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Quake Champions video preview
45.0 GB
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Last updated October 9, 2026

FPS
Shooter

Quake Champions

Arena speed, champion abilities, and no room to blink.

Get It FreeStart Party
312 playing now
Get It FreeStart Party

That One Thing

Why Quake Champions sticks with us

Champion abilities add just enough asymmetry to make classic rocket-jump arena combat feel dangerous again.

312 playing on PlayBound now0 distinct players in the last 30 daysUpdated every 15 minutes

About Quake Champions

Quake Champions is the modern revival of the foundational arena first-person shooter genre, developed by id Software in conjunction with Saber Interactive. Carrying forward the DNA of Quake III Arena and Quake Live, the game centers around blisteringly fast movement, pinpoint weapon accuracy, and map control. It introduces a roster of 16 distinct Champions—ranging from series icons like Ranger, Visor, and Doom Slayer to guest characters like B.J. Blazkowicz—each equipped with tailored active abilities and movement styles like crouch sliding, air control, and rocket jumping.

At the core of the combat loop is Quake's legendary Holy Trinity of weaponry: the Rocket Launcher for area denial and aerial juggles, the Lightning Gun for close-to-mid-range tracking, and the Railgun for long-range hitscan punishment. Complementing these are the Super Shotgun, Heavy Machinegun, Tri-bolt, and Plasma Gun. Weapons spawn on fixed timers across intricately balanced gothic, elder god, and industrial arenas, requiring players to control mega health, heavy armor, and power-ups like Quad Damage and Protection.

Game modes span casual and competitive playstyles. Casual queues feature classic Deathmatch, 4v4 Team Deathmatch, Instagib, Unholy Trinity (infinite ammo with rockets, rail, and lightning only), and Clan Arena. For competitive purists, the ranked 1v1 Duel ladder tests raw mechanical aim, spatial awareness, and item timing in intense multi-round showdowns.

The game features dedicated global servers with modern netcode, custom lobby hosting, extensive crosshair and FOV customization, and comprehensive stats tracking. Crossplay between Steam and PC Game Pass ensures healthy matchmaking pools across North America, Europe, and international regions.

Quake Champions remains the most accessible modern gateway into pure, uncompromised arena FPS mechanics: there is no loadout advantage, no sprint penalty, and no bloom—only mechanical skill, speed, and map intelligence.

Why we picked it

We added Quake Champions because it represents the highest mechanical skill ceiling in competitive first-person shooters. At a time when modern shooters favor automated aim assist, sprint fatigue, and tactical low-mobility positioning, Quake Champions celebrates raw mechanical mastery, rocket jumping acrobatics, and tactical item control—all in a completely free-to-play package.

Who it's for

Great if you want

  • +Competitive FPS veterans who love rocket jumping, strafe jumping, and fast arena combat
  • +Duelists looking for the ultimate 1v1 tactical shooter experience
  • +Players wanting pure mechanical aim drills (tracking, flicking, projectile prediction)
  • +Fans of Quake III Arena and Unreal Tournament looking for a modern matchmade title
  • +Gamers with high-refresh-rate monitors seeking responsive uncapped frame rates

Look elsewhere if

  • −Players who prefer tactical, slow-paced mil-sims (e.g. CS2, Valorant, or Rainbow Six)
  • −Those looking for a single-player narrative campaign
  • −Casual players frustrated by high initial mechanical skill curves
  • −Pilots wanting modifiable source-port servers (which classic Quake III / OpenArena offer instead)

Features

Multiplayer

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System Requirements

Minimum

Intel i5-3570 · 8 GB RAM · GTX 760 · 45 GB storage

Recommended

i7 · 16 GB RAM · GTX 1060+ · SSD

Frequently asked questions about Quake Champions

Is Quake Champions free?

Yes. Quake Champions is released under Free to Play and costs nothing to download or play.

How big is the Quake Champions download?

About 45.0 GB. The minimum system requirements are Intel i5-3570 · 8 GB RAM · GTX 760 · 45 GB storage.

What platforms does Quake Champions run on?

Windows, Linux. It is also Steam Deck compatible.

Do I need an account to play Quake Champions?

No account is required to download or play.

Does Quake Champions have multiplayer?

Yes. Quake Champions supports up to 8 players. Its multiplayer runs through the game's own online service or menus, so PlayBound Connect parties and PlayBound dedicated servers are not available for it. There is no subscription and no paid multiplayer tier.

Similar to

Quake III Arena →Quake LiveOpenArena →Unreal Tournament →DiaboticalTeam Fortress 2 →Splitgate

Compare and decide

  • Quake Champions vs OpenArena →
  • Quake Champions vs Team Fortress 2 →
  • Free Alternatives to Quake & Unreal Tournament →
  • Free Alternatives to Overwatch →

More Like This

I

Developer

id Software

Quake, Doom, and arena shooters.

Released2017
LicenseFree to Play
PlatformsWindows, Linux
Download size45.0 GB
LaunchInstall
Steam DeckCompatible
Official website →

Tags

Arena ShooterCompetitive

Community

Official Discord

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Chat with PlayBound players in #quake-champions.

Join #quake-champions ↗

Solved this in Discord? Post the fix here so the next player can find it.

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Quake Champions controls

No controller support

This game has no native or PlayBound-enhanced controller support yet.

Default bindings for every input method Quake Champions supports. These are the game's own defaults — anything you have remapped will differ.

Mouse & keyboard

Default keyboard and mouse bindings.

Every key is rebindable in the game's options.

Movement — Mouse & keyboard
ActionDefault input
MoveW, A, S, D
JumpSpace
Crouch / slideLeft Ctrl
Combat — Mouse & keyboard
ActionDefault input
FireLeft Mouse
Alt-fire / zoomRight Mouse
Champion abilityQ, E, F
Weapons1–9
Interface — Mouse & keyboard
ActionDefault input
ScoreboardTab

Source: Quake Wiki