Fast overview: While Quake 3 Team Arena (Q3TA) was not a big enough add-on to completely satisfy me, it is big enough to keep me playing and wanting more. Q3TA introduces game supported clans, a new interface, more team play games (3 new types), new special items (power-ups), new weapons, and 8 new maps. If you are into team based play you will love Q3TA, if you are into single player and death match play only you may want to skip this add-on. To see my ratings on the game skip to the bottom or read on for more info on the game.

The first thing you will notice upon starting Q3TA is the new interface. Personally I like it much more than the Q3 one. Unlike Q3 99% of anything you ever would need to do in a menu while playing can be done with the click of a mouse. The only time I needed to use my keyboard was to type specific messages to friends.

Q3TA introduces 3 new game types to play in:

One Flag CTF: Only one flag located in a central room. The object is to capture it and return it to the enemy base. 

Harvester: Every time a player is fragged, a skull appears near a skull generator in the center of the map. You have to grab as many of the other team's skulls as possible and take them back to the enemy's base. If you get killed while carrying skulls, you lose them all. You can also remove your teams skulls by running over them, preventing the other team from getting it. 

Overload: Each team's base contains a skull-adorned obelisk. The point of the game is to destroy the other team's obelisk, which can be pretty damn tough since they need a hell of a lot of damage before they blow-up.

The new maps range from small to huge. I have not played a lot of people on these maps yet, but by the looks they range from a good 4 play to 12 player maps. Each map seems to have two sides that are mirror images of each other. So if you know the layout on your teams end you know the other teams layout. It may sound like a bad idea but it actually made the game play easier.

The games power-ups include: 

Doubler: Doubles the power of your weapon. Almost like a permanent quad-damage! 

Scout: Can't have armor, but you can move real fast and shoot real fast as well. Good for scouting as the name implies, but you can get killed really quick if someone manages to hit you. 

Guard: Boosts your health and armor to 200 immediately and health will regenerate by multiples of five up to 200. This is the best of them IMHO. 

Ammo Regen: All of your ammo recharges at a steady rate. If you can find the good weapons, then your set for a long time. In the hands of a player who knows how to use the new mines well, this power-up is nasty! 

Kamikaze: Get this power-up and activate it and it causes an enormous explosion that will kill everyone in the certain radius. It is a great way to get even with your killer, unless they run really fast and really far they are dead also. 

Invulnerability Shield: You can't move after you activate invulnerability, but it forms a bubble around you that can only be penetrated by prox mines. And yes, the effect after the mine blows you to bits while you're in the bubble is super nasty. 

Teleporter: Yes, it was in Quake III: Arena, but the teleport power-up in Team Arena will be required to get to some of the more secret parts of some levels. So you will want to use them.

Only one player can have the individual power-ups from a spawn point on a map at any given time. So if you are really into team play you should plan who takes which power-up in advance. It is plays like this that add to the flavor of team based play.

The new weapons: 

Nail Gun: Sort of like the shotgun, but slower moving and more powerful. Each nail has its own velocity and trajectory, and each of the nails does 30-35 points of damage, making for a massively damaging weapon if you get in close and hit with all of the nails. The slowness of the weapon was a big turn-off to me and I tended to avoid it unless I had no other choice. 

Proximity Mine Launcher: Pretty self-explanatory but one clarification. You won't need to worry about killing your own guys with the mines. They'll be color coded and won't explode when your team comes near. 

Chain Gun: This weapon is the best. It shoots a huge volume of bullets in a short time, kicking the hell out of your targets. It goes through ammo rather fast though. Still this is my choice weapon.

Over-all ratings: 

Graphics:      9.2 

Sounds:         8.0 

Playability:     9.0

by an Anonymous Customer