The future of Quake Champions is free, and that future is right now. Quake Champions’ free-to-play version is now available — permanently — via the Bethesda Launcher or on Steam. Players can download the game right now via the Bethesda.net Launcher or on Steam. To celebrate the release and QuakeCon, players who log-in through Aug 12 will receive a limited edition, QuakeCon-orange Heavy Machine Gun skin.
Quake Champions remains in early access, but new players will be treated to a constantly updated game experience with new content, improvements, and events planned for the future. The game recently received a major content update that included a new Champion, Death Knight – as well as new ways to play with bots, plus the roadmap reveal of upcoming updates – including new Champions, modes, cosmetics and more.
“Our free-to-play test at E3 saw more than a million players test their skill with Quake Champions, and the feedback we received from our community has helped us get to this point — launching our free version for everyone,” said Tim Willits, Studio Director, id Software. “Quake Champions brings all of the intense gameplay and skill-based action that millions of fans have loved for decades, along with exciting new additions and twists, and provides it to anyone, all for free. And what better place to launch Quake Champions for free than at QuakeCon, a gathering of thousands of our most diehard fans, and with a major esports tournament with the best FPS players in the world.”
FREE-TO-PLAY QUAKE CHAMPIONS IS LIVE; CHAMPIONS PACK AVAILABLE
The free-to-play version of Quake Champions comes with two Champions, Ranger and Scalebearer, with additional Champions available for purchase or to earn by spending in-game rewards. Free players can choose to upgrade to the Champions Pack at any time – a special early adopter bundle that includes all 14 current Champions, as well as all future Champions, and additional in-game rewards. The Champions Pack is currently on sale for £29.99.
RECENT CONTENT AND FEATURE UPDATES, INCLUDING DEATH KNIGHT, THE NEW CHAMPION
Last week, Quake Champions received a major update, including improvements and optimizations as well as:
- New Champion – Death Knight: A familiar face to Quake fans, Death Knight returns from Quake 1 bringing his fearsome, pyromaniacal powers into the Arenas.
- Active Ability — Flame Strike: Swinging his weighty sword, Death Knight hurls three fireballs in a spread pattern to incinerate the ground and enemies in his path. Pressing the ability key a second time will make the two outer fireballs converge, dealing more concentrated damage.
- Passive Abilities: Death Knight’s affinity for flame drives his two passive abilities. Forged Skin, provides immunity from fire damage to protect against other Death Knights, and Charring wreathes his Gauntlet in flames, causing fire damage over time on enemies hit with a melee attack.
- All New Soundtrack: As if fragging till your fingers bleed isn’t enough, Quake Champions now packs an all-new, blistering soundtrack to set the tone for your most competitive matches.
- Play and Train against Bots in Custom Games: In addition to improved bot behavior and hit detection, players now have new ways to play against these not-so-dumb training dummies. New today, players can add custom difficulty settings for individual bots. Whether balancing matches with variably-skilled AI or testing your mettle on Nightmare settings, the new bot features will help you git gud, fast!
- New Mode – Team Death Match (TDM) vs. Bots: Players can now play with bots outside of Custom Game modes. TDM vs. Bots pits four human players against four AI opponents, allowing teams and players to learn teamwork, strategies, and improve their combat as a group.
ROADMAP REVEALED
id Software also recently revealed the future of Quake Champions, so the free-to-play players can know what to expect from the team in the coming months. In addition to the routine performance and other improvements that come monthly, the team will bring:
- Three new Champions
- Four new modes, including the return of Capture the Flag (CTF) and a new mode, Slipgate
- Improved player progression and rewards
- New weapons, skins, cosmetics and more
- Improvements and refinements to matchmaking and bot play
Quake Champions is available now in Early Access for free via Bethesda.net and on Steam. The special edition Scalebearer Pack, which comes with a massive statue of the intergalactic warlord, an exclusive Oni skin for Scalebearer, and some awesome in-game rewards, is also available for pre-order from GAME. For more information, please visit www.Quake.com.
