QuakeCon’s opening ceremony came with a delightful surprise yesterday: the announcement and release of a brand new, free expansion for the original Quake game. This is for all platforms (barring Epic Games Store and Gog) that Quake has been released on – PC, Xbox, PlayStation and Switch. The screams of jubilation in the audience watching the event were loud.

Quake: Dawn of the Machine, as it’s called, comes with a full 19-map campaign, a new soundtrack, and a new deathmatch map. The expansion is a collaboration between id Software and recent Wolfenstein developer – and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle developer – MachineGames.

Dawn of the Machine follows Quake hero Ranger as he tries to escape “a dimension of endless illusion”, Bethesda’s website says, where he’s been “reliving the same violent cycles for what feels like lifetimes”. Escape will mean confronting and probably breaking something called The Nightmare Machine.

The expansion “twists” familiar foes like the Rocket Ogre, Demo Dog, and Blood Shambler, introducing new behaviours and “overwhelming” firepower to have you rethink your approach to the game. Weapons also have “brutal variants inspired by classic Quake expansions” – such as the Super Axe and Laser Cannon – available to use.

The campaign itself features a “looping” structure, where each run reshapes the experience. Runes unlock new paths and alter routes, remixing encounters and secrets. Apparently health and ammo upgrades are persistent, too, so each loop potentially makes you stronger. It’s a new approach for Quake; it sounds a little roguelike-y to me.

A selection of screenshot of Quake: Dawn of the Machine.

Digital Foundry has already reviewed Dawn of the Machine and declared it “a masterclass in balance … successfully capturing the essence of Quake while simultaneously showcasing the immense power and flexibility available to modern mappers”. DF also highlighted seamless teleportation, significant upgrades to lighting, and a strong and pacey flow between levels. “Ultimately, Dawn of the Machine serves as a poignant reminder of what can be achieved through decades of experience and a genuine love for the medium,” DF’s Will Judd – a name you’ll recognise – wrote.

Why is id Software releasing this now? It’s Quake’s 30th birthday year, hence the drive to do something special. But these celebrations occur at a fraught time for id Software, which like many Xbox studios, was rocked recently by drastic restructuring. This occurred the same week id Software released Doom: The Dark Ages expansion Revelations, and the big question mark over the studio is whether it has the capacity to continue making full-scale games of its own. It’s a gloomy state of affairs for such a rich-historied developer to be in.