Why it matters: Ever since Bethesda re-released id Software's seminal 1996 first-person shooter last year, the game has kept receiving new features and levels. The latest patch should make playing Quake easier for hearing and visually impaired users while adding more content.
The new patch for the original Quake primarily adds optional settings to make the text more readable and some voice-to-text functionality. Now, users can adjust the font, contrast, how long text stays on the screen, and how many lines appear. The game can also directly read chat text aloud with a synthetic voice and transcribe voice chat. A new screen flash slider should make Quake safer for players susceptible to flashing lights.
It's worth mentioning that installing this Quake update turns all the accessibility features on by default. A notification will inform players about them upon starting the game.
In addition to the accessibility features, the update includes plenty of changes to multiplayer mode and the horde mode MachineGames added in December. After some player feedback, Horde mode has gotten three new maps and rebalanced difficulty settings. The original campaign's levels now support deathmatch multiplayer bots, and their behavior has received significant adjustments.
Bethesda has also released the QuakeC source code. Modders have spent decades building upon Quake, but this new release gives them access to everything the remaster added, ensuring more user-generated Quake content for years to come.