Complete Chaos

Here we are, after playing Vanity and the Onyx series I wanted to try Complete Chaos (I avoided Total Chaos for the bad mapping, mismatched graphic styles but maybe I'll try it someday, who knows).


Oh yeah, this is an important issue!

The Good
This is a classical yeaster game: story driven adventure with lots of dungeons set in a modern mystic world. Sounds good for me, since it's not the typical fantasy or sci-fi scenario with the predestined hero. Characters are well done and interesting, funny thing is that the main character is Eric, a cop that can use both swords and guns and has different techniques for them: while the former are powerful, the latter are able to inflict status effects. Then there's the (for me hated) "cousin" Francis, Phoebe, another cop and Eric's colleague, then we have an assassin a magician and even an android. But this is not all as there are some ra characters that come directly from other parts od the Yeasterverse!
Amazing! And yes, here too the different companions are also well presented and characterized, the dialogue is sometimes amusing an entertaining, I liked that.

Combat is the usual side-view with battlers like in Onyx 2: characters are different powers and are more specialized on the physical or magical side, but neutral/balanced character do exist.

Once again the author made a (very useful) guide for the game, with a rather useful walkthrough since despite the game is mostly linear, there are hidden secrets, optional enemies, hidden bosses and characters, extra weapons.


Some familiar faces here! And no, not Vin Diesel! (you'll know only if you played Total Chaos, Vanity and the Onyx duology!)

The Bad
Well some thins I do not like was the mismatched graphics: the portraits aren't bad but the used of photos clashes with the super-deformed charsets. I'd have preferred more realistic charsets OR the use of more "Jrpg" facesets/portraits, for example like those from Persona used in "Mystery Man Zero". Luckily there's not the huge problem of mismatched graphics that turned me off when I saw Total Chaos, but still some choices for example regarding the chipsets used in the city apartments are... meh! (I did not get why the policeman's apartment has a "weapons" insigna over the door...weird!) They are dark and ugly, and the kitchens, if you look closely, resemble more some kind of hi-tech computers. Well no, it's a pity since mapping is not bad at all, despite the use of some discutible charsets (you will find strange people wandering the street, like a princess, some warriors and even a girl in a crocodile costume... well, ok!).

Then there are some little flaws: the monster sprites are of a mixed varety (like in Onyx, but I think that Onyx 2 had better ones), the action bar seem slower than in the other games (or maybe it's the different interface, I do not know). All these things are probably personal taste, but I preferred how they were in the other games of the Yeasterverse I played. Story included. And also the balance, I think that there are some difficulty spikes that I never found I Onyx 2. But yes, nothing bad, just ok!


An example of ugly map! (this is supposed to be an apartment, not a postapocalyptic dungeon)

The Verdict
Complete Chaos isn't a bad game! I loved the Onyx serie that In my opinions is still superior due to better character and more inspired storyline. Maybe if I had this game before the others I'd have been less severe in my jugement, but hey it's ok, the typical game in Yeaster-style and this means quality!
3.5, no less at all!