The classic id Software shooter Quake II is back and looking better than ever in a new remaster that’s out now on all the major platforms. And for folks playing on Xbox Series X/S and PC, you’ll be able to invite seven of your best friends over to play together on one (hopefully) big screen.
August 10 marked the start of QuakeCon—the annual Iid-sponsored, fan-focused event featuring LAN parties, games, press conferences and more. And to mark the start of this popular con, id Software, and Bethesda announced the release of the previously rumoured Quake II remaster.
Originally released in 1997, Quake II was the follow-up to the tremendously successful Quake, which was one of the first fully 3D first-person shooters ever made. The sequel changed up the narrative and setting, moving the action to space and introducing the Strogg, deadly aliens who would appear in later Quake titles, including the forgettable Quake 4. While Quake II is sometimes overshadowed by its multiplayer-focused sequel Quake III Arena, it’s still a fun game that pushed graphics forward, in particular with its robust support for some of the earlier 3D graphics cards. And now the classic game has been remastered and released across PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, and PC.
The first thing that caught my eye when looking at the store page for Quake II on Xbox—which is launching as part of Game Pass—was the mention that the game supports eight-player split-screen. I know it’s not the first game to support so many players via split-screen, but that’s still a pretty rare thing. How many games even support that many players locally, let alone via eight separately rendered boxes on one screen? Wild! And it’s always nice to see a PC game include split-screen support, too.
Other features included in the new Quake II remaster
But there’s a lot more in this remaster. The package includes the original Quake II, the N64 version of Quake II, all of the original expansions and multiplayer maps, plus a new campaign developed by MachineGames, aka the folks behind the modern Wolfenstein games.
Quake II remastered also supports 16-player crossplay PvP, online co-op, gyro control on Switch and PS4/PS5, widescreen displays, and includes “restored” cut content, including unreleased maps.
That’s a lot of Quake II! And if you don’t have Game Pass, you can buy the Quake II remaster on your platform of choice for $10 starting today. And if you want to check out the first Quake, that got a similar remaster in 2021. You can check out some great tips for that game that we wrote up back when that was released, too.
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