Quake 2 comes to the N64, threatening to topple GoldenEye off the top spot of players' affections.
Les Ellis

Since the launch of the machine, the only comeback N64 owners have had against the snide "Half-Life rules" comments from more-money-than-sense king-size PC owners is the mighty GoldenEye 007, safe in the knowledge that Nintendo would never allow Rare to develop a version of their smash hit specifically for the PC. And now, in a turnaround that we've been anticipating for months, the PC's biggest name in first-person shooters, Quake 2, has finally managed to squeeze its way onto a Nintendo cart.

In a two-finger salute to everyone who thinks the PC is the only machine that can do a first-person shooter well, everything that made the PC version great is here. Outrageous weapons giving awesome fire-power, lightning fast action, fantastic sci-fi graphics and, best of all, a kick ass multiplayer game - oh yes, it's all here. If you own a 4Mb Expansion Pak then you're in for a real treat as all the lighting effects and textures kick in to give you a real dose of eye candy. Not that you'll get much time to admire the view, though - as soon as you hit the start button you're going to need 100% concentration to get past the hordes of alien troops and nasty puzzles.

Each of the levels is broken down into various missions, which adds more tension to the atmosphere of the game; an atmosphere that's already tense thanks to the dark, moody graphics and amazing sound effects. All the levels are different from the PC version as well, so even if you've finished that one, this is still more than challenging for you. And as good as the one-player game is, Quake 2's real magic begins when you plug in a few more joypads and get some mates round for the evening.