Christmas time is upon us once again and with it comes the holiday game releases that we waited diligently all year long for.  For many id Software is a Christmas tradition as much as the fat guy in the red suit and this year is no exception.  If you're from the same planet I am then you have probably heard nothing but Quake 3 Team Arena buzz all around you. Team Arena is not a new game but a mission pack to add new features and game types to last years Christmas present Quake 3 Arena.

Clans
Can't have a team add-on without teams now can we?  Team Arena comes with 5 pre-built clans with 5 bots per clan giving you a total of 25 new bots to learn to love/hate.  Each clan has its own logo that is literally plastered all over their bases various banners, walls and flag. Clan logos are from left to right: Pagens, Crusaders, Strogg, Intruders, and The Fallen.

Besides the 5 new clans there are also two new characters Pi and Fritzkrieg whom you can combat in the 1v1 Arena mode. There are also 4 maps for the Arena mode though strangely enough it doesn't include a full tier like the original Q3A so you basically just have 4 Arenas that are 1 on 1.

Power Ups
I have to admit when I first read about the new Power Ups to be included in Team Arena I was quite skeptical. Though I have always loved the runes in the original CTF and Lithium, it always seems that when someone tries add new Power Ups or Runes to a Quake mod they just don't seem to fit or seem like whacked copies of the originals.  That is no longer true however as the new Power Ups in Team Arena make so much sense it hurts, not to mention all the strategy involved with the use of them.

The following power ups are in effect from the time you pick them up until either a) you die or b) the level ends.

Scout
The Scout Power Up gives you extra speed at the cost of armor. While a scout your character has both increased running speed as well as rate of fire. The drawback to scout is that you cannot pick up any armor and you forfeit any armor points you accumulated before you got the power up so you are more vulnerable to damage.

The scout power up works extremely effective when you spawn and the enemy has the flag inside your base.  If you can grab scout and a plasma gun you can easily take advantage of the increased rate of fire to literally tear up the other teams flag carrier.

Guard
Just about the opposite of the Scout power up the Guard power up gives you increased health and armor as well as regenerating health.  You can also pick up armor anytime up to 200 points while using the Guard.  The Guard power up makes you one tough mother to kill.

Doubler
Doubler is pretty well self explanatory you do double the damage with every shot.  This really makes the Rocket Launcher effective in those tight spots. If you get the quad damage then you are really doing 8x the damage so rocket jumping is out of the question :)

Ammo-Regen
Again self-explanatory.  Ammo-Regen causes your ammo to constantly regenerate at a slow but regular pace making it so you never run out of ammo unless you exceed the rate of regen. Your rate of fire is also significantly increased as well.

Usable Items
The two usable items fall in place with the medkit power up from the original Q3 as you can carry only one usable item, and its gone once you use it. The two new usable items are both very functional arsenal devices that both require some strategy to use effectively and add some extra eye candy and effects to the mix as well.

Kamikaze
Kamikaze is a nuclear bomb that you can carry around and when used kills you and everyone in about a 50 meter radius and at the same time shakes the entire arena.  This is great for those last ditch efforts.  When you feel the rumble make yourself aware of the blast zone and run like hell!

Invulnerability
The Invulnerability power-up surrounds you in a blue sphere that makes you invulnerable from enemy fire while allowing you to blast away at the enemy.  When used however you cannot move and once it wears off you are once again vulnerable and left of everyone that successfully fled the area to team up on you.

Game Types
Team Arena adds three new game types: One Flag Capture the Flag, Overload, and Harvester. Being Team based game types Team Arena also includes the normal Capture the Flag variety included in the original Q3 as well as the 4 CTF maps which have had new routes added to make things interesting. The new game types are all variations of the traditional CTF game type so therefore they all require elements of team work, strategy, and skill.

Capture the Flag
This is the traditional 2 flag Capture the Flag in which each team has a base with a flag stowed safely in their base's flag room. The object is to storm the other teams base and capture their flag and then return it to your own flag room.  In order for a capture to count your teams flag must be safe at the base which means your team will have to protect your flag as well as capture the other teams.  Classic gameplay added to the new power-ups makes this a great balance.

One Flag Capture the Flag
If I had to chose a favorite game type it would have to be One Flag CTF as unlike the original Capture the Flag there a lot of room for chaos and your role in life is constantly changing from defense to offense weather you like it or not.

Overload
Each team has a obelisk in their base which has a skull in the center of it witch is capable of 2500 points of damage.  The object here is simply invade the other teams base and destroy the other teams skull.  The skull regens at a rate of 15 points per second so you have to be fast.

Harvester
Each team must frag players on the other team and when they do a crystal skull of the other teams color appears in the center of the arena. Players must then take the crystal skulls to the other teams flag to score.  Pickup up skulls of your teams color simply removes them from play.

There has been quite a bit of talk on the forums about the similarities between harvester and Head Hunters. The similarity pretty much ends in the fact that you harvest the other teams souls (TM) and return them to a specific location to score points.

Weapons
Team Arena adds 3 new or well, nearly new weapons to spice things up a bit.

Chaingun
Ahh the old familiar chaingun.  Originally issued in Quake 2 the chaingun is back with a vengeance however the new improved model will eat a ton of ammo and is fabulous for up close combat in tight halls where the lack of long range accuracy doesn't matter.

Nailgun
The other weapon veterans will recognize is the new and improved Nailgun.  Many improvements have been made to the nailgun since its Quake days most notably is the fact that it has been changed from firing a stream of nails to issuing a blast of nails in a spread pattern like that of a shot gun.  The new nailgun is a very powerful and effective weapon capable of clearing a hallway in seconds.  The nailgun works well as a close range weapon in any situation. 

Prox Launcher
The Prox launcher lobs proxy mines that stick on just about any surface including enemies and explode when an enemy is near.  After you lob a proxy mine it takes a couple seconds to arm and then will last for about 30 seconds or until a enemy comes close enough to set them off.  The proxy mines are the only weapon that can get through the Invulnerability shield, making it the a deadly attack to someone otherwise invulnerable and stuck in the same spot for 30 seconds.

Maps
The 23 new maps that make up Team Arena are just as exciting as everything else in the box.  Some maps are sure to become classics and have that feel that always brings us back to Quake based games. I felt that most if not all of the maps were very well balanced and very well thought out for CTF style game play.

Terrain Maps
Team Arena comes with 3 very awesome Terrain Maps that are very reminiscent the big outdoor maps such as Outlands for Quake 2 CTF. The Q3 engine does a great job when going from outdoor environments to indoor. Its also nice to see that the vast levels such as Distant Cries didn't put any significant performance hit to my machine (see system specs at the bottom). 

Other Maps
Team Arena also includes 6 maps intended for small teams and 6 intended for large teams as well as 4 single arena maps.  4 of the CTF maps(2 small and 2 large) are modified versions of the original 4 that shipped with Quake III with more routes added to make them more interesting.

Team Orders
No Team based game type would be complete without some sort of team communication and Team Arena simplifies orders much better than in the original Q3A however you will have to bind the keys for this manually as using the in game menu is just too clunky to be useful in gameplay.  Fortunately there is a box in the lower left hand site of the HUD (heads up display) that you can use to issue orders simply by binding keys to "next team member" and "next order" commands.  Then you can cycle through the list of team mates or the entire team and select and order, the game automatically sends your order after 3 seconds from the last time you switched commands or player.  Though team communication could have been better this doesn't take too long to get used to.  The various commands are:

Attack: Attack the other teams base.

Defend: Defend your teams base.

Camp: Camp where the leader is standing.

Follow: Follow the Leader.

Escort.  Escort your teams flag carrier.

Retrieve:  Retrieve your teams flag from the enemy.

Patrol: Make up your own mind what to do.

Problems
There are a few problems to expect with Team Arena as with any new release however because of the new v1.27g code base of Team Arena this is further compounded. The first one is that Team Arena will upgrade you to v1.27g so it will break mod compatibility with any mod not compatible with the new v1.27g however several mods have already released updated versions that will be compatible.

The other problem is the lack of Linux Binaries as well as the lack of solid information on when we can expect them.  Though you may feel this doesn't effect you because you are a windows user you are wrong. I would dare say that the majority of the big Quake 3 servers out their are running some form of Linux and are not able to set up Team Arena Servers until we get our hands on the Linux 1.27g point release.  Therefore servers running 1.27g based mods and Team Arena are going to as plentiful till the Linux point release.

Conclusion
Team Arena is a class act and makes Quake 3 almost new again.  If you miss the old CTF days, are a CTF junkie, or just want some new CTF action then this is a must. Team Arena has got me just as excited as Quake 3 did last Christmas and that's a hard thing to do. Team Arena recaptures the CTF play of old and adds some new twists to make it that much more interesting.  I give Team Arena a score of 9 out of 10 as well as our very own Editors Choice Award.  Now what are you waiting for? Go get a copy and get busy!

Review by: William Gall
Date: December 18, 2000

More Team Arena Screenshots @ 3DGW