evolution TS2

The series is somewhat unusual in that its focus changes frequently; Quake II has nothing to do with Quake, and Quake III Arena has little to do with its predecessors, as well. This is mostly because Quake II was originally supposed to be an entirely different franchise ("Quake II" was a tentative title), a plan which was shot down when most of the names id Software had tried to use instead were already taken.

Quake involves a Marine traveling through alternate dimensions to prevent a demonic invasion from occurring, in a similar storyline to their previous hit game Doom; Quake II involves an assault on an alien planet in retaliation for attacking Earth, which is entirely unrelated to its predecessor. Most of the subsequent entries in the Quake franchise follow Quake II, not Quake.

Quake III does not truly have a plot, though its inclusion of characters named "Tank Jr." (After a heavily armed enemy in Quake II) and "Bitterman" (The name written on the player character's landing pod in Quake II as well spoken in the game intro) connect it with the Quake II series (though it must be noted that the Doomguy is included as well). Characters "Ranger and "Wrack" who wear armor that closely resemble that worn by the protagonist in the original Quake demonstrate that Quake III Arena may draw characters from both of its otherwise unrelated prequels.

Quake IV follows directly where Quake II left off; it details finishing the assault on the Alien planet, to defeat the enemies for good.