your property back! A level like this could only come from Neil himself and is complete with plenty of outdoor effects and this time he has some really different looking monster models brought to you by Andrew Eglington to keep you grinning. I must have died a half a dozen times because i was busy looking around at the level itself which was a really nice piece of work. There are mountains and volcanoes and of course plenty of great looking lava flowing. The level flow and balance of weapons is nearly perfect making this one really fun level to play and a great challenge as well! I really got a kick out of this level and know you will too so be sure to go to the link above and get it from there.

4-16-98 Crater's Edge 1.1M SP/CO/DM 8 players Authored by- Alex "Mad Rex" Richardson
Another first map that is really a gem! This level is what the Quake 2 is all about. Heart pounding action from start to finish. You will love the solid construction and good architecture of the entire level. The ambience of the level was almost perfect, giving the player the feeling of actually being there. The author uses excellent monster placement and all your health and ammo is just where you need it when you want it. He has a real good feel for game flow as this level played as smooth as they come. I really liked his secret which turned out to be a totally different and interactive path through the level. I was able to play this level for hours because of a couple of different ways to get to the end. The only thing beefs I had with the map was you didn't have to kill the last monster in the end but I pretty much had to let him live so I could survive. And there is no story line in the text file for the level although it has a good, solid theme. Stealing a term from a friend of mine (crash) , "THIS LEVEL KICKS ASS!" Get it now!