Quake II vs Quake III Arena
Quake II is an FPS horror game (1997) while Quake III Arena is an FPS game (1999).
What each one is
Steam files Quake II under FPS and Horror. In contrast, it files Quake III Arena under FPS.
You are humanity’s last hope to stop the Strogg, a hostile alien race waging war against Earth. Play this military sci-fi FPS, now upgraded for modern platforms with improved visuals, new campaign content, online multiplayer/co-op, and more.
The greatest warriors of all time and space have been summoned to battle for the amusement of an ancient alien race. Wield a variety of guns and power-ups as you fight for glory against ruthless combatants in this fast-paced single-player and multiplayer FPS.
At a glance
| Quake II | Quake III Arena | |
|---|---|---|
| GamingPickz Score | 7.9/10 | 7.7/10 |
| Steam rating | Overwhelmingly Positive (95%, 10,370) | Overwhelmingly Positive (96%, 4,100) |
| Critic aggregate | No aggregate | No aggregate |
| Price | $9.99 | $14.99 |
| Install size | — | — |
| Steam Deck | verified | unsupported |
| Released | 1997 | 1999 |
| Developer | — | — |
Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.
Quake II vs Quake III Arena, point by point
Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.
Genre and premise
Quake IIFPS horror gameQuake III ArenaFPS gameWhat each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.
How it plays
Quake IIFPS, Classic, ActionQuake III ArenaFPS, Arena Shooter, ClassicThe tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.
Reception
Quake II ✓Score 7.9 · 95% on SteamQuake III ArenaScore 7.7 · 96% on SteamThe GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment, critics and popularity, computed the same way for every game.
Content and scale
Quake II10,370 reviewsQuake III Arena4,100 reviewsReach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.
Price
Quake II ✓$9.99Quake III Arena$14.99Read live from Steam and subject to change.
On a Steam Deck
Quake II ✓VerifiedQuake III ArenaUnsupportedValve's own Deck compatibility rating.
Quake II takes 3 of the marked rounds to 0. That is only what a number can decide, not which you will enjoy more.
The two on the grid
Compare the whole catalogueQuake II and Quake III Arena on the axes the GamingPickz Score is built from, on the full 0 to 100 scale so each dot is its real position. Change either axis to compare them on any measure.
2 games have both
Players. The share of Steam reviews marked positive, pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it. A game with 200 reviews moves a long way toward the average; one with 200,000 barely moves at all. Without this a title sitting at 100 percent on nine reviews outranks Half-Life 2 at 98 percent on 278,000.
Popularity. A blend of two things that are not the same. Audience is how many people wrote a Steam review, which is a floor on how many played it. Reach is how many language editions of Wikipedia document the game, which is cultural footprint rather than sales. A game can score high on one and low on the other: a huge free-to-play title has audience without reach, and a landmark console exclusive has reach without a Steam audience at all. Where both exist they are averaged; where only one does, that one carries it.
- Mobile
- Multi-platform
Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.
How positions are decided
No paid placement, no favouritism, live third-party data
- Placed by the published method, not by us. Every coordinate is computed from the axis definitions and weights printed on this site. Nobody moves a point. See the axes.
- Nothing here is paid for. No sponsored placements, no promoted slots, no arrangement of any kind affects a position. If that ever changes it will be labelled and sit outside the ranking.
- No favouritism, including our own. The 16 games we have written full reviews of are scored by exactly the same formula as the other 1,510, from the same third-party inputs, and they land where it puts them. Our own opinion of a game does not enter its coordinates.
- A position is not an endorsement. It says how a game was received and what it costs, not that we recommend it. Where we do recommend something, it carries a written review with a name on it.
- Fetched from live third-party data. Player sentiment from Steam, critic aggregates as published on store pages, prices checked hourly, attention from Wikipedia. Each figure carries its source and the date it was read, and we do not adjust any of them.
Which to pick, by what you want
- The higher-rated of the two: Quake II (GamingPickz Score 7.9)
- The cheaper right now: Quake II ($9.99)
- Better on a Steam Deck: Quake II (verified)
- The safer bet by weight of reviews: Quake II (10,370 reviews)
What they have in common
Both are tagged by Steam players with:
FPSClassicActionShooterBoomer Shooter1990'sSci-fiSingleplayer
Where they differ
Great SoundtrackRetroCo-opHorror
CompetitiveDifficulte-sportsViolent
Tags players apply to one game and not the other.
Difficulty and who each is for
By the tags players apply, Quake II is middle-of-the-road on difficulty. Quake III Arena is demanding, for players who want a challenge.
Accessibility features
Steam store pages declare 6 accessibility features for Quake II and 0 for Quake III Arena. A declaration is a floor, not a review.
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Common questions
How different are Quake II and Quake III Arena in scope?
Quake II has drawn 10,370 Steam reviews. Quake III Arena has drawn 4,100 Steam reviews.
Is Quake II or Quake III Arena better?
By the GamingPickz Score, Quake II rates higher (7.9 to 7.7). That is a composite of player sentiment, the critic aggregate and popularity, not our taste. "Better" also depends on price, length and platform, which the table above lays out.
Which is cheaper, Quake II or Quake III Arena?
Quake II is cheaper right now at $9.99, against $14.99. Prices move, so this is read live from Steam and can change.
Do you rank one above the other for a fee?
No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.
Related comparisons
How we compare, and what we will not do
The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.