QuakeCon is the gathering of Quake enthusiasts who descend on Mesquite, Texas once a year to participate in several days of competition and activity related to Id Software’s popular Quake games. Registration for QuakeCon 2002 kicks off tonight at 10 p.m. Eastern time.
Id Software CEO Todd Hollenshead said that QuakeCon 2002 is going to be packed with action and excitement. With the $100,000 tournament, a 1,250-player BYOC area, new hardware and game demonstrations, and the ultimate fan party, there is something for everyone at QuakeCon,” he said.
Scheduled for August 15-18, 2002, QuakeCon is a “mega LAN party” that expects to draw more than 3,000 gamers traveling worldwide, from as far away as Japan, Sweden and Australia. Attendees compete in 24-hour-a-day battles on machines provided by event coordinators and in a bring your own computer (BYOC) LAN area.
Side tournaments featuring team competitions and various types of gameplay provide some variety to the event. There’s US$100,000 on the line for prize winnings in this year’s Return to Castle Wolfenstein Team and Quake III Arena Championships, too.
Id Software’s game engine technology is an industry unto itself. Quake III Arena’s core assets are used by a wide variety of game development studios, and have been built upon and improved since their first introduction. They’ve spawned an entire library of first and third-person action games over time. Even hobbyists produce myriad “mods,” or third-party add-ons for other games, that leverage the core technology.
As a result, QuakeCon 2002 is a lot more than just a LAN party with big prizes at stake. The event also serves as an intensive workshop for attendees to learn more about game development and technology from the experts at Id Software and some of Id’s development partners, too.
QuakeCon also draws the software publishers and hardware manufacturers that leverage Id Software’s powerful technology. The event features an exhibitor area with trade-show style displays and gaming stations. In fact, Apple has participated in QuakeCon for several years running.
Registration is first-come, first-served, so make sure not to dawdle when registration starts tonight, Friday, June 14, at 10 P.M. ET.