By Rick Charbs (Jammart), OnRPG Journalist
Chaos Online is a classic-styled MMORPG featuring a simplistic style with very easy playability. Set in a world of chaos, in which an awkward balance of modern science, weaponry, and tactics oppose against mystical nature’s forces of wisdom. Currently, there are two races you may join from (coincidentally a race on the modern science side, and a race from the nature oriented ancient civilization). First, there are the Genotians: modern, civilized, and technologically advanced, and secondly, the Natarian: peace keeping, nature-praising people.
As you may have already found out, the conflict of the game basically revolves around the quarrels of both races-pretty typical. Despite the poor context, the storyline is given a great deal of potential, and Ingle Games is planning on releasing a third race in the future to add twists to the game, and to provide more variety for players, evidently!
General Gameplay
As previously mentioned, Chaos Online plays very simplistically in all terms of gameplay. The controls are very easy to learn, the skills are pretty basic, and everything seems a tad bland. Combat is extremely linear, and the PvP is a little less than captivating. That being said, the game still retains some interesting points. Massive wars between the two races are held quite often, and even though PvP was never my forte, I found the system simple enough for me to be proficient in battle against other players. These Massive State Wars are basically the foundation of the game, and they are extremely popular within the game’s small community.
Chaos Online also features an interesting mount system. Although they do not contribute much to the gameplay, there is a ton of variety in the selection of mounts you can use, in dependency of your race, and they look pretty neat. Various other interesting, and surprisingly unique, features Chaos Online has in store for its players are the following:
-Growing weapons (weapons that level up and gain more strength as you kill monsters)
-An in-game credit card system (system that allows players to purchase expensive items before having the money required to purchase them with physical currency)
-A robot system that allows players to gain experience while they are away from the computer
Graphics and Sound
I will be very honest as to say I did not enjoy the graphics or sound of this game at all. Unoriginal 2.5D graphics and mediocre background music-needless to say, I was not too impressed. The graphics and sound were both very bland, the sound being barely present or just plainly obnoxious, and the graphics being very outdated and repetitive. However, the style of graphics attracts its players; it is well enjoyed and also allows players with lower end computers to play the game on full settings, without suffering from serious lag constraints. This proves to be the most useful during the more large-scaled State Wars. The music can easily be muted and replaced for one’s personal playlist, which is what I would highly recommend, unless you wish to leave the sound on during important battles or events.
The style of the game could highly be compared to Conquer Online, in terms of graphics and sound, however they are much less developed in Chaos Online, and unfortunately, much less popular. One can also quickly recognize the fact that there is little to no customization for players, even though there is a huge variety in the amount of monsters and mounts in the game.
Personal Recommendation
Chaos Online was a so-so MMORPG. I would not imagine it would stand out as an MMO, as nowadays free MMORPGS need to follow a completely unique structure to gain any amount of attention. Chaos Online lacks the attractive element that brings players to yearn for more, but Ingle Games is most definitely working to reach such a goal. With the addition of the new race, and hopefully new exciting updates to the game, Chaos Online is sure to be a hit with the 2.5D gaming crowd.
As a casual game, Chaos Online can be very entertaining; you do not ever have to waste time levelling as the legal in-game bot can do that for you. On the other hand, if you wish to play the game very seriously, this may not be the right spot for you to devote your gaming time. I would definitely not suggest such a thing, but if you enjoy the game’s style and the small community within it, nothing is stopping you. Keep in mind that the in-game bot really does kill the fun if you’re in it for the long run. That being said, you do gain much more experience if you play without it. Chaos Online was one of the few games in which I enjoyed the large scaled battles, because they were so easy to join and participate in. I just love how simple this game is while still being somewhat interesting and indefinitely fun. Consequently, the game can be rather dull and repetitive at times, and often severely lacks in challenge if you do not wish to participate in the Massive State Wars.
With the innovation of the credit system, and the weapons that gain experience alongside you, Chaos Online is not lacking in features. I really enjoyed the crafting and growing weapon systems in the game-something I had never experienced in an MMORPG before-and it kept me very interested in that respect. I have already mentioned that the game has potential, and I believe it will reach that potential so long as there are measures taken to help the community grow: perhaps events, contests, add-ons? I suggest you try this one out if you’re looking for a new (very) casual MMO to play. Happy Gaming!
Pros:
– tight knit community
– various mounts
– growing weapon system
– large scale battles
– easy to play, does not require a lot of your time.
Cons:
– in-game bot (may be a pro for some users)
– lack of customization
– repetitive
– not very challenging
– bland graphics/sound.
