The walls of the drop pod close in around you like a tomb. Already, the air reeks of nervous sweat.
"Foxtrot squad, Drop Status is Go. Repeat, Go. Prepare for dismount." Your C.O.’s voice
crackles over the com link, her voice cool and level. Display panels flash rapidly changing information, staining the interior of the capsule blood red, amber, and green. "On my mark... Five... Four..." You tense, bracing yourself the best you can in your prone position. "... Two... One... Drop!" A moment of anticipation, a metallic thunk as the mooring clamps disengage, a moment of roaring thrust, and then you are free falling.
Shrugging off the effects of gravity, you grab the flight controls and force the pod along the designated approach vector. It fights back, first skipping, then surfing, and finally diving through the outer atmosphere of Stroggos, the Strogg home world. You gulp stale cooled air trying to forget the rapidly rising temperature of the outer hull. Excited radio chatter clutters the com link frequencies. So much for any damn radio silence. Anxious and excited marines whoop, holler, and banter with each other. One marine cries out that he’s been clipped, and then all hell breaks loose.
"Mayday, Mayday, lost all power... shielding failed... missed dz... some kind of EMP is..." If you weren’t fighting to keep alive yourself, the soul-wrenching screams of the doomed warriors would shred what nerve remains in you. Without warning, a shudder passes through your drop pod and everything more complex than a night-light goes dead. What’d that marine say? EMP? Electromagnetic Pulse. Your umpty-um million-dollar pod just became an expensive meteor.
"DAMN!"
Without thinking, you fist-hammer the manual release plunger. Mechanical catches release the heat shield over a vision port, engage a wire-and-pulley guidance system, and goose a one-shot generator to send a burst of energy through a Nichrome wire, heating it red hot and igniting a chain of solid fuel rockets. "God Bless our engineers!" you laugh as the technologically primitive system fires and your control surfaces respond to sluggish life. You’re in a dangerous dive, dropping through a flying rock field – but they’re rolling along in some pretty stable orbits, nothing that muscle and nerve can’t handle.
Of course, there’s always that one maverick in every bunch.
**WHAM**
"What the... Awww, Shit!!" Meteor. Probably didn’t take more than two inches off your right stabilizer... But the laws of physics are the laws of physics. Pulleys, wires and model rocket engines aren’t gonna pull you out of this one. Your drop pod goes into an end-over-end spin and your sorry ass is toast, marine.
Sky, planet, sky, planet... The rocky surface of Stroggos rushes up towards you. If you weren’t jazzed on adrenaline, it’d be all kinda peaceful looking. Sky, rocks, sky, water...
"DAMN!" You spit out, "WATER!"
**BWOOOSH!!**
Your drop pod explosively slams into the still pool, boiling down to embed itself in the soft mud below. You’re alive... but it may be a while before you know it.
Consciousness creeps up on you softly, teasing you back to awareness. Sounds penetrate the pounding in your skull -– trickling water, soft splashes. Slowly opening your eyes, the world swims double for a moment, and then snaps into focus. Slimy canyon walls loom over you, all but blotting out the glowering sky of Stroggos.
"God... how long?" You groan. Something nearby stirs at the sound of your voice. A splash. Silence. A glance tells you that whatever may still be in your pod, half submerged in swamp muck, won’t work worth shit... even supposing that the Strogg would give you the time to field strip and clean it.
**splash**
Something’s out there. Mud coated and aching, you drop to a crouch behind a mossy boulder and search for a weapon. Even a rock would be something. "Hot Damn!!" Better than you could have hoped for! It’s your shotgun, loaded and ready to rock and roll.
**splash, Splash, SPLASH!**
You rack a shell in the chamber and jump up, aches and pains forgotten. Too many damn fine marines didn’t make groundfall today. The Strogg are gonna pay. You swear that soon, real soon, there’ll be a reckoning...
INSTALLATION AND PATCH EXPLANATIONQuake II Mission Pack: The Reckoning requires the full version of Quake II to run. For installation instructions on Quake II, refer to the README.TXT on the Quake II CD.
PATCH NOTE: Quake II Mission Pack: The Reckoning will operate only on versions 3.15 OR LATER of the Quake II executable. If your Quake II executable is version 3.14 or earlier, the installer will AUTOMATICALLY upgrade you to version 3.15. Your previously saved Quake II games WILL NOT be compatible with this upgrade. If your Quake II executable is version 3.15 or later, the installer will NOT replace your executable or game files.
INSTALL SIZE: The Reckoning reads files from BOTH the Quake II pak0.pak file as well as The Reckoning pak0.pak file. Therefore, if you chose the minimum install size during the QUAKE II installation, you will be required to have the Quake II CD in your CD-ROM drive while playing this mission pack. Additionally, if you chose the minimum install size during the QUAKE II installation, you must choose the MAXIMUM install size for THE RECKONING if you wish to see the cinematic sequences during the single player missions.
Once Quake II has been installed, you can install Quake II Mission Pack: The Reckoning by inserting the game CD into your CD-ROM drive and:
1. Double-click on Setup.exe at the root level of the CD, or
2. Go to Run… in your Start Menu and type D:\Setup.exe
(substitute your CD-ROM’s drive letter if different from "D:")
Follow the on-screen instructions as they guide you through the installation process.
For updates to Quake II and this Quake II Mission Pack, please refer to www.idsoftware.com.
BACK TO TOP SETUPJust like Quake II, the Quake II Mission Pack is divided into a series of complex missions or objectives. During the game, your field computer provides you with each new objective. It is important to regularly review this information.
BACK TO TOPQuake II Mission Pack: The Reckoning contains four large units, each with a number of levels to complete in order to proceed to the next unit. It is likely you will have to go between levels several times to accomplish a particular goal. Remember that once you leave a unit you cannot return unless you reload a saved game from that unit. Therefore it is important to review your field computer to be sure you accomplished all of your goals for that unit.
** Note on Units: If you wish to play a particular unit, without working your way through all the levels preceding that unit, you can. We do not recommend that you jump into the middle of the game or skip any levels, since this mission pack was designed in a progressive manner, and each level is important to the unfolding of the entire game. However, if you want to just play through a particular unit, you can 'exec' a file, which will launch the level and give you the appropriate weapons and ammo to start with for that unit. To do this, simply pull down the console by pressing the tilde ( ~ ) key, and type the following command for the respective unit you wish to start:
| To play: | Type this command: |
| Compound Unit | exec xcompnd.cfg |
| Industry Unit | exec industry.cfg |
| Hangar Unit | exec hangar.cfg |
| Moon Base Unit | exec xmoon.cfg |
When you start the Quake II Mission Pack, a demo sequence of the game will begin. At any time, press the Esc key to pull up the Main menu. Use the up and down arrow keys to navigate, and press Enter to select. Each Main menu function brings up a list of secondary menu items. For additional information on any of these menu options please refer to the Quake II player’s manual or the README.TXT in the root of the Mission Pack CD.
Game: Start a new game with a specific
skill level, load, or save a game.
Multiplayer: Start a network server, join a network server, or change
your character information.
Video: Select either Software Only or one of several OpenGL modes, and
adjust screen modes and settings.
Options: Customize your keyboard, mouse, or joystick controls, adjust
your audio, and change your game play control options.
Quit: Exit the game from here.
To begin a new game, select the Game option from the Main menu, then select one of the
three skill levels.
Under Game, you can select a variety of skill settings that range from really easy to nearly unbeatable. Each skill setting adjusts reaction, health, power, and number of the monsters you'll face.
Easy: This is meant for kids and grandmas
Medium: Most people should start Quake II at Medium skill
Hard: Here at id, we play Hard skill, and we think you should too, once
you're ready.
Load Game: Select Load Game to pull up the load game menu. The first name
on the list is an auto-saved game. Selecting this puts you back at the start of the last
level you entered. Use the arrow keys to move down to the game you wish to load and press
the Enter key.
Save Game: Select Save Game to access the save game menu. Using the arrow
keys, move down to an empty slot, or one you don't mind writing over and press the Enter
key to save. Quake II will generate a name for you with title of the level and the current
time.
There are two main ways to play The Reckoning with other people: LAN or TCP/IP over the Internet. This menu provides three options: Join Network Server, Start Network Server, or Network Server Player Setup. Please see the detailed multiplayer section below (V.).
Connection Speed: Make sure that this option is set to your current internet connection speed. If this option is not set correctly you may experience unnecessary lag.
BACK TO TOPHere are controls for changing your video driver, screen resolution or video mode, brightness, screen size, window or full screen mode, texture quality, and translucent settings. To change an option, simply arrow to that option, then press the right or left arrow keys to adjust. Then, after making all of your adjustments, simply press the Esc. Key. You can also press enter when on an individual setting to make that option take effect immediately. When changing video settings, The Reckoning may blink from the screen, or the game console may appear. This isn't unusual. After a moment of this, the game should resume normally. Once you hit Esc. to commit all of your changes, the game will reload the map to incorporate the new settings, and this will take some time as well.
Video Driver: You have four choices under Video Driver. These are Software, 3Dfx OpenGL, PowerVR OpenGL, and Default OpenGL. As you can see, generally this breaks down into two choices: Software or some form of OpenGL.
***IMPORTANT: Your system may not support many of the video driver options provided by Quake II Mission Pack: The Reckoning. If a selected video driver is unavailable Quake II will return to your previous selection or to a safe software mode.
Software: If you are running under
Windows 95, and do not have OpenGL supported hardware acceleration, Quake II will use this
setting.
OpenGL: With the assistance of OpenGL drivers, Quake II runs in 16 or 24
bit color, with colored lighting effects, cleaner graphics, and improved translucency.
3Dfx OpenGL: Use the 3Dfx OpenGL driver on systems that possess a 3Dfx
Voodoo 3Dfx Voodoo2 and Voodoo Rush accelerator.
PowerVR OpenGL: Use the PowerVR OpenGL driver on systems running Windows
95 with a PowerVR PCX2 board installed.
System OpenGL: The System OpenGL driver allows Quake II to render using
the default OpenGL driver installed in the system. Select this if running under Windows NT
when using a 2D/3D accelerator other than those specifically supported in this menu.
***IMPORTANT: We do not recommend using OpenGL on systems that do not have hardware acceleration of OpenGL installed.
Video Mode: Many video modes are available to you through this menu. Your system may not support many of the video modes provided by Quake II.
Screen Size: The screen size slider controls the size of the game area on the screen. Reducing the screen size will usually result in higher performance.
Brightness: The brightness slider controls the brightness of the screen. Its effects are immediate under software. When using OpenGL, select Apply after modifying the brightness.
Fullscreen: This selects fullscreen or windowed rendering. Fullscreen mode availability is dependent upon the type of graphics adapter installed. Fullscreen software rendering requires the presence of Microsoft DirectX. Under OpenGL, fullscreen rendering uses the current color depth of the desktop.
Texture Quality (OpenGL only): The texture quality slider determines the overall crispness of textures with OpenGL renderers. Better quality often results in lower performance.
8-Bit Textures (OpenGL only): 8-bit texture support is available on some graphics chipsets such as the 3Dfx Voodoo. Enabling 8-bit textures reduces visual quality in exchange for better overall performance.
***IMPORTANT: We recommend you use this setting if you have the appropriate hardware and want to increase the performance of Quake II.
Synchronize Every Frame (OpenGL only): Disabling this will allow Quake II to ignore the refresh rate of your monitor and redraw the screen as fast as it can allowing you to receive a small increase in framerate , but causes some image tearing. If you don’t like the tearing that occurs, try increasing your monitor’s vertical refresh rate from the Display Properties of Windows.
Stipple Alpha (Software only): Enabling stipple alpha results in faster performance when rendering transparent surfaces such as windows, water, and lava, but also results in reduced image
quality when rendering transparent surfaces.
Apply: Selecting this option "applies" any modifications you make to your video configuration.
BACK TO TOP 7. OptionsHere you can adjust your audio settings, change your mouse options, customize your keyboard settings, and restore all your control settings to their defaults.
SFX Volume: Using the left and right arrow keys moves the slider bar to increase or decrease the volume of your sound effects.
Sound Quality: Select low quality for 11 kHz sound and high quality for 22 kHz sound. Using low sound quality may increase the performance of Quake II on your machine.
Sound Compatibility: Toggles between Max Compatibility (default setting) and Max Performance. In order to utilize Max Performance, you may need the most recent drivers for your sound card.
CD Music: Use the left and right arrow keys to turn CD music on or off. Turning the CD off will not change the performance of the game.
Mouse Speed: This allows you to adjust your mouse sensitivity. The higher you set this the faster your character will turn in relation to mouse movement.
Always Run: Set this to Yes if you do not want to hold down the Run button in order to move quickly.
Invert Mouse: This gives your mouse "airplane-style" controls. This means that pushing the mouse forward "noses down" and pulling it back "noses up." Some people prefer this control technique.
Lookspring: Returns your view immediately to straight ahead when you release the look up key, look down key or mouse look. Otherwise, you must move forward for a step or two before your view snaps back. Lookspring does not work while you are underwater.
Lookstrafe: If you are using the look up or look down key, then this option causes you to sidestep instead of turn when you try to move left or right.
Freelook: With this option enabled you no longer have to press the mouse look key to look up and down while using the mouse.
Crosshair: With this option, you can choose the style of crosshair displayed on your screen (cross , dot , angle ) . The crosshair may not be entirely accurate, but serves as an excellent tool for getting an idea of where your shot may go.
Use Joystick: Allows you to enable joystick support in Quake II.
Customize Controls: Selecting this option will bring up a second menu that lists all of the game controls. Use the arrow keys to move through the list. Press the Enter key to select a control to change. Press the appropriate key or mouse button that you wish to use for that control. If you want to go back to the original controls, go to the previous menu and select Reset Defaults.
BACK TO TOP8. On-Screen Information During Gameplay
Status Bar: Your status is shown as icons floating in your view at the bottom of the screen. There is an indicator for your health, armor, ammo for the current weapon, and currently selected or readied item or weapon. When you pick up something new, an icon will briefly appear at the bottom of the screen with a picture of that item. To view your entire inventory, press the Tab key.
Messages: The Quake II Mission Pack will talk to you from time to time. Some messages appear at the top of the screen. These are non-critical, and tell you that you’ve picked up an object, or you’ve died in an interesting fashion (multiplayer games). Certain messages will appear in the middle of the screen. These are always important, and you do not want to ignore them!
Field Computer: Press the F1 key to access the field computer. This details your unit location, your primary objective, secondary or current objective, kill ratio, goals completed, and number of secrets found. When your field computer receives an update an icon will appear at the bottom of the screen. Be sure to regularly check the computer for information on progressing to your next objective.
Console: Pressing the tilde key (~) will pull down the Console window. This is a special area that lists all of the game messages, and allows you to give the Quake II Mission Pack commands that cannot be given through the menu. For more information on the Console, please refer to the Quake II online manual.
Inventory: Press the Tab key to access your inventory. Use the bracket ([ ]) keys to move through the list. Your status information will update to show an image of the currently selected item. Press the Enter key to use a highlighted item or press the single quote key ( ‘ ) to drop an item. (Dropping items is only useful for multiplayer games.) Weapons and items are "readied" in this manner. For example, you can select or ready an item before engaging the enemy. Then at the appropriate time you can quickly use that item by pressing the Enter key.
Dying: Each time you enter a level, the Quake II Mission Pack automatically saves the game. When you die, press the Enter key to pull up the Load Game menu. Select the first game name on that list to restart at the beginning of the last level you entered.
BACK TO TOP GETTING AROUND STROGGOSWalking: Use the four arrow keys or the mouse to walk around. To walk steadily forward, hold down the Forward key (the up arrow or center button on the mouse). Turn left or right with the left or right arrow keys, or by sliding your mouse in the desired direction.
Running: To run, simply hold down the left Shift key to increase your speed. If you prefer to always run during the game, open the Main menu, then the Controls menu, and select Always Run.
Shooting: Press the Ctrl key or the left mouse button to fire. Hold the Shooting key down to keep firing.
Looking Up and Down: The letters A and Z allow you to look up and down, respectively. Start walking forward and your line of vision will automatically re-adjust to the center position. You may also choose to select Free Look under the Controls menu, which will allow you to move the mouse around as if it was your head movement.
Swimming: While underwater, aim yourself in the direction you wish to go and press the Forward key to go in that direction. Unfortunately, as in real life, you may lose your bearings while underwater. Use the Jump key, normally the space bar, to kick straight up towards the surface. Once on the surface, tread water by holding down the Jump key. To get out of the drink, swim toward the shore and you can either jump up onto the land or walk straight out if it is shallow enough. There is always a way out of water, but you may have to submerge even deeper in order to find it.
Ducking: Press and hold down the C key to duck and move forward to crawl. When you release the C key, you will return to an upright position. It is also possible to avoid rockets in this manner. You may notice some aliens have learned this trick.
Jumping: Press the space bar to jump. You jump farther if you’re moving forward at the time or if you’re running. You jump higher if you’re moving up a slope.
Strafing: Hold down either Alt key while the left or right arrow key is pressed and you will side-step in that particular direction. This is perfect for avoiding incoming missiles, rockets, or gun blasts from enemy Strogg.
Picking Up Objects: To pick up items, weapons, and power-ups, simply walk over them. If you are unable to pick something up, it means you already have the maximum amount possible for that object.
Selecting Items in Inventory: Use the square bracket keys ([ ]) to cycle through items in your inventory. Press the Enter key to select the highlighted item.
Dropping Objects: To drop an item, press the square bracket keys ([ ]) to scroll through your belongings. When the desired object is highlighted, press the single quote ( ‘ ) key to drop it.
Giving Items to Other Marines: To give an item to another player, simply select it from your inventory and press the single quote ( ‘ ) key. The item will then be tossed out for anyone to pick up.
Talking: To communicate with other players in multiplayer, press the T key and type in your message. Press Enter when finished and your words will appear at the top of the screen. Look for a reply, unless your fellow troops have been disemboweled.
BACK TO TOP MULTIPLAYER FOR QUAKE II MISSION PACK: THE RECKONINGQuake II Mission Pack: The Reckoning fully supports multiplayer mode. There are six new levels designed specifically for multiplayer
When you are using the console or Main menu in multiplayer, the game does not pause. Irresponsible players and monsters can freely shoot you, and your only recourse is bloodthirsty vengeance. The Talk function is useful here. When you talk, the message appears at the top of all players’ screens, preceded by the speaker’s name.
To set up, run, or join a multiplayer game, use the Main menu Multiplayer option. For more detailed information on the various multiplayer options, please refer to the Quake II online manual that is installed with Quake II.
Deathmatch: The most popular way to play Quake II Mission Pack multiplayer is a Deathmatch, which has no monsters, just player versus player! The goal of the game is to kill your opponents more often than they kill you. Each kill counts for one "frag," and if you kill yourself then you lose a frag, thus it's not a great idea to go swimming in the lava or juggle your own grenades. After you die, press the space bar to reappear, or "respawn," in the game. You’ll be brought back at one of several random respawn locations.
Cooperative: Another multiplayer mode is Cooperative or "co-op." In a co-op game, up to four players can join in a game to combat the monsters of Stroggos as a team. The rules for this method of play are similar to a single player game, except up to four people can go after the enemy together. If you are killed in co-op, you reappear at the start area, and have to catch up to your buddies.
For more detailed information on Quake II multiplayer, please refer to the "Multiplayer Quake II" section of the Quake II README.TXT file located in the Quake II Docs folder.
BACK TO TOP TECHNICAL INFORMATION****** FULL VERSION OF QUAKE II ALREADY INSTALLED******
GLQuake II Additional Requirements
Please refer to the file ‘release.txt’ or Release Notes.doc’, in the ‘quake2\xatrix\docs’ directory on your hard drive, for last information regarding Quake II Mission Pack: The Reckoning.
BACK TO TOPQuake II utilizes the DirectDraw and DirectSound components of DirectX. Certain full-screen video modes in Quake II are only available if DirectDraw is installed ON YOUR SYSTEM.
DIRECTX IS NOT INCLUDED ON THE QUAKE II MISSION PACK:THE RECKONING CD, HOWEVER IT IS INCLUDED IN THE QUAKE II INSTALL.
For more information on DirectX, please refer to the Quake II ReadMe.txt file in the quake2\docs folder on your hard drive.
BACK TO TOP4. What is OpenGL? - About the Quake II 3D Accelerated Engine
The hardware world is changing so fast that it is impossible for us to test, or even list, every 3D accelerator card with GLQuake II support. While some cards work extremely well, we cannot guarantee that your card will work as expected.
What is OpenGL?
OpenGL is a low-level API (Application Programming Interface) that works with a compatible 3D video chipset to render top quality 3D graphics. Some of the features you will see while using OpenGL, and a compatible 3D hardware video accelerator, are 16-bit graphics, colored lighting, improved translucency and increased game speed.
How GL Works:
When you choose one of the GL options in the video selection menu, the executable relies on an OpenGL library created for a OpenGL supported chipset. In the video menu you can choose the 3Dfx GL library, the PowerVR GL library, or the default GL library that was installed with your card’s drivers.
If you would like to learn more about OpenGL check out:
http://www.sgi.com or http://www.3dfx.com.
If you are uncertain whether your card supports OpenGL or not, please consult your video card manufacturer.
BACK TO TOP5. More on Quake II Mission Pack: The Reckoning Video
Drivers
The video menu currently allows you to select one of four rendering subsystems: software, system OpenGL, 3Dfx OpenGL, and PowerVR OpenGL. The software driver is available on all systems. The default OpenGL driver allows Quake2 to render scenes using the default OpenGL driver installed in the system. Typically this will be selected under Windows NT when using a 2D/3D accelerator such as an Intergraph Realizm or accelerators based on the Nvidia RIVA128, ATI Rage Pro, and Rendition V2200. Users should avoid using the default OpenGL driver if their particular system does not support hardware accelerated OpenGL operations. The 3Dfx OpenGL driver should be used on systems that possess a 3Dfx Voodoo, 3Dfx Voodoo2 or Voodoo Rush accelerator, including the Canopus Pure3D and Pure3D II, Diamond Monster3D I and II, Orchid Righteous 3D I and II, and the Hercules Stingray 128. The PowerVR OpenGL subsystem should be used on those systems that are running Win95 with a PowerVR PCX2 board installed, such as the Matrox M3D.
Future versions of Quake2 may support other rendering subsystems. At this time Quake2 does not support the Microsoft Direct3D proprietary API.
Video Modes
Quake2 supports the following video modes:
Availability of video modes will be determined by the type of graphics adapter installed and available system and video RAM. For example, boards based on the 3Dfx Voodoo chipset typically only support video modes of 512x384 and 640x480.
BACK TO TOP Customer SupportBefore contacting customer support, please consult the technical help file. It contains the answers to some of our most frequently asked questions and may quickly and easily provide a solution to your difficulty. If after reviewing the technical help file you are still experiencing problems, please feel free to contact us through any of the services listed.
So that we can better help you, please be at your computer and have the following information ready:
1. Complete product title
2. Exact error message reported (if any) and a brief description of the problem
3. Your computer's processor type and speed (e.g. Pentium 90)
4. Video and sound card make and model (e.g., Diamond Stealth 64 video, Sound Blaster 16
sound)
Online Services with Activision Forums, E-Mail and File Library Support:
* Internet: support@activision.com or http://www.activision.com
* America Online: Use keyword "Activision" to locate the Activision forum.
* CompuServe: 76004,2122 or [GO ACTIVISION]
* Activision BBS: (310) 255-2146 Up to 33,600 Baud; Settings: 8 Bits, No Parity, 1 Stop
Bit (8, N, 1)
Note: Support for the multi-player component is provided on-line only.
In the U.S.
Fax: (310) 255-2151, 24 hours a day
FaxBack: (310) 255-2153, 24 hours a day
Mail: Activision, Customer Support, P.O. Box 67713, Los Angeles, CA 90067
Phone: Call our 24-hour voice-mail system for answers to our most frequently asked questions at (310) 255-2050. Or contact a customer service representative at the same number between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. (Pacific Time) Monday through Friday, except holidays.
Game Hints: To get all the hints for Quake II, just call (900) CALL-2-ID* or (800) ID-GAMES. Calls are 90˘ per minute (must use credit card via 800-ID-GAMES). *You must be 18 years of age or have parental/guardian permission to call 900-CALL-2-ID.
id Stuff: Call (800) ID-GAMES to order other outstanding id Software games.
In Australia & the U.K.
For Technical Support:
In Australia, please call 1902 962 000.
In the U.K., please call 0990 143 525.
If you have any comments, questions or suggestions about this game, or any other Activision product, you can contact us in the U.K. on 0181 742 9400 between the hours of 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. (U.K. time) Monday through Friday, with the exception of holidays.
For Technical Support and Customer Service in areas not listed, please contact your local distributor or Activision via online. (Please note that online support is available in English only.)