Chaos Engine, The

tertronostalgic 2021-05-15
(9/10)
The extra colours in this version were a definite improvement without detracting from the Victorian, steam punk feel of the original, but other than that it was the same including the sound.
Which is to say it was still brilliant and full of playability and atmosphere just like the original.
Fearsomely difficult to beat (in true Bitmap style) with some of the later monsters taking tons of hits to kill)!
Those fireballs on the last level were particularly troublesome but I found that an attract monster powerup can help there. (Quick tip there!)
And even if you did beat it you could come back to it and try out different characters and power ups and different routes and secrets in the levels.
One of the top Amiga games ever?
Most definitely! 9/10
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PopoCop 2018-04-23
(9/10)
This game still rocks! It's almost perfect - with gfx resolution 320x256 (instead of 320x200) it would be perfect.
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Lester1 2018-03-13
(9/10)
This is surprisingly low down this list as I would expect it to be guaranteed a place in the top 10 at least, as a defining Amiga classic, with Speedball 2, SWOS and Cannon Fodder.

I originally thought that the notable greyish colour scheme of the original version was a deliberate stylistic choice which suited the feel of the game very well. But I do also really like the standout colours of the AGA version and would find it hard to pick a favorite.
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gaff 2016-11-06
(10/10)
I thought I can't never forget to play it after weeks of training twenty years ago, just like riding a bike, but in fact I can. I'm not able to finish the last world now, am I too old?

Chaos Engine is one of the best games of golden era. AGA version made it even better. And what's more? It's for two players in cooperative mode! It's just great
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bitmapbro 2016-09-20
(10/10)
One of my top 5 Amiga games with enhanced AGA graphics! I do prefer the original OCS/ECS colour scheme which suits the steam punk style better, but still a 10/10 for this one
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Dottor_Psycho 2016-03-29
(8/10)
I actually like very much the AGA version colour scheme that is, if not superior to the OCS/ECS, at least a very welcome alternative to it. Still excellent (8/10).
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rbn 2013-05-28
(9/10)
There even existed a CD32 version. I bought both. The one for ECS and the CD release. Both where great. The AGA version here should be the same as the CD one all in all ...

rbn
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comiga 2009-10-31
(9/10)
For some reason, i actually prefer the original lower colour version! I feel the just recoloured it a bit, and made it kind of ugly losing some of the style along the way. Apart from that, nothing else new, and thats a good thing because the original is one of my all time fav's!
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J_Carty 2008-04-16
(10/10)
Best game on the Amiga.

Yep, I said it.
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saimo 2008-03-23
(9/10)
Very enjoyable game. It fully deserves its fame.
Graphics are top quality (although I agree with arne as regards the screwing up; moreover, the tiling in some places just does not work, even if that is probably due to the memory limitations of the original version). Sounds are just as good. Music is good (but not my kind), but a bit longer tunes would have been better to avoid the hammering repetitiveness. Code is excellent, although there can be slowdowns.
The excellently executed multi-way level design is both a strenght and a weakness: it is a strenght for the added variety and for the re-play aspect; it is a weakness because it shortens the levels (the same amount of work could have been used to produce longer levels) and because it disturbs who, like me, feels the urge to visit each and every single pixel of mazes (even at the cost of risking death).
I have mixed feelings as regards the AI-controlled second player: it is implemented decently, albeit a bit too naively (but, again, the computational limitations must be taken into account); I certainly would have loved a 1-player only mode.
Levels difficulty is well calibrated, although worlds 3 and 4 do not seem of par with worlds 1 and 2.
Overall... Well, read the very first line
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Myszaqu 2008-02-09
(10/10)
Who cares about graphic glitches? I was 15 and had tons of fun playing in this game with my friends. Intro, especially music - rocks until now
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arne 2007-07-15
This game is an ingenious classic, one of the best. BUT: The AGA version graphics completely suck compared to original Amiga 500 version IMO. Instead of re-drawing the graphics, somebody simply re-colored some of the original pixels in new colours, thus adding more color, and messing up some of the original anti-aliasing etc. I doubt the re-coloring was done by the original artist, but I don't know that for sure. However, it totally destroys the colorscheme and pixel perfect design of the original. I'd say play the Amiga 500 version for the best experience. Why did they mess with an already perfect game this way?
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squap 2006-08-03
(6/10)
This was pretty good I suppose but it never sucked me in to keep on playing. I know this is complete sacrilege but I kinda preferred Merc - even on the Amiga - at least that was colourful, arcade-ish and fun.
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Guybrush Threepwood 2006-01-10
(10/10)
One of the best shoot em up's on the Amiga, The Bitmap Bros were like Team 17 beforehand & made some rather addictive interesting & good looking games
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donnie 2005-10-23
One of the best games on the Amiga. But strangly enough I prefer the way the ECS version looks. This one looks to saturated.
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Kai 2005-10-05
(9/10)
The AGA version of one of the best 2-p-action-games ever!
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