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Game
Game2007
Quake III Arena
Developer id Software
Quake III Arena is a 1999 first-person shooter game developed by id Software. The third installment of the Quake series, Arena differs from previous games by excluding a story-based single-player mode and focusing primarily on multiplayer gameplay. The single-player mode is played against computer-controlled bots. It features music composed by Sonic Mayhem and Front Line Assembly founder Bill Leeb. From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
216 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Lemmy, Mastodon) · newest Oct 28, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
94
LovedLoved
148 positive · 10 negative
95% range 89–97%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 148 | 10 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 11 | 0 | 28 |
| Lemmy * | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 1 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Overwhelmingly Positive
2,365 of 2,471 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
95% recommend · 147 yes, 8 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 155 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Overwhelmingly Positive (3,943 of 4,115 positive).
Players cherish Quake III Arena for its nostalgic value and fond memories. [1][2][3] Many consider it one of the greatest arena shooters ever made. [4][5][6][7] Some reviewers call for a remaster or modern update. [8][9][10][11]
Liked
Representative posts
- [20]
Look I'm gonna play this, beat the "campaign" and shelve it but I refuse to believe or respect peoples hype about this game. This is literally "Unreal Tournament at home" if i'd ever seen it. Unreal Tournament 99 just has more to offer and doesn't gatekeep game modes behind an expansion pack like Quake 3 Arena does. Look, if you want to experience an Arena Shooter, then give this a try it's not insanely expensive, …
- [1]
I grew up playing this game with my dad -- it was one of the many ways we bonded together. We had a father/daughter clan called {DTA} which stood for "Death to All". We even owned our own Instagib server. I remember those days when we would go through footage looking to see who was cheating on our server. Countless of hours rocket jumping and railgunning, having fun and building a community... Such fun times. …
- [12]
This game along with CS 1.6 were among the absolute classics that defined multiplayer shooters from the late 90s to early 2000s. No "heroes", no abilities, no "ults", no microtransactions, no battle passes. Just pick a character, grab a weapon, and it's all pure skill from there.
- [13]
11 out of 10. I had thousands of hours in this game from 1999-2012, producing the greatest memories of my gaming days, and i'm so glad to be back. The gameplay loop is second to none. Old school quake movement meets powerful, fun weapons and classic maps to produce THE greatest arena shooter ever made. I've found pockets of folks who still play the game it was meant to be played, and i'm having so much fun once …
- [2]
Back when life was simple. I’d come home from school, throw my bag somewhere, turn on the PC, and hear that familiar Quake III Arena sound. No worries. No responsibilities. No stress. Just me, my keyboard, a CRT monitor, and hours of absolute chaos. Quake III wasn’t just a game to me. It was a feeling. Every time I come back to it, I’m a kid again.
Summarised from 34 of the 213 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 10, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
95% of the 155 Steam reviewers we collected recommend Quake III Arena. The complaint that keeps coming up: lacks a remaster or enhanced version. Deal-breaker or nitpick?
Critics, per Wikipedia
"If you're looking to buy Quake III Arena for an awesome single-player experience, this game isn't for you. If you're yearning for silky-smooth online deathmatches, and crave to push your top-of-the-line PC to the threshold of its performance, then perhaps Quake III Arena is the only game you'll ever need…". Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating in the 0–100 range, calculated an average score of 93 out of 100 ("Universal acclaim/Must-Play") for the Dreamcast version, 84 out of 100 ("Generally favorable reviews") for the PlayStation 2 version's Revolution edition. while the Xbox Live Arcade version's Arena Arcade edition received a lowest score with the average score of 69 out of 100…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 216 · most liked firstZanzarah is dirt cheap right now: store.steampowered.com/app/384570/Z... Very unique game that mixes Pokémon & Quake III Arena lol You're a British girl exploring a magical world of elves & fairies... that you capture, equip and evolve to use in FPS arena battles, flying around and casting spells
neutral · AI labelView post →I grew up playing this game with my dad -- it was one of the many ways we bonded together. We had a father/daughter clan called {DTA} which stood for "Death to All". We even owned our own Instagib server. I remember those days when we would go through footage looking to see who was cheating on our server. Countless of hours rocket jumping and railgunning, having fun and building a community... Such fun times. Although he passed away a couple years ago, I will forever cherish these memories with…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Is Quake III Arena, and by extension Quake Live and Quake Champions, id’s most underrated game?
neutral · AI labelView post →Just out of curiosity, listing the games mentioned here as of this writing by their date of release: |Release Date|Game| |-:|-| |1980|*Pac-Man*| |1985|*The Oregon Trail* (assuming widely-played 1985 game)| |1985|*Tetris*| |1986|*Kid Icarus*| |1988|*Mega Man 2*| |1988|*Super Mario Brothers 3*| |1988|*The Guardian Legend*| |1989|*Abadox: The Deadly Inner War*| |1989|*Ironsword: Wizards & Warriors II*| |1989|*Monster Party*| |1989|*Populous*| |1989|*Sweet Home*| |1990|*Dr. Mario*| |1990|*Final…
neutral · AI labelView post →Back when life was simple. I’d come home from school, throw my bag somewhere, turn on the PC, and hear that familiar Quake III Arena sound. No worries. No responsibilities. No stress. Just me, my keyboard, a CRT monitor, and hours of absolute chaos. Quake III wasn’t just a game to me. It was a feeling. Every time I come back to it, I’m a kid again.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I remember when it was blasphemous that Quake III Arena launched as a game that was predominately an online multiplayer game. Folks had to spin up their own servers. It wasn't like one day id or Activision or whoever decided "you know what, shut it down, we aren't making money on this anymore."
neutral · AI labelView post →I started X-COM 2 after perusing the Steam Workshop for stupid garbage. Now Worf is fighting aliens alongside Homer Simpson, 50 Cent, & Bayonetta, all fully voiced. This is like custom Quake III Arena servers all over again. The worst part is that I think the actual game itself might be incredible?
neutral · AI labelView post →Please, ID Software, please remaster this game like what you did with Quake 1 and 2.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I'd say Ghostware. Perfectly captures early 2000s arena game vibes like Unreal Tournament or Quake III Arena. But it's a singleplayer game with story and full blown campaign! Neat stuff! store.steampowered.com/app/1893370/...
neutral · AI labelView post →Everyone who got their fps skill from Quake may deserve a senior discount, but they also deserve credit for being cut from a pretty rough cloth. 10/10 integral game
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is one of the mighty pillars that shaped gaming for me. I'm too old to say this ♥♥♥♥ but whatever, THIS game is one of the GOAT.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I've played the Xbox 360 (Xbox Live Arcade) version in an emulator. It's a legit port of the N64 version. But it doesn't add anything as far as I can tell. Should have been both *GoldenEye* and *Perfect Dark*. Both are true classics. I didn't like the control scheme with the N64 controller. Never liked that controller. Used to tell my brother (who was good at *GoldenEye*), let me play with a keyboard and mouse and I'll wipe the floor with you. The game engine was fine as far as I could tell.…
neutral · AI labelView post →This game along with CS 1.6 were among the absolute classics that defined multiplayer shooters from the late 90s to early 2000s. No "heroes", no abilities, no "ults", no microtransactions, no battle passes. Just pick a character, grab a weapon, and it's all pure skill from there.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hey it’s that (doom)guy from the PC version of Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3, the SEGA Saturn version of Quake, Quake Champions, Quake III Arena, COD Black Ops 7, COD Warzone, and Fortnite!
neutral · AI labelView post →A stone cold classic, if you ain't got this, you ain't techno Keep on fragging in the free world
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →"What’s your favorite piece of physical media that you own?" I'd have to say my physical copy of Quake III Arena. I've enjoyed the hell out of this game. I *STILL* play now and then to this day. It is one of the most perfect multiplayer first person shooters ever made and is still barrels of fun.
positive · AI labelView post →Quake III Arena and Unreal Tournament, two best arena FPS of all time.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A pure arena experience. I still remember the year this and Unreal Tournament came out. We were spoiled. Quake 3 Arena still holds up after all those years!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →LITERALLY THE BEST GAME IN HISTORY
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Coming in the next version of FTEQW is Quake III Arena improvements, play with other Quake III clients (like ioQuake 3) on servers without issue.
neutral · AI labelView post →YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS, This is the GOAT FPS. for the newbies this is what OG movement was.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →ipad baby but instead of an ipad it's the hit 1999 video game Quake III Arena
neutral · AI labelView post →This is a game that I think has aged like fine wine after all this time; A bunch of guns, a bunch of powerups, and a bunch of fun. i know theres wonderful folks like New Blood Interactive doing it already but why can't we all go back to something like this instead of sticking to the AI-generated microtransaction/P2W-filled "realistic tactical battle royale shooter" slop STILL being pushed by big game tech nowadays?
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →That's insane I absolutely love it. To put that in perspective, 1999 game storage requirements: - GTA 2, 70 MB - Quake III Arena, 70 MB - SimCity 3000, 230 MB - Everquest, 1 GB
neutral · AI labelView post →[Mini Poll] Which of these games feels closest to the original Half-Life?. Hi, let’s settle a debate. Ignoring the Half-Life series itself, which game shares the most DNA with the original? - Quake 4 - Quake III Arena - Aliens versus Predator Classic 2000 Cast your vote here: https://strawpoll.com/61gD9Az59Zw Tomorrow I’ll run the same three games through my game‑similarity algorithm and share how its results compare to the community’s choice. Also, drop a suggestion below if you have an…
neutral · AI labelView post →incredible, just desperately needs a modern update like the other quake games
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The challenge is to choose 20 games that greatly influenced you. One game per day, for 20 days. No explanations, no reviews, no particular order. #GameChallenge #Games #GameDev #PromoSky ↘️ Day 10: Quake III Arena
neutral · AI labelView post →11 out of 10. I had thousands of hours in this game from 1999-2012, producing the greatest memories of my gaming days, and i'm so glad to be back. The gameplay loop is second to none. Old school quake movement meets powerful, fun weapons and classic maps to produce THE greatest arena shooter ever made. I've found pockets of folks who still play the game it was meant to be played, and i'm having so much fun once again. Check out Area 51 servers: https://q3a51.com/servers, keeping the vanilla…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Probably the greatest first person shooter game ever made. Still holds up today. Fast gameplay, and the dark tone of the game is amazing. Highly recommend if you like first person shooter games and have never played this before.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →hope this game will someday get the id software remaster treatment someday. still is some of the most addicting multiplayer ever
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →First-person shooters around the year 2000 were all worth trying at least once. The Quake games from back then left an impression on me, showing a style I hadn't noticed in other shooters at the time. When Quake III Arena was released, it was the icing on the cake. I still remember the mod support, where I ended up playing as Johnny Bravo. The addictiveness of the game back then is just as compelling today, as you can now play it in VR and online! (To play online, you need Quake3Quest, which…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is such a fun ride. It's a super long shot, but I hope I played an online game with him and I hope it was Quake III Arena since it was limited to 2v2 on dreamcast (lol). Me and Tim Walz vs the world.
neutral · AI labelView post →Quake III Area is an arena shooter game. Players can play against bots or they can get into an online game against other players. Weapons respawn so nobody can camp on a location. Players can leap from level to level to find weapons and powerups etc. This game is very undemanding and can be played on a Lenovo T14 or something with Intel 630 integrated graphics or better.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Even after 26 years, Quake III Arena is just as easy and fun to play, but it's very hard to master. It's a shame Id Software doesn't release a remaster.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Quake got warped into the first arena battle franchise, completely losing sight of its origins. By Quake III Arena, the game was unrecognizable from the original, and while they tried to bring it back to FPS in Quake 4, it was another samey "pew pew aliens" title. They'll probably focus on the arena part and ignore the atmospheric cosmic horror aesthetic of the original.
neutral · AI labelView post →I remember when I had the disc of this game when I was maybe 7 or 8 years old. It was the first PC game my Dad introduced me to. Imagine my excitement when I found the game on Steam. This game has a special place in my heart. I'll quit the rambling and say, "Get the game, play with friends, have fun."
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I lived on this game for years. Why everything else has gotten a remake or enhancement but not this is beyond me. This is the grandfather of multiplayer shooters.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Bunnyhopping from the Programmer's Perspective. > "Bunnyhopping" is an exploit of a very popular bug in games like Quake III Arena, Half-Life, and Counter-Strike. Bunnyhopping, or bhopping for short, allows a player to exceed the game-defined speed limit. It has created entirely new methods of play and allows very exciting, fast-paced emergent gameplay. As a decidedly skill-based mechanic, competitive players love bhopping because it is so hard to master. Thus, it may be useful to you as a game…
neutral · AI labelView post →One of the best multiplayer shooters in history. I've played it a lot in my childhood and always loved it, but the skill threshold is so high that I've never played it good by the standards of Quake. 9/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →not only does this game still open and work despite being old, it features orbb
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Still a solid shooter. Play with the PCVR mod from ripper37 for a good time.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Some games are good, some are bad, but very rarely is a game so good it is near flawless. Quake 3 arena is flawless. Every frag feels earned, every death justified. In my eyes, God created humans so they could create (what I personally see as) the absolute pinnacle of multiplayer gaming. nuff said
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I completely forgot i was doing this one lmao Choose 20 games that greatly influence you. One game per day, for 20 days. No explanations, no reviews, no particular order. Day 2: Quake III Arena
neutral · AI labelView post →Give me the Linkin Park Meteora playlist, the "Crash" playermodel and a Rocket Launcher and you wont see me all weekend! ts was one of my very first games, my first love 💜. i practically had to pray every time that my computer and its laggy a$$ win xp would actually launch this masterpiece so i could play it I owe a lot to Quake for my projectile damage skills, especially with the rocket launcher. i started with QUAKE and got used to its movement and shooting and it helped me with the games…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Quake III Arena is probably the greatest multiplayer game ever made. Though, for modern systems, Quake Live is probably the best way to play it. The only real difference (aside from Quake Live's hundreds of maps and training course) is that Quake III Arena has a sort of "singleplayer campaign" where you verse bots on multiplayer maps. This campaign is fun for the same reason as the multiplayer, and therefore I'd recommend—albeit with one notable exception. The campaign on Nightmare mode took me…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Exelent game, just smush in ioquake3 and your good to go. There are still internet mp game servers out there as of typeing this
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of the best shooters I've ever played. The movement, gunplay, map design, and OST are all basically perfect. It's multiplayer driven, but it's from 1999 so expect a steep learning curve because most people will be better than you are starting out. But don't fear, there is a robust single player ladder to practice in with some of the most advanced bots I've ever seen from this era! it's a great way to get acclimated and has already made me better at Quake, and shooters in general. The…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →very fun best multiplayer game. beats fortnite or cod warzone anyday. THE ULTIMIATE FPS MULTIPLAYER GAME HECK YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game brings a lot of memories.... Internet coffee with friends back in 2005.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Arena FPS in its purest form, everything you need and nothing you don't. The fact that people are still playing this 27 year old game speaks for itself.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Quake is the best e-sport game ever.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →WELCOME TO QUAKE 3 ARENA
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →FnQuake3 2026-05-27 (0.1.0.105). > FnQ3 is a modernized Quake III Arena source port for players who want the original game to feel at home on current hardware without losing what made it special in the first place. > > What sets it apart is the balance: FnQ3 keeps retail compatibility, demos, and classic content behavior front and center, while adding cleaner presentation, better platform support, a stronger day-to-day user experience, and carefully chosen modern features that still respect the…
neutral · AI labelView post →For that long? There are only a few left: - Firefox - Thunderbird (not loving it, but it is ok) - 7zip - My own app for sorting and moving files - My own password manager If I include games then: - OpenTTD - Quake III Arena (for LAN parties) There were more that I loved, but I have stopped using them a month ago. (Because I switched to Linux): - MusicBee - FastStone Image Viewer - MPC-HC + madVR - StrokesPlus - Q-Dir - Malwarebytes Firewall Control - Input Director
neutral · AI labelView post →/in_mouse -1 to fix unresponsive/stuck mouse buttons
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →So happy to have this absolute LEGEND of a game in my steam library. Played this when I was a lot younger. Good times. Best PVP shooter to date. Period.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →GOATED for me. One of the best arena shooters i've ever touched and ever will.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Needs a single player campaign in the remaster.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →THIS GAME IS AMAZING Basically just fortnite but nostalgia, no toxic players, no stupid microtransactions, and most importantly, THE PLAYERBASE AND DEVELOPERS ACTUALLY CARE seriously, buy this game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Kill John Carmack with a rocket launcher while playing as a fat woman without having to mod the game 👍 Also use ioquake3, at least when on Linux
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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