Quake 4: Awakening - The unreleased Expansion

The Wager I have yes yes sir what is it all right sir Kane just got back hey what you say we go for yes sir don't see it is that all right with you Kane Kane you have new orders this was the last we heard from the Quake 4 Story the ending clearly designed to allow for any kind of sequel never found its continuation leaving players in suspense for years until a revelation in February 2018 vitaline NE musin a character artist previously with ritual entertainment displayed renders for a cancelled Quake 4 expansion pack titled Awakening following the this additional concept art and renders of what the expansion might have entailed were shared yet no narrative or explanations for these visuals were provided however the clues it left provide ample information both intriguing and [Music] mysterious good day my name is Sebastian stag agna an artist a voiceover artist and your narrator for today thank you for your attention ion and I hope you'll enjoy this beautifully crafted deep dive into what could have been more recently another update reached the Quake Community from the community liason syn era he disclosed that some multiplayer features planned for this add-on were integrated into the Quake for version 1.3 update this integration included The Dead Zone multiplayer mod and a collection of eight new multiplayer maps while precise information on most of these Maps is scanned we'll revisit two that were briefly outlined with narrative elements although no explicit narrative or written content for the single player missions was provided the Arts and models unveiled contain numerous subtle yet significant details so for inclues for us to speculate about the potential directions of this enigmatic Quake 4 expansion let's begin with the concept art while there is a wealth of it with each piece more beautifully unsettling than the last we were able to categorize these artworks into several groups please understand that some of the categorizations are based on the content depicted in the various images as no titles or descriptions were provided for some of [Music] them the first image we'll examine showcases the expansion's protagonist an unnamed Marine believed to be from Viper squat this approach follows the same pattern as the Quake 2 mission packs where control is given to a different Marine rather than the original protagonist with the the conclusion of Quake 4 it becomes evident that Kane has been tasked with a mission suggesting it would have been intriguing to observe him on the battlefield from another character's perspective although it's uncertain whether all concept art would have been transformed into models it's likely that the final version of the wretch we would have encountered in game is represented by this 3D rendition the wretch possesses legs and head gear reminiscent of the stream protector yet its body appears more as a mass of Flesh equipped with robotic bladed arms and what seems to be a stryant canister on its head which is fed through by small tubes leading into its mouth the concept Arts vary ranging from smaller forms without many robotic arms attached to outright disturbing depictions there are also other creature forms that could represent alternative versions of it while we don't have any measurements it can be speculated that it would have been a smaller strong being possibly around the size of a scientist our second category is a series of arts and models that lacked description we've chosen to name it the Abomination the monstrosity appears as a massive mound of Flesh augmented with multiple robotic appendages it features a sort of breathing mask from which tubes emerge disappearing into the Horror's flesh it possesses several disturbing attributes a face embedded in its stomach two torsos in pouches of Flesh connected to conduit merging with the body and two large robotic arms equipped with saw blades and sharp rods the in-game render depicts the Abomination clutching a Marine's corpse on a meat hook it suggests that this strog might utilize the corpses of Fallen Marines to empower itself akin to the Quake form macron with a torso unit attached to its chest it could also serve a gathering role harvesting the corpses of Marines on the battlefield to transport them to the putrification center or other facilities the tank doesn't need much introduction as it can be quickly associated ated with the same one encountered in Quake 2 probably with enhanced abilities this could have been a great opportunity to witness this huge massive and iconic enemy in higher details while other concept art varied significantly this one maintained most of the original tank shape and appearance across all the artworks now the peace the resistance we were given a name for it Vine this one was misleading after examining and organizing the art we thought we had two boss-like creatures but something caught our eye making us wonder if these drawings could in fact be one and more intriguingly something more powerful than a macron or warlord first off the name seems to be derived from the valkyrie figures from Norse mythology who choose those who may die and those who may live in battles the connotations of battle selection and guidance to an afterlife are strong with Valkyries the vine seems to be more machine than living being she Bears what seems to be a flesh mask akin to the tank but this could be misleading as no other organic parts are visible the the other yet unknown entity seem to be depicted having multiple forms one inside a crystal another immobilized with wires connected to his masked head and one not restrained to its platform with its mask removed and what looks to be a woman's face hologram considering the previous final boss battles in Quake 2 and Quake 4 it wouldn't be surprising to see this Vine having multiple forms Quake 2 and reckonings macron had the JW the Black Widow in ground zero had her spider form and Quake fors macron had his torso separated from its legs this Str Elite has a lot of similarity to Quake for's macron inferring it could present a similar battle with the top of its body separated from its legs this could be a bit disappointing but realistic in terms of game development if the expansion was meant to be completed quickly but let's think differently what if this render of Valkyrie was only the first stage of the final encounter what if the drawing we see here is what's controlling the first form initially hidden inside the crystal protected while the player fights the mechik entity once defeated the crystal breaks and Vine is revealed needing to be attacked in her static state which would become a mobile State reveal feeling under her mask a hologram of a face but this face what is it who is she the glimpse of her face we see doesn't look alien at all another detail to consider is what supports the holam face this might be considered a bit of a stretch but look at the support now compare it to the structures found in the dreamlands coincidence let's continue our expl ation and find out what this could [Music] imply now that we know more about the visuals of the expansion let's examine its title focusing on the words Awakening and emergence and try to uncover more information in relation to what we've discovered in the Art Awakening as a noun can be defined in several ways two of which are particularly relevant to us us it can denote the literal action of waking from sleep but it also has a figurative meaning representing the act or moment of becoming suddenly aware of something emergence refers to the fact of something becoming known developing or starting to exist in scientific and psychological contexts emergence describes the process by which complex systems and patterns arise out of a multitude of relatively simple interaction s in a brief examination of these titles in relation to Quake 4 we understand that something awoke following the defeat of the macron and Nexus then in the first episode this entity or ideas is now gradually increasing in power but what if there's more to it as a new awareness Awakening could suggest a character or civilization becoming aware of previously unknown or suppressed truths in the case of Quake 4 it might represent Earth forces becoming aware of another threat after the destruction of the Nexus in the form of a new leader Awakening can also indicate the Revival of a powerful entity force or technology something that was hidden away but now that the stro are leaderless and unable to designate one this enter was able to emerge and take control or more intriguingly reclaim what was once hers in a more personal sense the title might refer to a character's Journey towards Enlightenment or emotional growth this involves a process of self-discovery overcoming personal demons or finding a new understanding of the world and their place in it this could have applied well to Cain introducing a deeper look into what he must now endure being part's drog last but not least Awakening can hint at a fundamental change in how reality is perceived or experienced possibly involving alternate realities Dimensions or a breakdown of what is considered real this is where the dreamlands come into play what if the valkyon was not from stros what if she originated from the dreamlands our last bit of information comes from the 1.3 update of Quake 4 The Dead Zone mod and eight multiplayer maps were later disclosed to be intended for the add-on but were released in this update as it was likely known by that time that the studio was going to be acquired on January 24th 2007 by developer mambo jumbo in this update we got a few descriptions for the new mortar and maps however two of them are notable in relation to law dead zone is a brand new team-based multiplayer game type players fight over a limited number of dead zone artifacts then race to maintain control of a central scoring Zone designated by a scrolling white border these ice Caverns were once home to the macron and facilitated the preservation of barely living humans awaiting stroggification [Music] it's intriguing to consider that this new content might have been based on or inspired by the unreleased single player campaign the mention of artifacts which most likely would have been runes could have significantly impacted the entire Quake storyline introducing us firsthand to the dreamlands discovered by the strog looking at cavernous cryonics being informed that this was the home of the macron suggests some fascinating Concepts it might refer to the previously defeated macron indicating where the Torso units used on his body were sourced from additionally it could be the place where Vine if intended to be the new macron had her Lair so with all this information what could this expansion have been all about considering the themes of Quake for especially C's stroggification Awakening could have explored the aftermath of these events on a personal level with Cain grappling with his Humanity the Str technology within him or Newfound knowledge that challenges his perception of who he is but with the expansion suggesting a shift in perspective to a different Marine Kan wasn't intended to be the central character at least not in this episode while we might still have encountered or learned about him It ultimately would be lived from a different character perspective it also implies that that although the title could relate to this new Marine his personal Awakening is unlikely to be the focus reflecting on Quake 2's expansions where Joker and stepchild were introduced they played significant roles and were assigned significant missions but did not return in subsequent narratives leaving not much time to explore the theme of personal Awakening for all of them hello everyone I'm taking a few moments to elaborate on this subject I've started getting into the habit of showing the channel members the first draft of my videos and one member pointed out something very interesting that I think is worth mentioning the unnamed Marine does bear some similarities to Bitter men from Quake 2 could these episodes be about him making a return to fight the strug could The Awakening be his story this possibility could be intriguing to look at but it might feel like a missed opportunity to reintroduce such an iconic and significant character within an expansion pack although it would have been exciting to be able to play as our favorite Marine again all right back to the video this leaves us with the Awakening of Earth forces or the stro in all cases it's likely that both would have become aware of a new form of leadership introduced with the appearance of The Valkyrie a new macron warlord or maybe something broader an entity from an unknown dormant faction with the Nexus the strog were always certain to find another leader but what if this was preventing something else from arising stopping it from Awakening one that was suppressed by The Continuous leadership created between the Nexus and a macron with the brain now destroyed and the strog unable to assign a new leader this entity would have taken the opportunity to assume control or maybe took back what may have once belonged to her reclaiming it after all those years looking at the subtitle of the expansion veline could symbolize this new emergence unveiling the truth about the strog and their Origins the artwork showing a hologram face might suggest that what we see is merely a meit with the actual Vine possibly located elsewhere could it be on strog another planet or perhaps somewhere beyond our realm considering what Doom Eternal introduced with the maker race allying with the forces of Hell to conquer and sustain their power incorporating this concept into Quake Force setting could be fascinating let's imagine a Godlike civilization that either took control or allied with the stro or maybe they were the original creators perhaps stros was once inhabited by these power powerful beings ones who developed the slipgate technology which could have been based on Magic and runes rather than purely technology after creating the strong as a weapon the situation deteriorated and these deity like Figures were overwhelmed by their own creation forced into Exile or to hide until the time was right to reveal themselves or what if they were always present puppeteering from afar employing the Nexus using the strog as a means to gather what they needed to survive each time a macron Was Defeated a new one was assigned however with the Nexus Now destroyed they were forced to reveal themselves and take Direct Control it is a shame that this expansion was never released especially since the game introduced a lot of interesting Concepts ready to be explored in more detail it left unanswered questions such as the danger of Cain's neuros site in his brain the state of the strog after losing both their leader and means of communication and The elusive question of their origin with the potential teaser of a quake six during the reveal of the Indiana Jones game we can only speculate on what's next for the Quake series after digesting all this information what are your thoughts on the unreleased Quake 4 expansion have we we overlooked anything please share your thoughts and theories we' love to read your comments thank you for watching e e

Channel: LeChumQc

Views: 7,802

Keywords: quake 4, id software, quake 2, Expansion, Awakening, Unreleased, What, Could, Have, Been, Emergence, Information, Docu, Documentary, Doom, Doom Eternal, Doom 2016, Quake 1, Quake 2, Call of the Machine, Strogg, Dreamland, Valkaryne

Id: E6R99ShYpZU

Length: 20min 52sec (1252 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 28 2024