From Makers Of `Doom' Comes Intense `Quake'

On the off chance that anybody cares, here's a quick summary of the storyline behind "Quake."

The military is developing "Slipgate," a "Star Trek"-like transporter device that can instantly beam people from one place to another. Unfortunately, "Quake" - the code name for a top-secret enemy from another dimension - has a transporter of his own and is beaming mutants, grunts and other uglies into the military base where the Slipgate is being developed.

Building the Slipgate was hard enough before 7-foot mutants with chain saws started gumming up the works, so the military brings in a one-man rampage to massacre the bad guys. Tragically, the shooting match is over by the time the hero arrives. "Quake" has sent his bogeymen into the base and killed everybody, but hey, that means there's also a Slipgate in the building with "Quake's" address on it. Why not take on the big boy in his own back yard?

There's a reason why people don't worry about plot when they're talking about "Quake" and other offshoots of the popular "Doom": Plot is irrelevant. What matters is that you move quickly, shoot everything and don't run out of ammo.

"Quake" is the latest game from id Software, (800) IDGAMES, maker of "Doom," arguably the most popular computer game of all time. Currently available as shareware, it's scheduled to be available in stores at the end of this month. At retail, it'll cost $10 for a version that includes encryption; $45 and a phone call

will unlock it.

Like "Doom," the DOS and Windows-based "Quake" can be classified as either a 3-D first-person game or a corridor game, meaning you see the game through the eyes of the hero as he runs through the dark halls of the military base and eventually into the eerie chambers of "Quake's" awful dimension.

Because you are inside the hero's head, you see things exactly as he does. You see his hands and weapons at the bottom of the screen and his enemies standing in front of you in the center of the screen.

Attacks come from every direction. Grunts charge straight at you, possessed Rottweilers maul you from below the waste, Enforcers shoot at you from ledges, and flying beasts swoop down from above.

If all of this sounds overwhelming, get used to it!

And if all of this sounds like "Doom," "Doom II," "D-Zone," "Ultimate Doom," and too many other 3-D corridor games, don't be discouraged. Unlike every other "Doom," "Quake" is significantly different. In "Doom," there was no water, just acid and toxic waste. In "Quake," you dive into the water and swim to find hidden rooms and passageways.

"Quake" has more dangers than "Doom." Ceilings lower and walls close in to crush you. If you're not constantly on guard, expect to go home in a sponge.

"Quake" also has a few more controls. To shoot bad guys in "Doom" you simply had to look in their general direction and pop a few shots through the old shotgun. "Quake" requires you to aim a bit, using the `A' and `Z' keys to raise and lower your gun.

The real news about "Quake" is the atmosphere. The old game had flat graphics, simple gray walls and two-dimensional monsters. "Quake" has dramatic lighting effects, including flickering torches that cast eerie shadows on medieval stone walls.

Sound has improved, too. Play it on a computer with a separate woofer and the sounds surround you.

A word of warning: This is not a game for children or squeamish adults. "Quake" contains satanic symbols, crucified victims and a flock of other offensive sights. In fact, the game laughs at digitized brutality and flaunts carnage at every turn.

If you think you might be offended, chances are you're right.

"Quake" may even offend "Doom" fans as well.

Frankly, there is no way "Quake" can live up to the expectations of "Doom" fanatics who have been waiting breathlessly for a couple of years. "Quake" is a fun game and a significant technological upgrade from "Doom." Whether it maintains the nuances that made the first game so popular can only be decided by "Doom" fanatics.

But judged on its own merits, "Quake" offers a great mix of fast action, well-rendered graphics and buckets of blood.