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Best Way to Play Quake 1 (PC)?

T

The Broken Ska Record

Member
Since I've been hankering to play an old FPS, I figure it'd be time to play Quake 1 since I've never played it. Looking at PC Gaming Wiki, there are a multitude of options, and I have no idea what's the best way to play the game. I have the Steam version, btw.
 
D

Dragoon En Regalia

Member
For modern enhanced single-player, download either QuakeSpasm or Mark V, the two most useful/promising Quake source ports, and extract the Steam game files from steamapps (id0 + id1 PAKs, and the soundtrack files if you have them) into folders the source ports look for. Then start the app up and have fun. You'll be able to vastly upgrade image quality, controls, and graphics from the original this way.

Definitely look into buying Scourge of Armstrong if you want a worthwhile expansion to the original game. I recommend searching for really good custom maps and campaigns on Quaddicted, as well as mods like Quoth or Arcane Dimensions which have a lot of pro-level maps to enjoy.
 
O

OBias

Member
QuakeSpasm or DirectQ. You can install the original CD soundtrack on QuakeSpasm, if you want. The second one is very friendly to Intel GPUs, I was using it to play Quake on my shitty GM965-powered laptop.
 
I

Izuna

Banned
Just regular GLQuake, don't bother with all the other mods for your first playthrough. Try to co-op the missions packs if you can :D the second one is amazing
 
O

OBias

Member
Izuna said:
Just regular GLQuake, don't bother with all the other mods for your first playthrough. Try to co-op the missions packs if you can :D the second one is amazing
Click to expand...

GLQuake is inferior to the original software renderer in some ways, it's better to use modern source ports for complete experience.
 
P

Piston Hyundai

Member
Use QuakeSpasm if you're playing singleplayer, and make sure to open the console and use the command "GL_TEXTUREMODE GL_NEAREST_MIPMAP_LINEAR" to get rid of the filter over all of the textures.
 
A

Axiology

Member
Get the Darkplaces Quake mod. Makes the game look like it was made last gen (except for the models and environments). It's an upgrade in almost every single way.

I'd get you the link to it, but I'm on mobile.
 
S

Son of a Witch

Member
Axiology said:
Get the Darkplaces Quake mod. Makes the game look like it was made last gen (except for the models and environments). It's an upgrade in almost every single way.

I'd get you the link to it, but I'm on mobile.
Click to expand...

I think Darkplaces makes Quake lose its charm. Just QuakeSpasm is the way to go in my opinion.
 
S

scitek

Member
I think it's funny how filtering textures was the new hotness when this game first launched, and now many people prefer to play it with filtering off. (I agree it looks better. I'm playing Soul Reaver with filtering off right now)
 
T

Tareskog

Member
I recently finishing Quake again, and totally agree that quakespasm is the best way to go. Just popped in the original cd and launched the game from steam to get the soundtrack to work. It might be some hassle for others to get the track to work, but I got lucky.
 
R

Rambler

Member
https://www.quaddicted.com/help

This link will get you set up. Also remember to disable texture filtering, Quake 1 looks much better without it.

Quake Injector may seem scary at first but it's not as complicated as it seems and it's totally worth using. People who don't play custom maps for Quake 1 don't know what they're missing out on.
 
L

lazygecko

Member
Axiology said:
Get the Darkplaces Quake mod. Makes the game look like it was made last gen (except for the models and environments). It's an upgrade in almost every single way.

I'd get you the link to it, but I'm on mobile.
Click to expand...

Darkplaces makes a completely superfluous change to the weapon sway animations and I hate it for that.
 
GavinUK86

GavinUK86

Member
Piston Hyundai said:
Use QuakeSpasm if you're playing singleplayer, and make sure to open the console and use the command "GL_TEXTUREMODE GL_NEAREST_MIPMAP_LINEAR" to get rid of the filter over all of the textures.
Click to expand...

Paragon said:
QuakeSpasm definitely seems to be the way to go for single player.
Here's a good comparison between software-rendered Quake and GLQuake: https://www.quaddicted.com/engines/software_vs_glquake
Click to expand...


These two. Quakspasm and the texture command. Replayed the game myself a few weeks ago and it's still glorious.

quakespasm2017-07-280h1u5z.jpg
quakespasm2017-07-2809zu9r.jpg
Click to expand...
 
A

Accoun

Member
- Quakespasm
- Nearest Neighbor filtering
- GOG release, since the Steam one does not include soundtracks and the expansions are IIRC separate. You'd still need to export the OGG files since they included it as disc images (due to copyright reasons), but there's a tool for that in the forums.

[EDIT]
Oh, you have the Steam release? You need to procure them yourself. Look around the Steam Guides for help.
 
R

RedSwirl

Junior Member
I initially went with Quakespasm and a text command to get it as close to 1996 Quake as possible.

Currently I play the GOG version in software mode. Somehow that ended up playing the music without my having to do anything.
 
dcx4610

dcx4610

Member
Even without the mods, it's amazing how well it holds up. The resolution and options menu is a bit of a mess but gameplay wise, it's very smooth, controls well and the shooting is satisfying. It also still looks good graphically to me.

I was never blown away by the single player game but it's still interesting to play through.
 
O

orborborb

Member
I think all the graphics acceleration and texture filtering and high resolutions ruin the aesthetic of the game myself, let alone mods which almost always make every game uglier. 400x300 pixels in software rendering is ideal, I used the official WinQuake which ran fine in XP at least.
 
L

luka

Loves Robotech S1
i prefer mark v to quakespasm because of it's range of UI options for filtering/interpolation/etc, built in map selector, and winquake-based software renderer, but besides those things they're pretty much the same

obligatory recommendation of honey by czg, the gold standard for vanilla mapmaking
 
J

Justinian

Member
Does anyone know if the GOG version plays .ogg music files?

I've tried a bunch of source ports and none of them replicate the original Quake to a satisfactory level - even Quakespasm and UQE which aim to replicate the original look can't get it right.
 
KainXVIII

KainXVIII

Member
VkQuake - is more accurate to source material, give it a try!
vkQuake is a Quake 1 port using Vulkan instead of OpenGL for rendering. It is based on the popular QuakeSpasm port and runs all mods compatible with it like Arcane Dimensions or In The Shadows. Compared to QuakeSpasm vkQuake also features a software Quake like underwater effect, has better color precision, generates mipmap for water surfaces at runtime (realtime maybe?) and has native support for anti-aliasing and AF.
Click to expand...
 
N

Noogy

Member
Quakespasm is new to me, I'm glad to see this thread pop up. Might have to give the campaign another whirl.

I can't believe that I used to play qtest and Quake with a Sidewinder gamepad for the longest time. I was gamepad player for Wolf, Doom, and everything else. Quake, like Descent before it, were the first games that felt right with a mouse.
 
KainXVIII

KainXVIII

Member
Muskieratboi said:
Actually, on a related note...
What's the best way to play Q2?
Click to expand...

Yamagi Quake II
Features:
- Anisotropic filtering.
- Compatible with most mods.
- From scratch rewritten savegame system.
- Full 64 bit support.
- Ingame soundtrack playback via OGG/Vorbis.
- Full IPv6 support.
- Mature and stable codebase.
- Multisample anti-aliasing.
- No gameplay and graphic enhancements, but optional support for retexturing packs and HUD scaling.
- OpenAL for sound (supports surround sound, can be disabled).
- SDL 1.2 or SDL 2 for input and rendering.
- Support for unlimited screen size / resolutions.
- Widescreen support.
- An optional OpenGL 3.2 renderer.
Click to expand...
 
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