Alan writes...

I'm glad that I decided to put the words 'mostly' in the mission statement for this blog. It means that I can write about one of my favourite games, one that resembles a board game, but isn't - Chaos on the ZX Spectrum.

Screen shot may not be representative of Spectrum version

With video games - as with many culture artefacts, such as literature and film, but especially video games, due to the speedy development of technology - you often have to make allowances for the time it was made. So, for example, Mercenary doesn't stand up terribly well today, but in its time it was a marvel, and could well be regarded as the ancestor to go-anywhere-do-anything sandbox games. 3D Deathchase, on the other hand, is still exciting to play today even making no allowances for the technology. Go on, try it - it's available to play in your browser.

Similarly, Chaos stands the test of time, even if it lacks the instant arcade pleasure, and that's down to the gameplay, and the thing that seems to be at the heart of the best board games: simplicity hiding depth. And strangely, while designer Julian Gollop has created some of the most critically acclaimed games of all time - this, Rebelstar, and X-Com - he's disappeared from view instead of being lauded in the same way as the likes of Sid Meier and Will Wright. It's a pity. In fact, while the influence of Civilisation and Sim City are all over the place, it's much more difficult to detect the influence of Gollop's games. Now, turn-based strategy is associated with number-crunching PC wargames played by almost nobody. Luckily, I've found that board games are scratching the same itch that Chaos used to.

The beginning of an eight-player game

In its similarity to a board game, Chaos is definitely more American than Euro in style, with its direct conflict, quite a bit of luck, and theme leading the mechanics. This isn't terribly surprising - Chaos was published by Games Workshop back in 1985, and the idea from the game comes from Gollop's tinkering with GW's card game Warlock. Like the card game, Chaos is a game of battling wizards - between two and eight of them in a blank arena. None, some or all of these can be AI-controlled, meaning that this can be an 8-player game, a rare feat before online multiplayer. Each player has a selection of spells, each with a different casting chance. Some of these are direct attacks, some create creatures, some give your wizard wings, a shield, or other permanent effect, and others affect the landscape, creating trees, spreading fire and green gooey blobs that swallow all in their path. Casting a spell successfully can tip the world between 'law' and 'chaos', affecting the casting chances of most other spells. Each turn is divided into selecting a spell, casting that spell, then moving and attacking with your wizards and creatures. The last wizard standing wins.

This would be compelling on its own, but Chaos adds in something really special - a splash of bluffing and psychology. Cast a creature spell, anything from a giant rat to an ogre or hydra or one of the powerful dragons, and you have the option of making it an illusion. Illusory creatures act in the same way as their real counterparts, except for two things - the spell will have a 100% chance of casting, but the creature can be immediately taken out with a 'disbelieve' spell. If there are eight wizards on the board, and suddenly a powerful creature is cast, difficult choices must be made - do you check it with a disbelieve spell? What if it's real and you're suddenly vulnerable because you didn't counter it a different way? Should you leave one of your opponents to check it? What if they don't? Can you use this huge distraction to your advantage?

Mid-game. Eek! A dragon.

These sorts of decisions are what Chaos is all about. It's not without its flaws, as sometimes luck can frustrate you with a bad spell selection and a streak of failed spells. But as a game only lasts between five and 25 minutes, it's not as if bad luck will cripple you for a long time, and multiple plays will let you avenge your unlucky loss. There are many games from the 80s I remember with fondness, but would never seek them out now except to wallow in nostalgia. Chaos is not one of them. Almost a quarter of a century old, it's still simply fun to play.

To play Chaos, you can go to ZXSpectrum.net and select the game from the right, under 1985.