Part 1 - Quake 2 Weapons |
There's nothing like the feeling when you've granulated some unfortunate opponent with a shotgun blast to the head, or when you turn a fellow fragger into bloody chunks with a well placed rocket. Of course I'm sure psychiatrists would have something to say about this, but who cares what they think! In any event, here's all the weapons available for your deathmatch fun and how best to use them.
Blaster
The most basic weapon in Quake 2. Not very powerful, but
it has it's place. After all one shot from this trusty guy can
take down any severely battered (i.e. low health) opponent no
matter what weapon he has. Another one of my favorite tactics (as
I mentioned before) is to jump on top of an opponent and then
blast away at his head. It sounds crazy but it's worked before!
In general though if all you have is the blaster then you need to
find some more powerful weaponry pronto.
Shotgun
Better than the blaster (in power respects), but the super
shotgun is even better.
Super
Shotgun
Also known as the double-barreled shotgun. The super shotgun is a
favorite of expert deathmatchers everywhere. Although it's not as
powerful at long ranges, a close up blast to another player will
ensure instant death. The super shotgun should always be in your
arsenal.
Hand
Grenades
Personally I think these are of little use most of the time;
because of the time required to actually throw one it doesn't
make them very effective. However I'd be lying if I said I've
never been killed by a well tossed hand grenade. Usually the
grenade launcher is more preferable if you're going to be using
grenades.
Machine
Gun
One of my favorite weapons! The machine gun is a good all purpose
gun. Well rounded in power, shot rate, and range - the machine
gun doesn't really have any significant flaws. One exception is
its kickback which can make steady aiming hard. However with the
standard mouse and keyboard control and freelook turned on this
shouldn't be a big problem.
Chain Gun
Powerful is the only word to describe this bad boy. The chain
guns chews up ammo as fast as it chews up bad guys so watch your
ammo level. Generally this is best for mowing down large crowds,
but don't be afraid to use it in a one on one duel.
Grenade
Launcher
I like using the grenade launcher for two things. One is lobbing
grenades into large crowds of people when I'm above them on a
ledge. The second is for quick kills of enemies at medium or
close range. The only danger from this is the harm close range
explosions do to your health.
Rocket
Launcher
Ahhh, the weapon of choice in original Quake multiplayer is not
quite as dominating in Quake 2 multiplayer. Still it remains a
vicious component in the weapons collection of any player. The
rocket launcher should be used primarily for long and medium
range attacks. Close quarter killings with the launcher are
possible but more than likely you'll take a severe hit to the
health.
Note |
If you accidently kill yourself with your own rocket or grenade in a deathmatch the computer deducts one frag from you (for "killing yourself"). You also loose frags for drowning, burning up in lava, or dying in radioactive sludge. |
Hyperblaster
Probably my favorite implement of destruction for Quake 2
deathmatches. The Quake 2 manual describes it as an "energy
chain gun with no spin up delay." So this gun is useful in
just about every situation. Like its counterpart the chain gun,
it will eat up ammo rather quickly though.
Railgun
Do you remember the Arnold Schwarzeneger movie
"Eraser?" (that's okay, you dont have to admit
you saw it). Well in that flick you might recall seeing Ahnold
use this big boy. The rail gun fires uranium slugs at super high
velocities (the speed of sound) so just about anything you hit is
going to die. This is the gun of choice for many players but I
feel it's not quite as effective as it should be. First the
reload rate is slow which can cost you dearly in a heated duel.
Also I've noticed that many times even close up hits aren't
always enough to do an opponent in. Still I can't deny the power
of this weapon; just use it intelligently.
BFG
Gun doesn't do this piece of machinery justice. When everything
has to die right now use the BFG. The BFG is really only
effective when you're able to fire her off in an enclosed room
full of people (that's a good way to get lots of frags quick).
For everything else it's too slow and cumbersome.
Armor/Powerups
No they aren't weapons, but
snatching up as much health and armor you can get your hands on
is prudent in any PC game. Especially in Quake 2 deathmatch,
where you're going to get shot
a lot.
That's all for weapons right now. Let's move on to the more technical side of things and learn how Quake 2 servers work. Click the link below to continue.