I said a lot of times, so here it goes again:

Q3/QL is the definitive competitive FPS, you CAN'T surpass it, you start changing it a lot and the result becomes a reflection, a vague cheap shadow of the original Q3/QL vibe. They hit the nail on there. It was a unique time, a unique era of inspiration. They can't even match it.
Yes, QW and Q2 are amazing games, but with Q3/QL they got the perfect graphic aesthetics AND the right balance between speed and tactics.

Now, we have "Shootmania". If this shitgame is any popular is thanks to the MARKETING that these guys can do off a game. There's no excitement of the game itself, but about how so many tournaments are including the game (which means money) and how a lot of pro-players are going to play it.
They made Trackmania world famous as an official "professional competitive game". Only thing you need is ads, ads, and ads. Ideally a TV ad. Put a cool short fragmovie, put some trendy music that kids like, explain to kids this is the next level in competitive gaming, explain how you can travel the world making money playing the game, and throw some fucking competitive OPEN LAN tournaments with really juicy cash to win, in a way that you dont need to be top3 to get a decent price, but the top10 guy already gets a nice quantity. Put money into the goddamn marketing and tournaments. I guarantee you'll have kids starting to play Q3/QL.

IT'S ALL ABOUT MARKETING. You can make anything famous if done right. Obviously id fails at this. And thanks to it it could become the begining of the end of Quake, (right now it's in a coma).