I've bought this every time it was released but I only got around to replaying it recently, and I have to say... this is poopoo. There are a few interesting architectural features here or there but the majority of both episodes is just one-textured "Pitfall" hallways with one trap to jump through after another. When it comes to the fights, you either get locked in "elevator sections" or anI've bought this every time it was released but I only got around to replaying it recently, and I have to say... this is poopoo. There are a few interesting architectural features here or there but the majority of both episodes is just one-textured "Pitfall" hallways with one trap to jump through after another. When it comes to the fights, you either get locked in "elevator sections" or an egregious misunderstanding of the mechanics of the game, beginning with the second level where you fight a shambler that's perfectly locked in a cage so as to not hit you, and then minutes later fight a shambler in a totally bare cubic (one-texture, of course) room before even getting the SNG or thunderbolt. The expansion gets considerably weirder from there, with various enemies that generously could be called "super" versions of a handful of the existing enemies and various guns that could similarly generously be called super versions of the original weapons. The two new single player powerups are a belt that makes you jump higher and what is essentially a "partial" pentagram of protection. There are few standouts, including the hell spawn (a spawn that can clone itself, annoying but at least somewhat original).
Frankly, while some valiant attempts were made here or there (shout out to the composer), this is overall a worse expansion compared to the first one in every way and hardly compares to the more popular (and free) Quake total conversion mods. I don't even like the Machinegames episodes but I think I'd still rather play them than this.… Expand