Quake Champions Ditches Live-Service Model, Becomes $10 Steam Purchase

Quake Champions has completed its transition from free-to-play service to a standard paid product on Steam, priced at $10. The shift marks a significant departure from the game's nine-year run as a live-service title.

The update removed battle pass, weekly and event challenges, the in-game store, platinum and shard currencies, loot boxes, daily login rewards, and champion progression systems. Most vanity content is now available to all users. All champions are unlocked from the start, eliminating the piecemeal character purchase model that became common in mid-2010s games.

"Today's update marks a new chapter for Quake Champions as we transition the game from a free-to-play service to a paid application on Steam," the patch notes state. "Quake Champions is now available for one low price on Steam. No additional content updates are planned at this time."

Players who previously owned the game on Steam receive the new version at no cost. Recently purchased premium currency will be refunded, though players who spent money on cosmetics over the years may find it unusual that others now access those skins without paying extra.

The move provides a cleaner ending than many anticipated for id's live-service experiment, which had relied primarily on cosmetic updates for its smaller remaining player base in recent years. Classic skins for Quake Ranger and Doom Slayer are now included by default.