A sequel in name only, this follow-up to id's 1996 Quake, is a first-person shooter revolving around the Earth-Strogg war. The Strogg alien race threatens the Earth, but Earth has launched a counter-offensive, Operation Alien Overlord. Overlord takes the battle to the Strogg homeworld with the ultimate objective of securing their capital city and killing their ruler.

As a FPS, Quake II contains a variety of weapons including the fallback Blaster, the Railgun, and the secret BFG10K. Health, armor, and ammunition pick-ups can be found during levels, as can the classic Quake?s Quad Damage power-up. Gameplay involves mowing down alien opponents as the player progresses through levels, completing in-game objectives. Quake II also comes with multiplayer support for Deathmatches.