Chaos Strikes Back
Encyclopedia
Chaos Strikes Back is an expansion to Dungeon Master, the first 3D real-time action computer role-playing game. Chaos Strikes Back was released in 1989 and is also available on several platforms (including Atari ST
, Amiga
, X68000, PC-98, FM Towns
and PC
). It uses the same engine as Dungeon Master, with new graphics and creatures.
The game is therefore pitched at a much higher difficulty level than its predecessor. The player can choose from a selection of moderately high-level characters or can import characters from a Dungeon Master saved game. In an indication of the game's uncompromising toughness, the player's very first task is to get out of a dark, enclosed room filled with ferociously toothed man-eating giant worms. The game is made a little easier by the inclusion of a separate program which dispenses cryptic hints based on the player's current saved game.
The player's task is to collect four pieces of corbum, a magical material from which the eponymous Lord Chaos draws his power. This requires the traversing of four separate paths each leading to a piece of corbamite and each themed around one of the disciplines open to characters in the game. These disciplines are fighter, wizard, priest
and ninja
(as with many role-playing computer games of this period, a great though unacknowledged debt was owed to Dungeons and Dragons, of which Chaos Strikes Back has plenty of both).
For users who do not want to draw new characters, but who would like more powerful looking versions of the existing characters (to better represent the higher levels), the game's utility disk also comes with "enhanced" versions of the game's prepackaged character art.
According to Bob Retelle who was a consultant for FTL and wrote hint books for both Dungeon Master and Chaos Strikes Back, this scroll is "another red herring... this was left over from something that was going to be included in the game, but was left out at the last minute... don't worry about it, the scroll can't be decoded."
#171 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars.
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
, Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
, X68000, PC-98, FM Towns
FM Towns
The FM Towns system is a Japanese PC variant, built by Fujitsu from February 1989 to the summer of 1997. It started as a proprietary PC variant intended for multimedia applications and PC games, but later became more compatible with regular PCs...
and PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
). It uses the same engine as Dungeon Master, with new graphics and creatures.
Description
Whereas the first game saw the player following a fairly linear path through the adventure, with the completion of each flat level marked by a staircase leading down onto a new slightly harder level below, Chaos Strikes Back features a choice of paths which twist back and forth over all levels. The puzzles are far more convoluted, often demanding quick mastery of the control system to deal with intense combat, along with brain vexing riddles and room layouts.The game is therefore pitched at a much higher difficulty level than its predecessor. The player can choose from a selection of moderately high-level characters or can import characters from a Dungeon Master saved game. In an indication of the game's uncompromising toughness, the player's very first task is to get out of a dark, enclosed room filled with ferociously toothed man-eating giant worms. The game is made a little easier by the inclusion of a separate program which dispenses cryptic hints based on the player's current saved game.
The player's task is to collect four pieces of corbum, a magical material from which the eponymous Lord Chaos draws his power. This requires the traversing of four separate paths each leading to a piece of corbamite and each themed around one of the disciplines open to characters in the game. These disciplines are fighter, wizard, priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
and ninja
Ninja
A or was a covert agent or mercenary of feudal Japan specializing in unorthodox arts of war. The functions of the ninja included espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination, as well as open combat in certain situations...
(as with many role-playing computer games of this period, a great though unacknowledged debt was owed to Dungeons and Dragons, of which Chaos Strikes Back has plenty of both).
Champion Editor
Chaos Strikes Back comes with a utility for editing the portraits and names of the four-character party. This utility allows custom character portraits to be created for both Chaos Strikes Back and for Dungeon Master.For users who do not want to draw new characters, but who would like more powerful looking versions of the existing characters (to better represent the higher levels), the game's utility disk also comes with "enhanced" versions of the game's prepackaged character art.
Unsolved mystery
While most of the game's various puzzles are solveable, one riddle in particular seems not to be. In the Atari ST version of the game, there is a scroll on which the following words are written: Grynix ernum quey ki skebow rednim u os dey wefna enocarn aquantana. In the Amiga version, this scroll has the magic map spell "Oh Gor Ku". This scroll does not appear in most other versions of the game.According to Bob Retelle who was a consultant for FTL and wrote hint books for both Dungeon Master and Chaos Strikes Back, this scroll is "another red herring... this was left over from something that was going to be included in the game, but was left out at the last minute... don't worry about it, the scroll can't be decoded."
Reception
The game was reviewed in 1991 in DragonDragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#171 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars.
See also
- Dungeon Master
- Dungeon Master II: The Legend of SkullkeepDungeon Master II: The Legend of SkullkeepDungeon Master II: The Legend of Skullkeep is the sequel to the dungeon crawler computer role-playing game Dungeon Master. It was released in 1993 in Japan and in 1995 in other countries...
- Dungeon Master: Theron's QuestDungeon Master: Theron's QuestDungeon Master: Theron's Quest is a modified version of Dungeon Master for the TurboGrafx/PC Engine video game console. It was released on September 18, 1992 and available in English and Japanese....
- Dungeon Master NexusDungeon Master Nexusthumb|left|Approaching a potential adventurer in the Hall of ChampionsDungeon Master Nexus is a Dungeon Master sequel released only in Japan, solely for Sega Saturn and only in Japanese. This is the first game in the series using a 3D graphics engine...
- FTL GamesFTL GamesFTL Games was the video game development division of Software Heaven Inc. FTL created several popular video games in the 1980s and early 1990s. Despite the company's small size, FTL products were consistently number-one sellers and received the highest critical acclaim and industry awards.FTL was...