Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!wuarchive!csus.edu!ucdavis!pollux!f140003
From: f140003@pollux
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.games
Subject: Re: Chaos Strikes Back: Initial Review
Keywords: Chaos Strikes Back
Message-ID: <9688@aggie.ucdavis.edu>
Date: 16 Dec 90 12:32:27 GMT
References: <86793@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu>
Sender: usenet@aggie.ucdavis.edu
Reply-To: freund@sakura.ucdavis.edu (Jason Freund)
Organization: University of California, Davis
Lines: 30

(No specific spoilers, but this review contains some material which
may be considered "too informative")


	I got the game last night and I'm probably almost 1/2 way done 
with it without hints, maps, or doctored characters.  It's not *that* hard.
(Of course, I kind of went nuts with DM 1 and played it through about 3 times
 -- my characters were all in the 600 HP range)
	Anyway, it's great.  Runs on my 3000.  Some noteable aspects of CSB:
no real linear progression to game.  You don't finish level 1 and go to level 2, proceding down in a logical manner; you do part of level 1, fall down some pits to level 2, climb back up to 1, fall vertically alligned pits to 3-4, down to 5down to 6 up to 5, ... you get the idea.  You see small pieces of many levels.  90% of the time you don't know which level you're on -- and it doesn't matter -- after a while you start to think of the game as a big 3-d puzzle.  And a little while after that, you think of








 it as one giant 2-d maze where teleporters, pits, , and stairs just bring you to different sections of the maze.
	Secondly, it's very hard.  Lots of knights, and dragons.  Easy monsters and sometimes medium-difficulty monsters come in hordes (10-20 groups).  Don't 
	be too discouraged though, some monsters aren't as tough as you think --
most knights really only have 100-200 hp.  Dragons and knights are pretty much
{any spell} proof.
	C.  Manual dexterity is a plus.  You get to learn how to control the 
characters on the keyboard with your left hand and manipulate icons with the right.  CSB takes full advantage of its real-time interface.  It's much more fast
paced -- almost arcade in some places.  I take that back.  A couple of rooms 
are arcade quality (at least on my 3000).  I found myself dodging my head left
and right to avoid fireballs -- my roommates loved it. 
	IV.  Traps and pits replace puzzles.  There are many great puzzles in
CSB.  Overall, however, pits and false walls, and traps are the main deterrant
as opposed to tricky brain puzzles in DM.  

BTW, has anyone gotten the cheat to work:
ie: find dragon, cast MON ZO GOR SAR. Pause. 
type 'LORD LIBRASULUS SMITHES THEE DOWN'.  Unpause.  Kill dragon
Get firestaff.

Jason Freund