The Guardian spotlights Quake Brutalist Jam
The Guardian has published a detailed article about Quake Brutalist Jam, a community event built around creating new Quake maps inspired by brutalist architecture — concrete-heavy, minimal, and imposing. Writer Rick Lane opens with a scene from Jam 3’s start map: a lone concrete structure and trapdoor that drops players into a subterranean “museum” hub, where doors line grey galleries and each one leads to a different level.
The article notes that the jam first ran in 2022 as a celebration of old-school 3D shooter level design, bringing together veteran developers, aspiring mappers and modders to build new missions around a shared theme. The brutalism angle started when Ben Hale — described as the event’s “concierge” and a senior environment artist on the upcoming Subnautica 2 — posted a community poll of possible themes. Another Quake mapper, Benoit Stordeur, suggested a brutalism-themed jam after being inspired by concrete textures Hale had made for Quake, and Hale says brutalism “won by a wide margin” in the vote. The first Quake Brutalist Jam produced 35 levels in two and a half weeks, followed by a second jam in 2023 with 30 more. But the Guardian’s piece focuses on how Jam 3 went significantly further. During a six-week session, contributors created 77 brutalist-themed maps and the release also includes new or heavily modified weapons and enemies. Lane adds context by noting that the original Quake shipped with 37 levels.
The shift toward a bigger gameplay overhaul came when Hale, dealing with health issues, brought on a cohost: Fairweather, identified as Lain Fleming, a longtime Quake modder who has led community projects including Dwell, Remix Jam and the Coffee Quake series. Fleming describes how a plan to visually refresh some weapons and monsters grew into a deeper rework after the team identified “mechanical gaps” in Quake’s arsenal and enemy lineup. Hale says what was meant to be a quicker mod became “a two-year” project, with about 15 people involved near the end.
The Guardian lists examples of the new kit: a shotgun with bouncing projectiles, a weapon that fires iron rebars, and a cluster-missile launcher, alongside redesigned classics and brand-new enemies. With more than double the number of participants compared to earlier jams, Hale says he had to rethink the traditional Quake “start map” and went with the museum/gallery approach to fit so many entries. Lane also runs through the range of content inside the pack — short experimental maps, high-intensity “slaughtermaps,” exploration-focused levels, and long, combat-heavy missions. One highlighted example is Escape from KOE-37 by mapper Mazu, described as a large, Half-Life-inspired map with its own storyline, more than 1,000 enemies and an estimated runtime of around three hours. Mazu tells The Guardian he spent roughly 400 hours building it and wanted interactive environments, puzzles, and set-piece moments.
The article notes the jam isn’t only aimed at experienced mappers: Jam 3’s hub includes a section for newcomers and it also features work from industry developers such as game designer Robert Yang. Yang discusses his map, One Need Not Be a House, which he says began as a study of architect Louis Kahn’s buildings (including the National Assembly complex in Dhaka and the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad), and he references Halo: Combat Evolved’s “The Silent Cartographer” as an influence for building a more open, branching layout.
The author ends by reporting that the organisers plan to take a break from Quake modding after Jam 3 — not to leave the community behind, but to focus on making an independent game of their own.
The article notes that the jam first ran in 2022 as a celebration of old-school 3D shooter level design, bringing together veteran developers, aspiring mappers and modders to build new missions around a shared theme. The brutalism angle started when Ben Hale — described as the event’s “concierge” and a senior environment artist on the upcoming Subnautica 2 — posted a community poll of possible themes. Another Quake mapper, Benoit Stordeur, suggested a brutalism-themed jam after being inspired by concrete textures Hale had made for Quake, and Hale says brutalism “won by a wide margin” in the vote. The first Quake Brutalist Jam produced 35 levels in two and a half weeks, followed by a second jam in 2023 with 30 more. But the Guardian’s piece focuses on how Jam 3 went significantly further. During a six-week session, contributors created 77 brutalist-themed maps and the release also includes new or heavily modified weapons and enemies. Lane adds context by noting that the original Quake shipped with 37 levels.
The shift toward a bigger gameplay overhaul came when Hale, dealing with health issues, brought on a cohost: Fairweather, identified as Lain Fleming, a longtime Quake modder who has led community projects including Dwell, Remix Jam and the Coffee Quake series. Fleming describes how a plan to visually refresh some weapons and monsters grew into a deeper rework after the team identified “mechanical gaps” in Quake’s arsenal and enemy lineup. Hale says what was meant to be a quicker mod became “a two-year” project, with about 15 people involved near the end.
The Guardian lists examples of the new kit: a shotgun with bouncing projectiles, a weapon that fires iron rebars, and a cluster-missile launcher, alongside redesigned classics and brand-new enemies. With more than double the number of participants compared to earlier jams, Hale says he had to rethink the traditional Quake “start map” and went with the museum/gallery approach to fit so many entries. Lane also runs through the range of content inside the pack — short experimental maps, high-intensity “slaughtermaps,” exploration-focused levels, and long, combat-heavy missions. One highlighted example is Escape from KOE-37 by mapper Mazu, described as a large, Half-Life-inspired map with its own storyline, more than 1,000 enemies and an estimated runtime of around three hours. Mazu tells The Guardian he spent roughly 400 hours building it and wanted interactive environments, puzzles, and set-piece moments.
The article notes the jam isn’t only aimed at experienced mappers: Jam 3’s hub includes a section for newcomers and it also features work from industry developers such as game designer Robert Yang. Yang discusses his map, One Need Not Be a House, which he says began as a study of architect Louis Kahn’s buildings (including the National Assembly complex in Dhaka and the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad), and he references Halo: Combat Evolved’s “The Silent Cartographer” as an influence for building a more open, branching layout.
The author ends by reporting that the organisers plan to take a break from Quake modding after Jam 3 — not to leave the community behind, but to focus on making an independent game of their own.
