Chaos Rings is the saga of the Ark Arena, a mysterious coliseum where four pairs of heroes thrown together (sometimes against their will) must fight for their lives if they hope to escape. Each pair of heroes has their own story and banter, which actually gives Chaos Rings a considerable amount of replay. I am loathe to ruin any of the story here because even though the writing suffers from serious melodrama, it is very good. The characters -- some of which you will not like, such as the insufferable Escher -- are fleshed out better than almost any iPhone hero I've encountered thus far. So, if you are a big fan of Square's brand of character and scenario development, you will enjoy the yarns spun here.
Though Chaos Rings is surely an RPG, the emphasis is squarely on action. Because you are in an arena, you are constantly fighting monsters to stay alive. The combat system in Chaos Rings is very smart. I love the ability to either choose solo attacks that do less damage or a paired-up move that devastates. The difference is that pair attacks leave both heroes on the team vulnerable to an enemy attack while a solo attack is only answered by a single enemy strike. As you can imagine, this adds an element of strategy to attacking. But there's a second system that makes this even better. A break meter monitors the flow of the battle and shows which side (heroes versus enemies) has the initiative. If the monsters have the initiative, they usually attack first. However, when you land a blow, the battle tilts a bit toward you. Now, if you are struggling, a big pair attack can swing the break meter in your favor so you have the initiative. But there is risk involved here. If your attack fails, not only are you still without the initiative, but you are now open to an attack on each hero. This really does keep each battle thrilling, especially when you are squaring off against some real brutes.
Chaos Rings is not an amazing adventure game for the iPhone. It is an amazing adventure game - period. This battle-heavy RPG is loaded with dozens of hours of play across four sets of heroes. The narrative is excellent, as is the character development. It is easy to control in both exploration and battle scenes thanks to clean, smart virtual controls. There is real depth to the battle system, too, as you weigh the risks of solo or pair attacks versus exposure to enemy blows, and how this can affect the flow of the fight. My big complaint is the out-of-place series of puzzle rooms that just slow things down. Otherwise, this is a wonderful RPG that any Square fan or adventure gamer would be crazy to miss.
Though Chaos Rings is surely an RPG, the emphasis is squarely on action. Because you are in an arena, you are constantly fighting monsters to stay alive. The combat system in Chaos Rings is very smart. I love the ability to either choose solo attacks that do less damage or a paired-up move that devastates. The difference is that pair attacks leave both heroes on the team vulnerable to an enemy attack while a solo attack is only answered by a single enemy strike. As you can imagine, this adds an element of strategy to attacking. But there's a second system that makes this even better. A break meter monitors the flow of the battle and shows which side (heroes versus enemies) has the initiative. If the monsters have the initiative, they usually attack first. However, when you land a blow, the battle tilts a bit toward you. Now, if you are struggling, a big pair attack can swing the break meter in your favor so you have the initiative. But there is risk involved here. If your attack fails, not only are you still without the initiative, but you are now open to an attack on each hero. This really does keep each battle thrilling, especially when you are squaring off against some real brutes.
Chaos Rings is not an amazing adventure game for the iPhone. It is an amazing adventure game - period. This battle-heavy RPG is loaded with dozens of hours of play across four sets of heroes. The narrative is excellent, as is the character development. It is easy to control in both exploration and battle scenes thanks to clean, smart virtual controls. There is real depth to the battle system, too, as you weigh the risks of solo or pair attacks versus exposure to enemy blows, and how this can affect the flow of the fight. My big complaint is the out-of-place series of puzzle rooms that just slow things down. Otherwise, this is a wonderful RPG that any Square fan or adventure gamer would be crazy to miss.
