Review by: Brian Pipa

Published: September 17, 1997

PainKeep is a partial conversion (PC) for Quake in the same vein as the Quake Mission Packs 1 and 2, except for one big difference (well, two — PainKeep is free) — PainKeep was specifically made for multiplayer. True, you can play it solo in Quake, but PainKeep really shines in multiplayer mayhem. Everything is optimized for Internet play.

There are no new monsters in PainKeep — you fight entirely online against the hardest opponents yet — live humans! While PainKeep lacks new monsters, it more than makes up for this in the other areas. PainKeep provides you with 21 new maps, 7 new weapons, over 60 brand new models, and over 150 brand new sounds, just to name a few of the new items.

The maps are extremely well done and are better than a few of the original Quake DM maps (I know I’ll get some flak for that). The map that is the most stunning is PK16 (Giza By Gizmo) — it’s an Egyptian-style level. If I didn’t know better, I’d think this was a level straight out of Hexen 2. The Egyptian paintings on the walls, the hieroglyphic textures, the ornate pool — all beautifully done. The other levels are a mixed bag of military installations, castles, etc. but the 60+ new textures and artwork give a good feel to them. The re-spawn points are well-placed, the Quads are in just the right places — everything just feels right.

The most interesting part of PainKeep is the new weapons. Along with the exploding shotgun shells, the pulse nailgun, and the chain lightning gun are some very unique items like the Airfist, the AutoSentry, the Bear Trap, the Gravity Well, the Harpoon, and the Can of Pork and Beans.

The Airfist shoots a concentrated blast of compressed air and can be used in a number of interesting ways. You can aim it straight down and propel yourself upwards, you can blow people into the lava or off of a ledge, you can blow items off of their re-spawn points and they will respawn in their new position, but the best (and funniest) use is to repel shots aimed at you. You can even kill people by blowing their shots back into them. Try blowing the grenades back to the person that launched them or even send a rocket back to its owner. It’s great fun.

The Harpoon can be used to pull items (Quads, armor, rocket launchers, and even people) closer to you or you can use it to pull your self across chasms or up to heights you could not reach otherwise.