id-Software/Quake
Quake
This is the original C source code for the Quake game engine, a landmark first-person shooter engine from the 1990s. It is a retro game engine that renders 3D environments and processes player input in real time using CPU-based software rendering rather than GPU acceleration. The engine supports networked multiplayer gameplay over LAN or internet connections and is designed to be moddable, allowing users to create and run custom game modifications and levels.
The engine's architecture includes a Binary Space Partition tree for efficient world geometry organization and visibility determination, a client-server network model that separates game state authority into a server process, and a QuakeC virtual machine that executes game logic through a bytecode interpreter. It also features a software-based sound mixing subsystem, a fixed-function pipeline for 3D rendering, and a timer-based frame loop that drives the game at a consistent update rate.
This repository serves as a resource for studying a historically significant game engine's implementation, enabling retro game preservation and providing a foundation for learning about real-time 3D rendering and multiplayer networked gameplay. The source code can be compiled and run directly to experience the original game engine's logic and rendering loop.
Features
- Game Engine Runtimes - Provides the original game engine's logic and rendering loop, executable directly from its C source code.
- Game Engine Frameworks - Runs the classic Quake game engine, rendering 3D environments and processing player input in real time.
- Moddable Engines - Allows users to create and run custom game modifications and levels through its moddable architecture.
- Client-Server Architectures - Ships a client-server network model that separates game state authority into a server process synchronized over UDP.
- Multiplayer Networking - Connects multiple players over a network for deathmatch and cooperative sessions using the original netcode.
- Retro Game Engines - Designed to play classic 1990s first-person shooter games using the original engine code.
- Software 3D Rendering - Renders textured 3D polygons and sprites with software rasterization at interactive frame rates.
- Fixed-Function Pipelines - Renders 3D scenes using a software-based rasterizer with no programmable shaders or GPU acceleration.
- Binary Space Partition Trees - Implements a BSP tree for world geometry organization and visibility determination in the rendering pipeline.
- Multiplayer Game Servers - Supports networked multiplayer gameplay over LAN or internet connections with authoritative server logic.
- Bytecode Virtual Machines - Executes game logic and entity behavior through a bytecode interpreter running compiled QuakeC scripts.
- Fixed-Timestep Loops - Drives the game loop using a fixed timestep tied to the system clock for consistent update and render rates.
- Retro Gaming Frameworks - Preserves a landmark 1990s first-person shooter by providing its original C source code for study and play.
- Audio Mixing - Mixes multiple audio channels in software, applying distance-based attenuation and stereo panning in real time.
- First Person Shooters - Source code for a classic 3D shooter.
- Game Source Code - Original source code for the 3D shooter.
- Classic Games - Fully 3D first-person shooter developed by id Software.
- Game Engines - Classic engine for first-person shooter games.
- Open Source Games - Source code for the pioneering 3D first-person shooter.
- Windows Environments - Listed in the “Windows Environments” section of the Awesome C awesome list.
Star history
How this analysis was created: This summary and feature list are AI-generated from collected project material and can contain mistakes. Stars, license and language are imported from GitHub. Inclusion does not mean that we have tested or audited this project. Check the source documentation for any feature you depend on. Learn more on our About page.
