The Chaos Engine

Game review

The Chaos Engine, also known as Soldiers of Fortune, is a riveting action shooter game from 1994, renowned for its top-down perspective gameplay. This game invites players into a world of intense action and strategic play, offering a selection of six main characters to choose from. Each character is distinct, boasting unique attributes and combat experiences, allowing players to select a character that best fits their playstyle.

In this classic arcade game, set in a streampunk world, you take on the role of one of six mercenaries tasked with the potential reward of destroying an invention called "The Chaos Engine" invented by Baron Fortesque, who has turned against his creator and the surrounding turned the earth into a grotesque world full of bizarre machines and monsters.

Another effort from the Bitmap Brothers workshop with an original theme. As one of six mercenaries, each with their own quirks and stats, you'll go through several episodes involving all manner of bizarre locations full of various machines and gadgets to destroy the Chaos Engin, with multiple paths always possible to pursue the goal - you're free to make decisions. Along the way you collect bonuses, credits, power-ups and upgrades to your weapons and stamina. You open doors and bonus locations, which are all ingeniously linked by a system of levers and buttons - with one bonus you prevent access to another, etc. Monsters such as lizards, robots, severed gigantic hands or frogs appear randomly and can easily surprise you.

The ability to upgrade characters adds a strategic layer to The Chaos Engine, as players must decide the best way to allocate their resources for optimal progress. The game combines fast-paced shooting action with strategic planning, offering an experience that is both thrilling and thought-provoking.