Software:General Chaos

From HandWiki
Short description: 1993 video game
General Chaos
Developer(s)Game Refuge
Publisher(s)Electronic Arts
Designer(s)Brian Colin
Jeff Nauman
Programmer(s)Jeff Nauman
Artist(s)Brian Colin
Composer(s)Michael Bartlow
Platform(s)Sega Genesis
Release
Genre(s)Real-time tactics
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer

General Chaos is a video game developed by Game Refuge for the Sega Genesis and published by Electronic Arts in 1993. General Chaos is a satirical action/strategy game.

Plot

Ever since they were babies, brothers Chaos and Havoc enjoyed playing war games with each other and their classmates, and expanding their knowledge of military tactics. One day, Chaos discovers a rare comic book more valuable than any of the books in their ever-growing library, and shows it to Havoc. Unfortunately, this proves to be a mistake, as the mere sight of it brings out his greedy and treacherous side. Havoc tries to take the book for himself, but it rips apart in a tug-of-war. After this, the two brothers blame each other, and grow apart. Years later, they both become military dictators of the fictional countries of Moronica (Chaos) and Viceria (Havoc). The two generals war with each other for decades, but for all the battles that rage across the land, they cannot achieve victory. After days of consideration, they come to the decision of using smaller, quicker armies of soldiers all specializing in a particular kind of weapon to settle the score permanently.

Gameplay

The game is a quick and dirty battle (or a longer campaign mode that is a series of battles fought over a dynamic strategic map) between two generals, "General Chaos" and "General Havoc". The objective of the game is to capture the enemy's capital city.

Each player has to pick one of 4 teams, 3 of which have 5 soldiers (with differing selections of weapons), while one has 2 "commandos" and uses a different control system giving greater control.

The player views the action from an isometric perspective, watching cartoon soldiers duke it out on the battlefield. The game features a balance between action and strategy. For instance, whenever two soldiers on opposite sides get close enough, close combat will ensue. The soldiers can punch, kick, or block the attack. If one of the player's men loses all his health points, he will fall down on the ground. To help the fallen soldier, the player must move the cursor, or another soldier in the case of the commandos, close to the injured soldier and call out for a medic to revive him. However, there is a limit on the number of times that a medic may be called. There are also many items that yield points on the battlefield to pick up; additional medic uses are awarded for breaking certain point thresholds.

With a multiplayer adapter, up to four people can play simultaneously against the computer in campaign mode. The player can also fight other human players without co-operation. Another feature of the game is the tutorial mode called "boot camp".

Classes

Gunner: Uses a submachine gun as weapon. The well-rounded unit of the game with a medium-range attack and high rate of fire, though his gun might jam, disabling him for a few seconds. He is used primarily for attacking. This character wears a buzz cut hairstyle.

Launcher: Uses a handheld rocket launcher as a weapon. While the game lacks a "sniper" character, the launcher serves essentially the same purpose with a powerful, slow-firing, long-range weapon. The launcher's attack can be stopped by cover but may randomly result in an "instant death" of an opposing combatant (reduced to a skeleton and therefore cannot call a medic). Can destroy bonus objective targets. This character wears a helmet.

Chucker: Grenades are the weapon of this class. Their attack has a low rate of fire and is easily avoidable, but the grenade goes over cover, can damage multiple units, and has good range. Can destroy bonus objective targets. The name and the appearance of this unit (a bearded, red- or blond-haired man with a Rambo-style headband) is a clear reference to Chuck Norris.

Scorcher: Possibly the most dangerous unit in the game, these soldiers use a flamethrower to do damage which, despite having the shortest range, can hit multiple soldiers at once and is the fastest-firing weapon. Once a Scorcher is on top of another unit, it is very difficult to survive. Because of this capability, they make excellent flanking and escort units. Attack may randomly result in an "instant death" of an opposing combatant (reduced to a pile of ash and therefore cannot call a medic). If the Scorcher goes into water, his weapon will be temporarily disabled (indicated by bubbles being shot out instead of fire). He wears a pair of dark glasses.

Blaster: The Blaster is similar to the Chucker. Instead of using grenades, he throws a bunch of dynamite sticks which goes over cover and inflicts heavy damage within a small area. However, he has an extremely slow rate of fire and the second shortest attack range, limiting his tactical effectiveness. Attack may randomly result in an "instant death" of an opposing combatant (reduced to a skeleton and therefore can't call a medic). Can destroy bonus objective targets. This character wears an eye patch and beard and his smile lacks some teeth.

Reception

Reception
Review score
PublicationScore
EGM8/10[3]

General Chaos received generally positive reviews. Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game an 8 out of 10, calling it "the ultimate one-on-one "fighting" game!" They praised the humor, wealth of options, and four-player mode.[3] GamePro likewise praised the humor and the four-player mode, as well as the enemy AI, and summarized that "General Chaos combines brain-squeezing battlefield strategy, challenging squad tactics, and real-time button-pressing combat with humorous cartoon graphics."[2] In 2017, GamesRadar listed the game 48th on their "Best Sega Genesis/Mega Drive games of all time."[5]

Legacy

On September 6, 2013 Brian F. Colin started a Kickstarter campaign in order to fund a sequel. The campaign fell more than $100,000 short of its goal.[6]

References

  1. ↑ "Game Review: General Chaos". Mega. Future plc. September 1993. p. 51. https://archive.gamehistory.org/item/19b34799-3029-4eb7-872f-f56089c314ec. Retrieved 24 September 2024. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Genesis ProReview: General Chaos". GamePro (IDG) (50): 34. September 1993. https://archive.org/details/game-pro-issue-50-september-1993/page/34/mode/1up. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Major Mike (October 1993). "Review Crew: General Chaos". Electronic Gaming Monthly 6 (10): 42. 
  4. ↑ Bieniek, Chris (October 1993). "General Chaos". Video Games & Computer Entertainment (57): 54. https://archive.org/details/Video_Games_The_Ultimate_Gaming_Magazine_Issue_57_Oct_1993/page/n53/mode/2up. Retrieved September 3, 2021. 
  5. ↑ GamesRadar Staff (2017-06-21). "Best Sega Genesis/Mega Drive games of all time" (in en). https://www.gamesradar.com/best-sega-genesis-games-all-time/. 
  6. ↑ "General Chaos II: Sons of Chaos". http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/388449021/general-chaos-ii-sons-of-chaos. 
  • General Chaos
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
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