I have faith in Lobotomy (after Duke Nukem 3D and
PowerSlave who doesn't?) but I must admit, even I had doubts about their ability to port
Quake to Saturn. Trying to fit Quake into a Saturn is like trying to fit Doom into a SNES
- and you know how that turned out. I was convinced that Lobotomy had bitten off more than
they could chew this time. I was convinced that, no matter how good a job they did, Quake
would loose so much in the transfer that it would compromise the integrity of the
experience. I was wrong. As a conversion Quake exceeds all expectations. The game may
not run quite as smooth as Duke Nukem 3D, the enemies may not be as detailed as the PC
original, and some of the level layouts may have undergone minor surgery, but otherwise
this is a remarkably authentic reproduction of the PC original right down to the ability
to rocket jump and instigate monster vs monster fights. Lobotomy have succeeded against
all odds in bringing the single player Quake experience to the Saturn intact, and despite
what you may have heard elsewhere, that's good news for corridor fans.
Lets just dispel a certain myth right now: Quake is NOT a bad single player game. It
may not be quite as compelling as Duke Nukem 3D but what it lacks in depth and
interactivity (there isn't even an open door button) it more than makes up for in action
and atmosphere. Offset by Trent Reznor's ambient soundtrack, Quake's awesome
medieval/industrial environments provide the perfect background for a non-stop festival of
carnage that takes the basic gameplay of Doom and blasts it into the third dimension.
Quake is visceral, kinetic, brutal, and above all, totally compelling.
Interestingly, the pace of the gameplay on console is slightly different to the PC
version. Because you are using a joypad (as opposed to the superior mouse/keyboard PC
setup) and because you cannot save during a level, you tend to be much more cautious.
Picking the right weapon for the right situation is a matter of life and death, and that
single health pack you left back at the start of the stage suddenly becomes worth the
trip...
Quake Saturn is a technological marvel. Lobotomy have pulled out the stops to bring
this baby home and the end result is nothing short of stunning. My only real complaint
(and you're going to hear this everywhere you go) is, of course, that the game has no
multi-player mode. I've been saying this since the beginning, but without deathmatch Quake
looses 90% of it's appeal. It's still a great game, but as a single player quest it
doesn't have the juice of something like Duke Nukem 3D. Still, if you have the money for
both I do recommend you give it a try. Lobotomy have single handedly turned the Saturn
from a "corridor free zone" into a "corridor-rich environment". If I
were Sega I'd be doing everything in my power right now to keep Lobotomy very, very happy.
