Quake Engine: how one engine became an iconic 3D revolution

When it comes to game engines, many people think of Unreal Engine, Unity, or CryEngine. But none of this would have been possible without Quake Engine — the engine that showed that 3D games could be fast, beautiful, and revolutionary in graphics. With this article, we start a series of materials about legendary game engines. These technologies have made games the way we remember and love them.

What is a game engine?

A game engine is the technological basis of video games and a set of software components and tools that render graphics, sound, physical effects, NPC behavior, input processing, and other key aspects of the game.

Instead of creating everything from scratch, developers use engines. This allows them to build complex game worlds faster and more efficiently. The engine determines not only the appearance of the game but also its logic, dynamics, and behavior.

Quake Engine is one of the first engines that opened up new possibilities and became the foundation for future technologies.

The architecture of the engine

Quake Engine was the first commercial engine to build levels based on BSP (Binary Space Partitioning). This technology allowed to effectively divide the space into segments to optimize rendering. As a result, the engine knew which parts of the level were hidden from the player and did not waste resources on their visualization.

Another key innovation was the QuakeC — interpreter, a language for describing the behavior of objects. Instead of the engine’s built-in hard-coded logic, Quake allowed changing the game’s behavior without recompiling the main code. This gave free rein to modders and paved the way for gameplay experimentation long before it became an industry standard.

The system of .PAK files (archived resources) made it possible to distribute the game and mods conveniently while reducing the load on the file system. This solution became the industry standard for years to come.

Propulsion component	Description	Features and explanations
Rendering Engine	Responsible for scene visualization: geometry, textures, lighting	The first engine that supported fully 3D polygons — all objects were modeled with three-dimensional polygons, which gave a true 3D image.
Sound System	Play sounds, music, and positional audio	Supports 16-bit stereo sound and dynamic positioning — sound changes based on the player’s position, creating surround sound.
Physics Engine	Handling collisions, gravity, player and NPC movement	Simple but effective for 90s shooters — the engine tracks collisions of objects and controls movement in three-dimensional space, creating realistic interaction.
Game Logic (QuakeC)	A scripting system that describes the behavior of objects, weapons, and enemies	QuakeC is the first implementation of embedded logic that allowed changing game behavior without rewriting the main code.
Entity System	Manage objects in the game world (players, enemies, objects, triggers)	Based on the entity-component — structure, it is a flexible system for managing all game objects separately.
Networking Module	Processing of multiplayer connections, synchronization of players	Support for the client-server model — allows many players to play simultaneously over the network with minimal delays.
Resource Manager	Loading and caching textures, models, sounds	Optimized for PC memory of the time — provides fast access to resources without overloading RAM.
Map System (BSP)	Binary Space Partitioning map format	BSP enabled fast visibility culling, which significantly improved rendering performance.
Console & Commands	Built-in console for configuration, debugging, and cheat codes	Great flexibility for modders — you can change game parameters and test features without restarting the game through the console.
File System (PAK)	Archive format for storing game resources	A simple but effective format for modifications — makes it easy to pack and unpack game files, which supports modding.

The data processing flow in the engine looked something like this: BSP compiler creates a world map → engine reads .BSP and .PAK files → game logic is executed via QuakeC → graphics were rendered first by a software engine, later support for hardware acceleration via OpenGL was added → the output is smooth gameplay even on a Pentium 90.

The network architecture stack was no less important. Quake supported both local area networks (LAN) and Internet connections via TCP/IP, with a clear separation of client and server roles. This made it possible to synchronize player positions, shooting, and physics with minimal lags — unheard of for its time.

The maps were not only built in 3D — they also had systems of triggers, teleporters, and interactive elements. And all this was possible thanks to QuakeC and a clear separation between the level and the engine logic.
All this made the engine modular: you could change textures, models, maps, and logic separately.

This is the key element that made the Quake Engine suitable not only for one game but also for dozens of projects based on it.

The textures were stored in a simple 8-bit palette format that limited the palette to 256 colors to save memory. However, the colors and artistic style compensated for these technical limitations.

There were a minimum of sprites — even monsters were polygonal models. This made it possible to implement animations through keyframes, which ensured smooth transitions — even before the advent of skeletal animation.

The light in the game was semi-static — the lighting was calculated during level compilation, but it looked convincing. The use of lightmap textures, which stored information about the lighting on the surfaces, had a special effect.

Although Quake’s graphics looked «rough» even at the time of its release, its main strength was in style and technical innovation. It was thanks to these solutions that the engine became the basis for further technologies.

Physics and logic

Quake Engine’s physics was quite simple but surprisingly effective. Unlike previous engines, it was the first to implement three-dimensional gravity: objects fell, bounced, and slid in three dimensions rather than in a plane. This made it possible to create levels with platforming, jumping from a height, and dynamic positioning of enemies.

Collisions worked based on three-dimensional geometry. The enemy didn’t just «touch the player’s» sprite like in Doom, but actually collided with the player’s polygonal body. This made it possible to implement hitboxes, hit zones, and the interaction of objects in space, which became the basis for the next generation of physics engines.

NPCs’ movements were programmed in QuakeC with clear definitions of animations, delays, routes, and triggers. For its time, it was very flexible: developers could create enemies that patrol, attack with a delay, avoid collisions, or have alternative phases of behavior.

Missiles, grenades, and projectiles had trajectories that took into account force, gravity, and collisions with geometry. All this was provided by a simple but elegant physics engine that did not require hardware acceleration or large computing resources.

The interactivity of the environment was also at a new level. Platforms, elevators, doors — everything moved, everything reacted to triggers, and everything could be customized in the level editor. This made the levels not just scenery, but real mechanisms that the player could master.

Even water and lava had their own physical properties: they slowed down movement, pushed off the bottom, and allowed «to rise to the surface. It seemed like a small thing, but it created a deep immersion.

A separate highlight of the program was the system of triggers and zones: each action could trigger another — for example, «enter zone → activate enemy → start cutscene». This made scenario-based level design possible.

The game logic was fully scripted, which allowed creating not only traditional shooters but also experimental genres. It was on this basis that the first Quake mods such as Puzzle Quake or Stealth Quake emerged.

The implementation of logic through QuakeC created a real springboard for future game engines. This approach became a prototype for scripting systems in Unity, Unreal, CryEngine, and other modern technologies.

Development tools

One of the most important factors that made the Quake Engine a cultural phenomenon was the availability of tools for creating content. Unlike many of its contemporaries, Quake came with an open source file structure, documentation, and even examples — the developers effectively put the community in the hands of the very tools they used themselves.

 

The process of creating a level in the original Quake consisted of several clearly defined stages: building geometry, placing objects, compiling a BSP structure, creating a lightmap, and packing all the content into a PAK file.

It wasn’t an intuitive or automated process, but rather a set of technical steps that required discipline, care, and an understanding of the engine architecture. But that was its value: everyone who followed this path gained real developer experience. Quake actually became a DIY platform for enthusiasts. They learned how to develop a game by doing.

The QuakeC scripting language deserves special attention. Although it wasn’t the full source code of the game, it was through QuakeC that modders got access to most of the game mechanics, which is about 80% of the logic. Enemy behavior, weapon characteristics, trigger logic, respawn system, even simple AI — all of this could be changed, added to, and redefined.

The built-in console was an equally important tool. It allowed players not only to enter cheats. In fact, it was a full-fledged command interface for debugging, testing, and launching the engine’s internal systems. From viewing logs to changing network parameters, everything happened here, in a text-based mode that resembled a UNIX terminal rather than a game interface.

Quake also became an important milestone in the history of multiplayer. Network functions allowed you to launch your own servers, change the number of players, ping limits, and game modes. Even voice chat was implemented by third-party utilities, which was considered the norm at the time.

The structure of .PAK archives played an important role in the openness of Quake Engine. Developers quickly realized that if a game is not protected by strict DRM and its formats are clear, it is not a disadvantage but an advantage. Utilities appeared to unpack resources, replace textures, models, and audio. Modifications are no longer the exception, but the norm. Moreover, without mods, it’s hard to imagine Quake as a cultural phenomenon.

Quake Engine was not just the technological basis for dozens of games. It was a game laboratory, a real tool for those who wanted to not only play but also create. Almost fifteen years later, Minecraft realized something similar, but back in 1996, Quake was the first to do so.

Modifications and Total Conversions

The Quake Engine didn’t just allow modding – it encouraged it. With open source scripts, accessible tools, and a well-documented structure, Quake was the first game to spawn a real mod scene. And we’re not talking about skins, but full-fledged Total Conversions, which gave the engine its second, third, and tenth life.

One of the most famous mods was Team Fortress. Initially, it was just a cool team-based shooter with new mechanics, but its popularity forced Valve to buy the developers and adapt the idea for the GoldSrc (Half-Life) engine. The same thing happened with Action Quake 2, which also later inspired Counter-Strike.

Arcane Dimensions — is another example of how deeply you can dive into Quake Engine. This is not just a mod, but a large-scale addon with a changed gameplay philosophy, huge maps, new textures, enemies, and game mechanics. And all this without any C-code editing of the engine.

Quake Rally turned the game into a racing simulator, and Painkeep added physics of explosions and traps. These mods went beyond the genre and showed the flexibility of the engine even without expanding the «under the hood» functionality.

There have even been «story-driven» campaigns on the Quake engine, with their own narrative, levels, and cutscenes. Beyond Belief, Travail, Nehahra — fan projects that demonstrated that the engine is capable not only of arenas and cutscenes, but also of narrative and scripted directing.

Among the mods, there were also real techno demos: the engine was expanded to add new lighting effects, shaders, and even pseudo-skeletal animation.

Cult games on the Quake engine

The Quake Engine and its derivatives became the basis for a number of games that not only went down in history but also changed the genre itself. They are united by a technical basis that can be traced back to the first Quake, even if the appearance and gameplay are radically different.

The original Quake (1996) laid the foundation. Its atmosphere, mechanics, physics, and multiplayer became the benchmark for all 3D shooters for years to come. It was not just a transition to the third dimension, but also a teleporter to a revolution in the perception of space in games.

Quake II (1997) continued the story, but with a change in setting and an emphasis on color graphics, sci-fi, and a more scripted approach to the campaign. More complex levels, a basic mission structure, and logical chains of events appeared here.

Half-Life (1998) on the GoldSrc engine, derived from Quake, broke all the ideas that a shooter should be a linear shooting gallery. Valve used the engine to create an interactive narrative, complex physics, and an AI system with a hierarchy of priorities. It was a breakthrough for both the engine and the FPS genre.

Kingpin: Life of Crime (1999) is a noir shooter with realistic violence and a street gangster atmosphere. It showed that the Quake II engine is capable of conveying a completely different aesthetic — dirty, violent. It was banned in several countries.

Return to Castle Wolfenstein (2001) — on id Tech 3 (Quake III engine) skillfully combined a story campaign with multiplayer and became the basis for the first major online shooter from id — Enemy Territory. The Quake network code is brought to an absurdly precise level here.

Call of Duty (2003) — is also powered by id Tech 3. Today it is an AAA franchise, but its roots are in a modified Quake. Infinity Ward used the flexibility of the engine to create cinematic battles with a large number of NPCs and launched a new era of military shooters.

Soldier of Fortune (2000) — is remembered for its GHOUL damage system, where each body part had its own animation and effects. Technically, it was a demonstration of the capabilities of the Quake II engine in combination with its own Havok-type libraries.

Medal of Honor: Allied Assault (2002) was another game on id Tech 3. And although the engine was already «old», its customization and optimization allowed us to squeeze the maximum out of it. The Normandy landing scene is still legendary.

Modern projects: RTX, remasters, and open ports

In the 2020s, Quake Engine experienced a second birth. In 2021, the official remaster of Quake by Nightdive Studios and id Software was released. It retained the spirit of the original but offered modern lighting, a new interface, 4K support, dynamic shadows, and improved sound. And most importantly — backward compatibility with all classic mods.

One of the most amazing projects was Quake II RTX — a complete rebuilding of the game using real-time ray tracing. It runs on the Vulkan + RTX engine and demonstrates what the classic would look like if it were created in the 2020s.

Custom ports such as DarkPlaces or FTEQW allow you to run Quake with modern effects: dynamic lighting, shaders, 2048×2048 textures, and improved models. They also allow you to play in VR, with gamepad support, or online.

Projects like Arcane Dimensions or Alkaline show that Quake games can be not only nostalgic but also modern works of design. Multi-storey levels, huge maps, non-trivial mechanics — all of this is possible even today.

QuakeSpasm, vkQuake, Ironwail — optimized clients that allow you to run the original without any problems on modern PCs.

By the way, RTX versions are not only «good» — they also serve as techno demos for NVIDIA, showing the possibilities of modern tracing on familiar material. This is part of a new paradigm where the old becomes a platform for demonstrating the new.

Cultural footprint

Quake Engine is the first true 3D game platform that changed the way we think about what an engine should look like. Before it, the engine was part of the game. After it — the game became just one of the applications of the engine.

It was Quake that made shooters with verticality, precise aiming, online matches, and mods possible. Its ideas with BSP, client-server architecture, scripts, .PAK files, and the console have become standards in the gaming industry.

This is the engine that Valve, Raven, Ritual, Infinity Ward, Gearbox, and dozens of other studios have grown on. Without it, there would be no Half-Life, Call of Duty, Medal of Honor, Return to Castle Wolfenstein.

This is a technological heritage that is still used as a reference: for training, for game jams, for experiments. An engine that has outlived its game, its era, and even its own code. Quake Engine has become a true monument to an era that still works, teaches, and inspires today.