Bots

"Bot" is used to describe a computer controlled player, typically one that can duplicate the feel of multiplayer Quake. The strength of a bot is found in its artificial intelligence (AI), and some member of the Quake community have created some surprisingly intelligent bots. These programs are great for replicating the multiplayer experience for a single player, and can be a great tool for improving a player's skill.

The dark side of the bot is the bot that controls the actions of a human player in multiplayer action. The most famous of these is the StoogeBot. The StoogeBot is a client side program that performs all of the aiming and firing for the player. The technology is impressive, but it eliminates skill as a factor. Unless a user has reworked the StoogeBot code, you can spot a StoogeBot, by the letters "SGBT" prefacing the player's name. Including the words "No Bots" on the server's opening screen will prevent the use of the bot, unless the code has been rewritten. Fortunately, several people have been working on a patch that will detect a StoogeBot, even if the code has been hacked, and will remove the bot from the server. The LoefBot is another another bot similar to the Stooge. James Loe is the author of the LoefBot, and defends his bot this way: "I wrote the LoefBot because it could be written. The atom bomb was invented because it could be invented, not because it was needed or wanted."

Spotlight

The Zeus Bot

The ultimate bot for Quake is the Zeus Bot by Jonathan E. Wright, aka Nelno the Amoeba.  The latest information on the Zeus Bot can be found at Inverse Reality, Nelno's homepage.  The bot will currently swim, dodge rockets, target with deadly accuracy, and much more.  If you are going to try a bot, this is the one to download.   Unfortunately for fans of the Zeus, Wright is now working for Ion Storm, so further development of the Zeus Bot is doubtful.

The Reaper Bot

The ReaperBot, by Stephen Polge, is one of the best bots available, even though it hasn't been developed in over one year. The superior AI of the Reaper allows it to learn your particular style of play and adapt to take advantages of your weaknesses. The Reaper is difficult to kill because it is excellent at avoiding your shots, but is then deadly accurate with the placement of its own shots. Poolge ceased development of the Reaper at version 0.81, but it is still the best bot available. Poolge is now working for Epic on their much anticipated release, Unreal.

The CTF Bot by Drew Davidson is another great bot to try for Capture the Flag. The current version of the CTF Bot is the beta for 1.30.

Eraser Bot

One of the first bots for Quake II, The Eraser Bot is a versatile and fun bot.  The Impact Development Team and Ridah have been actively working to make the Eraser Bot the ultimate bot for Quake II, and it is off to a great start.  Unfortunately, the Eraser Bot will also be long remembered for a nasty virus that was accidentally transmitted in the installer for one version.  This was immediately fixed and steps have been taken to assure that this problem does not occur in the future.

Last update: February 08, 1998
This page is maintained by Darren L. Tabor,
aka DaKoTa