1999 was a very mixed year - a combination of great Quake and Quake2 custom maps. Quake's loyal fans returned to the classic game and while 1998 was lacking, some great levels came out in 1999 like Moonlight Assault, The Occursed and mappers like CZG and Damaul providing the Level Of The Year in Bestial Devastation. Quake2 meanwhile slowed down in 1999 but Premonition Of Angron, The Dark Undergrowth and Castle of Stroggos 3 were all classics and among Quake2's the best ever.

Made by Christian "CZG" Grawert (Numb Nimbus) and polished up by Robert "Fat Controller" Cruickshank (The Frater Fracas, Swamp) it was obvious this level was going to be a treat. With over 100 enemies and some very nice level design, I wasn't disappointed. The theme was my favourite for Quake - medieval, both inside and outside. The architecture was excellent, and with it flowing into the cliffs and swamp, created a brilliant atmosphere.
The gameplay was also great. At times stacks of Knights or Scrag would come hunt you down. I found it to be very fun, with plenty of ammo and health (probably too much with the healing pool). A VERY good Quake level, one worth keeping on the hard-drive.

November was almost over, and the best release I'd played all month was Mr White's The Xeno Project 2. One of the best releases for Half-Life to date, I wasn't expecting anything to top that - so I made it the early LOTM. But then right at the end of the month came COS3! There's not much to say about it - it is almost perfect! Awesome architecture and design with great attention to detail. Layout, missions, special effects were all great. The only thing that let it down a bit was the gameplay. Otherwise one of the best releases for Quake2.

Numb Nimbus is one of the best levels released for Quake. It only needs ID's brick textures to do it, as CZG has built a huge castle full of nearly 100 enemies. The difference, however, is that this castle is built above dark chasms where you to your doom. Ledges make up much of the level as they go overtop of each other making it all quite vertical. The layout is excellent, despite being fairly linear, by the end of the level you can travel back through areas a number ways to get to your next destination. The challenge was great, although ammo was in tight supply.

Between Two Worlds was one great and long adventure, where you have to find your way to the Gman so that you can become Queen of Xen, and try to stop the humans from ruining the plan along the way. The gameplay was excellent, as were the special effects. There was this one part where suddenly you are switched to looking down on your self and, a bit like Pacman, you have to find your way through a small maze. There were good visuals throughout the level, although architecture was usually plain, it had it's moments. Overall one of the best level sets so far even without great eye candy.

This self-titled level is probably the best single-level for Quake2 ever. It's not just your typical level that hosts a nice style and theme. This level has it all mixed together, canyons, base, sewers and even ice! What is most impressive is the layout. It all comes together very well, and although it is fairly linear in that you know where you're supposed to be going, after a while you can trek through previous areas to reach your destination. But, not to be forgotten, is the gameplay, which has over 200 monsters that are a huge challenge.

Tim Elek's one and only Q2 level, and it was a real success. Each of the level get better as you go, and by the end of it your fighting in a huge canyon. The visuals are very impressive at times, Tim has used a good combination of textures. There is alot of variety too, though it could be argued that's it's a little too inconsistent. Gameplay is good, not a real huge challenge though. I found 2 quads and aided with 2 health powerups and plenty of health it wasn't much trouble at all. Hopefully in future Tim will do a sequel to Retaliatory Strike.

A fantastic and huge level from DaMaul, his second in the Q1SP field after the well recieved Suicide Nation. One of my favourite styles is used, industrial, something which is not often used in our native Quake. Bestial Devastation features consistently superb architecture even in places where it's not needed. Large structures and metal trim outline an excellently looking level. The layout is great for such a large level, often returning to areas at higher grounds. The gameplay is good, with the mega-enforcer from Zerstorer appearing here and also some razor-blade Ogre's. It's not too difficult due to alot of health, and apart from a shortage at the start, there is plenty of ammo. With over 100 enemies, Bestial Devastation is alot of fun, and a classic Quake level. Zerstorer required, or download Dml6prog.

This level starts out quite badly, with you being very low on ammo. But eventually it gets better, and so does everything else. It's typical Quake2 style, as you start out in the canyons, you enter a base with is full of waste and slime. One small detail that makes it better is the bright blue sky, not so common in most base maps due to all nine of the Q2 skies being sunsets (and one space). Gameplay is tough, with a very satisfying ending as you take on Makron. A decent level once you get into it.

This was a very different looking level, much more atmospheric than the average Q2 base style. It takes place underground with the walls mixing in with caves and terrain. What makes it stand out even more is the great angles. Definetely one of the best looking levels for Quake2, although not helped by some rough and often misaligned texturing. You battle through 3 levels where you can often choose from a number of paths and take different routes.

Despite being a first single player effort for DaMaul, Suicide Nation is an instant classic. His deathmatch mapping experience has definitely helped in this level, which has a nicely textured layout with some of the best architecture to be seen in Quake so far! And to back that up is some very fun gameplay, although it didn't seem to support difficulty levels (it was almost not hard enough for me :P ) there were many combat situations such as the many great surprise attacks.

Despite being a first single player effort for DaMaul, Suicide Nation is an instant classic. His deathmatch mapping experience has definitely helped in this level, which has a nicely textured layout with some of the best architecture to be seen in Quake so far! And to back that up is some very fun gameplay, although it didn't seem to support difficulty levels (it was almost not hard enough for me :P ) there were many combat situations such as the many great surprise attacks.

Premonition Of Angron is right on the target - spanning four great levels which will keep you busy for a long time. The design and architecture is perfect, and with a very non-linear layout it was a very professional set of levels. The gameplay was awesome too, although most of the big guns you won't get if you aren't the type who hunt around for secrets. These levels were very fun and even better was the superb design, which make Premonition Of Angron perhaps the best set of levels released for Quake2.