Observations of War Planets: Age of Chaos The game starts automatically in Windows 95. It starts its installation program, and reads that there are three installation sizes: 332 MB for full installation (video sequences and data files), 126 MB for medium installation (data files), and 6 MB for smallest install (program only). I chose the 6 MB installation, I happen to have a fast computer and CD-ROM. It starts out with some big cinematic sequences. The narrator is the only one that speaks english. Anyway, you can only play Rock, Bone, Ice, and Beast, and the fighting is not always between the Beast and the others. The planets fight against all the others. In each senario, you get three practice levels and one full level. Then, as you win the level (you have to try until you get it), another level opens up. They are all the same type of real-time strategy levels. For each planet, there are three defense levels and then six more levels. The last six are to weaken and then defeat the three other planets. That means that all the "defeating" levels amount to eight, which means you only get twenty levels in all. I haven't gotten far with the Beast Planet's levels, but I think that after you defeat the other planets, it might run a video sequence where the planet is grappled and pulled in. These videos are almost as good as the pics on the box, except for a little pixelation, which is normal, at least for me. The Rock planet's forces are called the Krag, Bone's the Biowolf, Ice's the Kryos, and Beast's the Darkones. Each level starts as you have to teleport each troop onto the battlefield. You can only move one at a time, which is difficult to do. Left-click fires, right-click moves. Its hard to move if you keep forgetting which button does which. You can hurt your troops if they stand in front of another troop or vehicle. There are six kinds of units to pick from for each planet, and the number of each that can be used depends on how much energy it takes to teleport, and each troop has an upper limit in each mission. Each mission is either defending your facilities, or conquering an enemy target. The mission is completed when all enemies have been defeated, all enemy targets destroyed, and your facilities are all safe. If one of your facilities is destroyed, even if there are two or three, the mission auto-fails. To win a conquer mission, all enemy targets have to be destroyed. After, all surviving troops head to the teleport pad and get out. The missions get progressively more difficult. You are only allowed so much energy, which futher complicates matters; on a hard mission, sometimes you are only allowed enough troops as to make it very difficult. Shadowraiders are mentioned, but I have yet to see one. The manual tells you that there may be auxilluary missions on the way, so look forward to addition packs. For each planet there are six units to choose from. Each one requires a different amount of teleport energy. Each unit has its downfalls, also. Really powerful units have low shields, and there are three instances where excessively useful units don't stand up to direct conflict. Here are a list of units that can be chosen: Unit Energy required Advantages Disadvantages ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rock: Mine Tower 6 High Shields Slow reload, Lays mines very slow movement Hovercraft 4 Fast movement, Medium shields fast reload, Medium strength weapons Stealth Tank 4 Quick movement, Low to medium very fast reload strength weapons, Medium shields Dozer 8 High contact Slow movement, damage, high slow reload shields, heavy weapons, range Hero 2 Quick movement, Easy to kill, Fast reload low strength weapons Drone 1 Fast movement, Very easy to kill, very fast reload low strength weapons ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bone: Missile launcher 6 Heavy weapons, Low shields, long range slow movement, medium reload Disk thrower 4 Medium Shields, Slow reload, lays Mines slow movement War Dog 5 Fires disgusting Medium speed acid balls, quick movement, ugly, reload, slightly medium reload hard to kill Sawblade tank 7 Heavy weapons, Medium movement, medium shields, Slow reload high contact damage Hero 2 Quick movement, Easy to kill, fast reload low strength weapons Drone 1 Fast movement, Very easy to kill, fast reload low strength weapons ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ice: Jump Jet launcher 8 Launches two Low shields, must wait bombers at a time, for a plane to return long range, fast before launching movement speed another attack Death Spinner 4 High contact Slow reload, easier damage, medium to kill than most weapons, quick movement, medium shields Tank 4 Medium weapons, Medium reload speed medium shields, medium speed Grappletank 6 Heavy weapons, Slow reload medium shields, medium speed, range Hero 2 Quick movement, Easy to kill, fast reload low strength weapons Drone 1 Fast movement, Very easy to kill, fast reload, low strength weapons tiny --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Beast:Darkjet Launcher 7 Launches two Low shields, must wait bombers at a time, for a plane to return long range, medium before launching movement speed another attack Darkwhaler 4 High contact Wus weapons--they really damage, heavy stink, low range shields, medium speed Darktank 6 Heavy weapons, Very slow reload, medium range slow movement, medium shields Darklord 5 Medium weapons, Slightly easy to fast movement, kill, simply a robot quick reload, warrior not a vehicle Darkhero 2 Quick movement, Easy to kill, fast reload low strength weapons Drone 1 Fast movement, Very easy to kill, fast reload low strength weapons --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The strange part is that the Beast Planet, the one that has the most resources, may well be the hardest to play and easiest to defeat, unless it can send in more warriors than you can. Its vehicles stink at best, and there are only three to choose from, while there are four for all the others. After the first three missions on any planet, defending against one attack from each of the other planets, your planet sends a telepad to another planet. Rock, for instance, has a small rocket with wings that plants itself on the surface, drops its wing that telescopes out into a circle, rotates its propulsion units around, and the rocket part returns to Rock. First mission is a bioweapons plant on Bone, then disabling the tentacle regeneration system, which puts the entire planet into hibernation. Next, destroy an Ice installation producing prototype tanks, then blast out their central computer which disables the army. Finally, sabotage Beast's planetary claw then destroy a power center in Beast's main city to disable the whole planet. When you defeat Beast with any of the planets, a final sequence tells you that the war isn't over. The three planets have decided to ally with each other, but the differences between them may prevent them from succeeding in stopping the Beast Planet's forces in all their strongholds. It ends there, so I suspect there is a sequel in the works.