2nd December of 1999 marks the date when Quake III Arena was released. It used the id Tech 3 engine, a competitor to the Unreal engine, both widely licensed, renown and still used to this very day. The game has since become a cult classic, the rise of Quake III Arena marks an important history of esports. The game has received overwhelming strong positive reviews on Metacritic and Gamerankings, giving the Dreamcast version a rating of 93/100 and the PS2 Version 84/100. The PC version scored 89/100.

It was the first part in the quake series that distanced itself from the single-player story driven predecessors. With the huge success from older titles, id software decided to put more emphasis on multi-player, channeling all their focus on fluidity, net-code, and online functions. There is an offline campaign available which let's players climb their ranks and defeating PC controlled opponents. Atmosphere resembles the old quakes, including Gothic and Lovecraftian themes with a few new tricks up it's sleeve such as cyber-gothic areas and futuristic level designs.



Although lore was never a big part of the game, it attracted plenty fan-fiction writers and cosplayers. It was ported to PlayStation 2, Dreamcast and Xbox live.

Quake III Arena and its respective mods are still relatively active, have communities and are generally accepted as one of the most remarkable games ever made with an enormous community that shook the world. One may argue that it is the last great thing done by the core id software team, with big names still actively involved in the development.

"Welcome to the Arena, where high-ranking warriors are transformed into spineless mush. Abandoning every ounce of common sense and any trace of doubt, you lunge onto a stage of harrowing landscapes and veiled abysses. Your new environment rejects you with lava pits and atmospheric hazards as legions of foes surround you, testing the gut reaction that brought you here in the first place. Your new mantra: Fight or be finished."
— id Software overview