game launched via a web plug-in) Quake Champions (2017) Reception Since its first release, the series has received mostly positive reviews. Quake, Quake II, and Quake III Arena have all been considered by various video game journalists and magazines to be among the greatest video games of all time. Controversy Like Doom, the Quake series initially received controversy due to containing high amounts of graphic violence. Public and media outcry over Quake and other violent video games peaked after the Columbine High School massacre occurred on April 20, 1999, and it became known that perpetrators Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold were avid players of both Doom and Quake. This finding prompted claims from media outlets that violent video games caused negative psychological effects on children that made them more aggressive and accepting of violence. id Software co-founder John Romero later stated in a 2013 interview that the company and its developers had never intended to "offend people or shock people" with their games. See also Quake engine - the game engine developed for the original Quake that would become the basis for engines in later entries in the series QuakeWorld - an update to id Software's seminal multiplayer deathmatch game, Quake, that enhances the game's multiplayer features Doom - id's predecessor franchise to Quake, which began in 1993 Unreal - a rival franchise developed by Epic Games that began in 1998 References Microsoft franchises Video game franchises introduced in 1996