A new 'law mode' has been added to Chaos Reborn that reduces randomisation. If you still want the traditional gameplay it is still there and called 'chaos mode'. RockPaperShotgun outlines the changes.

In the traditional version of the game, spells and attacks have a probability of success, so every move is a gamble, with the odds known in advance. In Law mode, those probabilities are replaced, with mana costs, hit points and predictable outcomes taking their place. The actual deck of spells you take into combat will still be randomised, though with some rigging of the numbers permitted through use of gear that bumps up the likelihood of certain spells being selected.

I've long thought that the perfect tactical game wouldn't use any random number generation at all (hi, Chess) but I enjoy variety enough to see the benefits of the occasional dice roll. Truth be told, I like the tension that a percentage chance to hit or survive provides in certain circumstances. A game that can support the roll of the dice and predictable outcomes, from one mode to another, could offer the best of both worlds, so I'm pleased to see Chaos Reborn attempting just that.

The reasoning behind the mode is best explained by Gollop himself:

"The new mode is entirely optional, but we added it for the benefit of those who prefer less random elements in their game play. It also adds an interesting alternative game style for our existing players. It is also an interesting experiment in comparative game design. By changing just a few rules a whole new game experience is possible."

And this isn't the end of Chaos:

"...we have released eight updates of the game since launch, including the recent addition of a flexible custom multiplayer games lobby that allows co-op and AI players. We always listen to feedback from players both old and new, and will continue to support the game on a regular basis. There is more Chaos to come."

Chaos Reborn 1.6 features new spells and tactics:

Chaos Reborn v1.6 Released - New Spells, New Tactics

The new update for Chaos Reborn includes 3 awesome new spells:

Air Elemental: A flying, neutral creature which has a unique push attack. When you attack with the Air Elemental it can push any surrounding enemy away. If it falls off the edge of the terrain it will plummet to its doom.

Meteor Shower: Rains down a series of meteors at any location. The meteors do not arrive on the turn cast, but in your following turn. Other players know you have cast the spell, but not where it will land. This spell adds an exciting element of bluff and prediction.

Crystal Wall: A lawful growth spell that can be used offensively and defensively in various ways. A crystal growth is summoned extending four hexes directly away from the casting wizard. Creatures and wizards can be trapped in the wall, but they also get a defensive benefit from it.

We have also replaced the Dispel spell with a button on the creature information display which allows you to dispel any of your summoned entities for a cost of 5 mana points.

Patch 1.3 adds an offline single player campaign and other enhancements:

V1.3 Single Player Realm Quest Campaign Released

This update sees the release of our offline single player campaign. Play through a series of five realms and try to achieve gold rank with each one. These realms use a host of new realm design features, including named companions, branching story lines, and more.

Other changes and fixes include:

• When you are waiting for a multiplayer match you no longer have to stare at a boring screen. Instead, a little queue widget is displayed and you can happily equip your wizard or play online realms while waiting for opponents. If you are playing a battle against AI you can be pulled out of it to play a multiplayer game, and then resume your realm battle after the multiplayer battle is finished. (note: if you enter a battle with an ally or as an invader your multiplayer request is cancelled).
• You can access a 'quick match' request from the options screen. This means that you could be playing a realm and request a multiplayer match without having to exit the realm.
• There are numerous changes to the realm creation system. Encounters are more sophisticated and check various conditions to trigger outcome choices. There are some new encounter effects, such as connecting or disconnecting towns and releasing marauders. Creature allies hired through encounters can be named. Taboos can now be directly edited. All of these features are used in the new offline realm campaign.
• When you select a creature in battle that has one or more buffs affecting it, there is a visual display showing circling coloured balls corresponding to the buff type. Red = attack buff, blue = defence buff, green = agility buff, purple = magic power buff.
• A wizard with activated talismans has a circling talisman object to show that a talisman is activated.
• In realm quests, when starting a battle involving only settlers there is a warning message displayed to remind you that your wizard is not present.
• Realm quests - you no longer need to be at a captured citadel to cast the palace breach spell. You can cast it from anywhere.
• Realm difficulty - the maximum creature allies the enemy wizards can have is now affected by the realm level. Level 1 realms are limited to 3 allies, level 2 realms, 4 allies, and so on, up to a maximum of 8.
• Realm and battle graphics have a christmas theme.
• AI now makes proper use of Transmutation talismans (e.g., the Romero "undead" talisman, the "Clementine" neutralizing talisman), they are no longer pre-activated at the start of the battle.
• AI improvements - AI Wizard makes better use of mounts and is more likely to attack when mounted. AI responds more pro-actively to undead threats. AI now uses mana bind talismans.
• Lowered transformation rate of Aconite talisman (vine to spiders) and fixed a bug with async games where the transformation limit was not respected.
• Realm shops now show the new 3D display for equipment with spell affinity information for staffs.
• For those of you that backed the game at wizard lord level or above, you will be able to enter a name to appear in the game credits with the next update.
• Staff type has a slightly greater impact on deck composition - spells with staff affinity are more likely to be included.
• Exemplum Funus talisman now only gives spell cards for real creatures killed, as per talisman description. Also clarified "Volaticus Duplus" talisman description.

One Guy's Reviews checked out Chaos Reborn:

Chaos Reborn: One Guy's Review

Chaos reborn is a complex and interesting game that utilizes a number of different gameplay mechanics while blending genres. It combines elements of a card game, strategic board game, and tactical war game, and then infuses it with a high fantasy theme.  This isn't entirely a new concept, but the execution and style are what help this game stand out in the crowd. 

The tactical battles are the heart of Chaos Reborn. You and your opponent each take on the role of a wizard, are dealt a hand of cards which serve as your spells, and try to outmaneuver, summon, and ultimately destroy you opponent through utilizing these spells. The common tactical considerations, such as height advantage, range, and resistances are in play, however Chaos Reborn adds in several others elements.

[...]

In the end, Chaos Reborn is a fresh and enjoyable strategy game with interesting mechanics. It falls somewhere in between the realm of competitive card game and tactical board game. It forgoes some of the elements those genres employ; the collectible nature of the former, and the strategic reliability of the latter. In doing so, the game occupies a unique genre as a true "wizard simulator". Knowing this, Chaos Reborn wisely plays to its strengths, embracing the summoning and dispelling aspect. Chaos Reborn might find a strong competitive scene, but it may also be victimized by its own innovation in this regard. The complexity of the mechanics may deter more casual strategy gamers, while the random chance may frustrate highly competitive players. There is a solid game here though. It may take time to fully develop, but Chaos Reborn is a game I commend for its willingness to try something new, and offers a new experience all gamers should try.

With the new 1.2 patch comes a free demo. Here's some of the details from the steam community page.

There is now a Chaos Reborn demo! Tell your friends about it and try and get them involved in some multiplayer games. It gives players free access to the multiplayer modes and tutorials, but not realms, offline battles or social rank progression. The inventory limit is also restricted to 7 items.

Also here are the patch notes:

This update also sees the introduction of the Realm Moderator system. Wizard kings designing realms will have to submit their realm designs to a moderator before being released to the players. Some of the existing realms will be put back into development and will have to be fixed and resubmitted if desired.

Here are the changes and fixes in detail:

-The maximum number of concurrent asynchronous games has been raised from 20 to 40.
-In the equipping screens the staffs and bodygear have a new display which shows the 3D model and compares stats with the currently equipped item. For staffs you can press a button to see all the spells that match the staff type.
-The new realm moderation system has been implemented. New realms have to be approved by a realm moderator before being released to the public.
-A realm design guide has been added to the realm editor, and the game guide is also accessible from the realm editor.
-Aelfscyne talisman mana cost increased from 35 to 50.
-Battle event log scrolling now works properly (and has a scroll bar).
-Paralysed gooey blobs will no longer attack trapped victims.
-Fixed a bug where a player wasn't able to change equipment configuration that was used in classic private async game request.
-Players in private matches will now be disconnected for inactivity.
-Fixed a bug that caused the client to break if the server disconnects it during the login animation.
-Fix: talisman target selection, battle log, mega spell activation, select rider button, and select player buttons are now selectable on touch devices.
-Fixed the bug where allied victory against 2 wizards in realms is counted as 2v2 win achievement stat.
-Camera zoom key bindings fixed - no longer mixes up zoom in/ zoom out
-Fixed a bug that didn't allow you to open equipment pack even if you have enough space in inventory.
-Added check for max inventory items when buying equipment packs.
-Fixed a bug where an encounter result offering allies, if interrupted by battle or exiting to menu, would not show the correct title and display an erroneous OK button.
-Also improved the message where you have to dismiss multiple mercenaries in order to hire multiple allies from an encounter.
-Gold awards are now given for wizard lords defeated in towns or wizard towers.

Richard Cobbet has reviewed Chaos Reborn:

Chaos Reborn

Your love for or frustration with Chaos Reborn, the remake of that Julian Gollop game that’s not Laser Squad or X-COM, hinges on one question: do you feel lucky? Well, do ya, no doubt lovely and intelligent person? It’s a game of surprising depth and complexity, where wizards wage war with powerful spells and summoning hideous beasts to fight in their name—but it’s also one where, totally guaranteed, your dragon with a 90% chance to clobber the enemy in the next hex will fail miserably five times in a row, only to be casually annihilated by a passing goblin.

This isn’t so much a design choice as a line drawn in the sand, not between good and bad, but by a philosophical divide almost as deep—exactly as Hearthstone players are currently torn between appreciating its random elements for spicing up rounds and objecting to each new element that puts success at the whim of invisible dice, which detracts from the purity of deck-building and skill based play.

As with Hearthstone, it’s not that simple. Chaos Reborn is a fiendish game on its own terms, and one with a high skill ceiling. Managing luck is simply part of that. When summoning a card or casting a spell, you only have a percentage chance of it actually working. If it doesn’t, you burn the card. However, that chance is malleable in a couple of basic ways. You can cast magic to slowly bring the general aura of the map over to either Law or Chaos, making your spells and summons more effective, or spend mana points to directly boost the chances of a spell creating a snarling hellbeast instead of a sad magic fizzle.

[...]

There’s also a single-player mode called Realms of Chaos, which plays like a simplified Disciples/Age of Wonders. This gives you a map to explore. You must recruit helpers in towns and fight a timer to avoid being Banished. It’s not a mode worth buying the game for in and of itself, but it’s a well-implemented and surprisingly comprehensive bonus feature on top of the core skirmish action, with just enough scripting and scope to let good worlds stand out.

Chaos Reborn lives and dies on its combat though, and it hasn’t lost any of its charm since the original version. Sadly, the community is a small one, which can make it hard to get a good game going. That in turn puts more reliance than there should be on the single-player side. It deserves a bigger player-base though, as provided you embrace its fundamental love of random chance and don't mind rolling with punches, it’s a fantastic tactical game with far more than luck on its side.

Score: 87/100

A true wizard’s wheeze, and a fine return for one of gaming’s oldest tactical classics.

Chaos Reborn has been reviewed by Eurogamer, who can recommend it.

Nice as all that is, of course, Chaos Reborn lives and dies, much as the original did, with its multiplayer: quick-paced, devious scraps for up to four players if you can find them. Will you be able to? I suspect the answer's yes. Chaos Reborn's probably not going to capture a huge audience, but I reckon the audience it does have is going to stick around. With its thrilling use of RNG, with its bluffing mechanics and its speedy matches that often conclude with a shocking abruptness, this was never going to be for everyone - but how many true classics really are?

Thanks Eye.

Eye spotted a lot of news for Chaos Reborn:

Review at Quarter to Three:

Rating: 5/5
Fast paced wizard combat with the tactical positioning of chess and the bluffing / odds calculation of poker. WARNING - superb RNG management skills required! Or just have fun. Also featuring single-player Realm Quests with co-op vs AI and invading other players’ realms.

Gameplay video @ UnstableVoltage:

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In this video, I demonstrate and talk about some of the basic mechanics of Chaos Reborn, along with the creator of the game, Julian Gollop.

New Kickstarter: Full-Cast Audio Drama - Official Chaos Reborn Fiction:

Based on Julian Gollop's game of Wizard battles, new full-cast audio adventures in a world of magic and fantasy!

Episode one is already funded!

Andrei Dumitrescu (Softpedia) has reviewed Chaos Reborn:

Chaos Reborn ReviewPC

Chaos Reborn is one of the video games that made me religiously play its Tutorial section after handing down a list of defeats, both against humans and computer opponents, that made me question my ability to play a turn-based tactical title.

I had a little luck during my first real match, and I managed to win it despite the fact that I did not actually know what I was doing on the battlefield and I then quickly lost five in a row, two of them so catastrophically that I decided the best idea was to make sure that I understood all the mechanics before trying again.

Chaos Reborn has a very solid mechanical foundation, superb teaching tools and a lot of content to offer to the patient player, but it can also be merciless with those who fail to understand all nuances of its system.

The title is created by Snapshot Games, and the core ideas come from Julian Gollop, the legendary designer that is known for his work on the original version of Chaos and the first incarnation of X-COM, the impressive UFO Defense.

The entire experience was funded with the help of fans via Kickstarter, and gamers can still get a special edition via the official site if they want to support future development.

[...]

Gameplay

Chaos Reborn is a turn-based tactics-driven game that focuses on the choices that players need to make to take our their opponents using either creatures or direct attack spells.

When a match starts, gamers will be in charge of their wizard, and they can move him for limited distances and then play one of the cards they have in hand.

The spells can bring forth a number of magical creatures, from skeletons to unicorns and vultures and more, but they can also create obstacles, or they can try to harm the enemy wizard directly to take him out.

The unique challenge is that everything that the player can do in Chaos Reborn is affected by chance, and gamers will quickly see that they need to be conservative rather than offensive to succeed.

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[...]

The Good

• Tactical depth
• Complex and surprising battles

The Bad

• Chance plays too much of a role

Conclusion

Chaos Reborn is a game about intelligent gambling and gamers who want to become proficient need to carefully evaluate each of their moves while trying to guess what their opponents are planning to do in the long-term.

The randomness does not dominate gameplay but can play havoc with even the best-constructed plans, and that tends to lead to battles that change course abruptly and result in interesting player narratives, even if they do not always end in victory.

The official site of Chaos Reborn also makes it clear that Gollop and his team have plans to introduce a range of new features and content to the title, which should ensure its long-term appeal both as a single and a multiplayer experience.

Gamers who are thinking about playing the game need to be sure about how they feel about its blend of tactics and luck-driven gameplay.

Those who want precision and control should stay away, but Chaos Reborn will be a good fit for players who appreciate planning but also want to be surprised during a battle.

Score: 4/5 - Very Good

Short reminder: Chaos Reborn will be released on October 26:

Chaos Reborn Launch Day - October 26th 2015

I am pleased to announce that we will officially be launching version 1.0 of Chaos Reborn on 26th October. It has been an intensive year and a half of development, but we have a great game ready to ship. There are a few features promised in the Kickstarter which are not yet present. Most significantly the demigod and god roles. We will be adding these features in the first 2 months after release and we will continue to support the game with regular updates, including new content such as additional spells and game modes. Our version 1.0 release will be focussed on new players, so there will be an extensive tutorial and an upgraded interface. The Wizard Lord and Wizard King roles will be working at launch, and you will find new realms to explore as the kings create them.

For existing players, the game accounts will be reset and you will be able to build your wizard from scratch along with many new players.

How to help us with the launch

There are several ways you can help us

• Sign up for our Thunderclap campaign now: 
  https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/32657-chaos-reborn-launch-day
• If you follow any games youtube or twitch channels, request that they cover the game.
• If you participate in any game related forums, let them know about the game.
• Participate in online battles during the launch week and help new players learn the game.

Thank you for your support.

Julian Gollop, Snapshot Games

Snapshot games has released a launch trailer for Chaos Reborn.

Chaos Reborn is the new strategy game from Julian Gollop, the creator of the original X-COM series of games, launching on October 26th 2015. Online multiplayer with live or asynchronous play, and Realm Quests with co-op and invasion options.
Available for PC, Mac and Linux on Steam

Julian Gollop talks about the importance of luck in his games. Particularly his new game Chaos Reborn.

One of Chaos' most prominent mechanics is the reliance on random number generation; every spell you cast has a chance of success, and a chance of failure. The bigger and more powerful the spell, the more unlikely it is to actually manifest, which turns every attempt to cast something an exercise in risk management.

Interview with Julian Gollop, the designer of Chaos Reborn:

The growth of Chaos Reborn: X-Com's Julian Gollop on Early Access and defecting to the aliens

Chaos Reborn has been one of the finest turn-based skirmish games available on PC for over a year. But only in its last update did it grow an outer layer - equivalent to the globe view that lends X-Com’s strategic shootouts their permanence.

Julian Gollop, designer of both games, ended a stint at Ubisoft to take remake Chaos. He saw it as a return to the independence he’d enjoyed in the ‘80s. But in reality he’s now beholden to a new set of voices: the double whammy of Kickstarter backers and Early Access buyers.

“I don’t know how to put it. It feels like you’re in an arena with a gigantic audience, all shouting at you, trying to tell you what to do.” he laughs. “Everybody’s watching you on every step and they’re analysing it in minute detail. That is perhaps a little bit scary in some ways.” [...]

It has been a while since our site mentioned anything about Julian Gollop's new game called Chaos Reborn. According to a press release it had a major content update.

Early Access Major Content Update and Discounted Price

Chaos Reborn, the turn-based wizard combat game with an RPG twist from XCOM creator Julian Gollop, received a major content update today which will help players gain more control over their spells and wizardly abilities. Additionally, the game currently in Steam Early Access is on sale for a week beginning today for the price of $14.99 USD or  €14.99 euros.

Developed by the original XCOM creator and his studio, Snapshot Games,  Chaos Reborn  is the spiritual successor to 1985's  Chaos: The Battle of Wizards. The game involves battling wizards, casting spells and summoning creatures to defeat AI enemies or other players online.  Chaos Reborn  currently has a robust battle system, and the new update will elevate gameplay by giving players more tools to vanquish opponents with.

Alec Meer of Rock, Paper, Shotgun previews the latest build of Chaos Reborn.

With its limited actions, short movement distances and card-based actions, Chaos’ feel is perhaps much more boardgame than videogame, but it works. It doesn’t come across like crudely digitised cardboard and plastic, but a true middleground between the physical and the virtual. What initially feels slow, confusing, even obtuse quickly coalesces into the sort of moment-to-moment agonising dilemma that any game about trying to second-guess an opponent depends upon. I like it a lot, and it’s barely begun. So far at least, Chaos is well under control.

Adam Solo of Space Sector played the early Access version of Chaos Reborn, and posted a new preview with his opinion on the state of the game.

Chaos Reborn is not finished yet, it is currently in Early Access, but already provides a very entertaining experience. This is the perfect game to play with friends in short play sessions from 10 to 30 minutes or even asynchronously over the course of several days. And while it’s still incomplete, this is a game I find very easy to recommend already at this stage.

According to a recent announcement, a new patch has been released for Chaos Reborn, which implements a single player mode.  Chaos Reborn entered early access earlier this month.  The full patch notes:

New features for our special Christmas 2014 release:

• Play single player vs AI, or ‘hotseat’ with other human players, or a combination of human and AI
• New spell - summon a pack of mutant, giant rats
• Christmas themed graphics - for a limited period only

Other changes:

• The formula for calculating the attack probabilities of magic attack spells and subversion has been modified so that creatures with higher magic power are more resistant.
• The power of the subversion spell has been reduced from 10 to 6
• The power of the triple magic attack spells has been reduced from 4 to 3
• The attack value of the Gooey Blob has been reduced from 2 to 1
• The casting boosts for staffs have been altered. The Law and Chaos staffs have a lower boost rating and the armoury, attack and growth staffs have a higher boost rating
• The spell deck display now shows the number of cards of each alignment left in the deck, as well as the total law and chaos value of the cards

Rock, Paper, Shotgun has delivered another interview with Julian Gollop, creator of the original X-Com, about his recent early access release Chaos reborn.  Although this is a two part interview, the second part will be up tomorrow.  A taste:

RPS: We’re talking on the eve of the Early Access launch – what’s the state of things there?

Julian Gollop: We’re getting ready for launch, we’re doing some final testing and some polishing, we’re getting some sound effects polished up and some visual effects put in, interface’s glitches cleaned up. It’s looking good actually, I think the game is actually quite well polished for its current state and I’m very happy with it.

In addition, they reference Julian Gollop's thoughts on Kickstarter in a separate article.

RPG Watchers may also be interested in two other articles released today on RPS.  The first is a retrospective review of Darklands.  The second is a recommendation of Dragon Age: Origins.

Julian Gollop, X-COM creator and founder of Snapshot Games, has posted a new trailer for his successfully crowdfunded game Chaos Reborn. He also announced that Chaos Reborn would be released on Steam Early Access on December 9th, 2014 for PC, Mac, and Linux.

About the game:

Chaos Reborn is a game of battling wizards in which you cast spells and summon creatures in order to defeat your enemy. The game features an extensive RPG mode where you can seek knowledge, power and wealth by adventuring in the Realms of Chaos. You can join guilds, trade items and ascend the social ranks in order to become a God.

There have been several updates for Chaos Reborn, made by the original X-Com developer, after it was funded. The most recent ones are an update on some beasts from the game, wizards staffs and spells and the public release of version 0.15.

The new version of the Chaos Reborn prototype is now public.

• Web version
• WIndows 32 bit
• Windows 64 bit
• Mac OSX
• Linux

If you find bugs, please report them on the Chaos Reborn Prototype Bugs forum. I will, of course, welcome any other comments on this version.

You will not notice many changes in this version, since most of the work for the last month has been re-working of the network multiplayer code. So here are the changes:

• Selecting a movement destination shows a movement arrow with attack lines to potential enemy targets. Clicking again on the destination confirms the move, or you can select another destination. There is no ‘undo’ move any more.
• There is a range guide displayed for creatures with ranged combat and wizards with magic bolts. 
• A mount will now not be able to move in the turn a wizard mounts it.
• Combat bonuses/penalties for elevation in close combat increased.
• Unicorn charge bonus only obtained if distance between start position and enemy position is two or greater.
• You can spectate a game which is in progress.
• There is a link to Ped209s tournament site from the login screen.
• The client/server networking infrastructure has been completely rewritten. The unresponsive lobby buttons should now be fixed. There may, however, be other problems with this new networking system since it has not been rigorously tested yet.

Known issues:

• Problems reconnecting on Mac OSX. The client/web browser will need to be restarted to fix this, unfortunately.
• Some graphical problems with Goblin and Giant textures.
• Rarely the game seems to start without the arena in view

GamesIndustry has posted a new article with X-Com's Julian Gollop where he talked about the difficulties of Kickstarter based on his funded game Chaos Reborn.

The veteran British designer Julian Gollop warned the crowd at Digital Dragons to underestimate the challenge of crowdfunding at their peril.

In a talk called "Gooey Blobs and Chrysalids - milestones in my 32-year career in game development," Gollop finished with his experiences running a Kickstarter campaign for a remake of his 1985 Spectrum game, Chaos.

Ultimately, Chaos Reborn exceeded its $180,000 target, but it only did so by $40,000 and not until the final days of its funding period. Given his enviable track record - which includes the classic 1994 turn-based strategy title, X-Com - Gollop admitted to the Digital Dragons audience that he expected an easier ride.

 

 

However, Gollop did make a huge amount of effort prior to launching the Chaos Reborn Kickstarter campaign to ensure that it had the best possible chance of success.

"I had done a lot of work on PR and promoting the game: on my blog, on Twitter, I got journalists looking at the game so I had coverage in print and online," he said.

"For me that was an easier process than for most because of my history and people were interested in what I was doing anyway, but still, it was a lot of work. I even delayed the Kickstarter [twice] all because I didn't think the PR was sufficient yet.

"If you're going the crowdfunding route, you have to do your PR and promotion consistently for months before you even start."

And yet despite all of that effort, and despite having a playable prototype to show interested backers, and despite having the sort of reputation that allowed him to bring in a figure like Ken Levine to help with the cause - on TotalBiscuit's YouTube channel, no less - with just five days to go Chaos Reborn still hadn't reached its target and the donations had, in Gollop's words, "flatlined."

ulian Gollop is happy to announce his kickstarter game Chaos Reborn has managed to get funded. The game managed to earn $210,854 of the $180,000 goal.

We Did It!

Chaos Reborn has been funded with just 34 hours to go on the clock. Thank you to everybody who backed the project and promoted it. Thanks to my team for working after hours to make the prototype possible, and providing all the art and publicity material during the campaign. And thanks mum for being such a vocal supporter!

I will be posting a final update before the campaign closes with instructions about how you can continue to support the game and get rewards, including the possibility to contribute with paypal.

Single player

I have posted a lengthy explanation of the single-player Realms of Chaos mode on the Chaos Reborn website.

Animation in Progress

I have also posted some initial creature animations  by our animator, Jason Pickering.

Rock, Paper, Shotgun had the chance to interview X-Com Creator Julian Gollop in a few videos about his gaming career, and his new kickstarter game Chaos Reborn.

Once upon a time Julian Gollop was one of the principle minds behind the original X-Com. Yes, with a dash. A dollop of Gollop’s design wizardry spawned a legendary strategy series, and now – somewhat fittingly, I suppose – he’s making a game about actual wizards. Chaos Reborn is mere days away from casting off its mortal Kickstarter, so Gollop and I are going to play a few rounds of a recent prototype while discussing the ups and downs of running a Kickstarter, the power (and lack thereof) of legacy, what made people fall so madly in love with X-Com, and which of said secret ingredients Chaos Reborn does and doesn’t apply. Expect a heady brew of history and reflection with a powerful note of future.

Calm Down Tom has a short preview of Chaos Reborn based on the games online demo, and asks the question should we be excited for the game.

There’s a whole host of little systems that make the game more interesting. For example, all spells have variable odds of success, and the most powerful creatures might only appear 10% of the time, with the other nine in ten attempts resulting in an embarrassed fizzle and a lost turn. This risk/reward system is complicated further by “illusions”. You can cast an illusion of any creature with 100% success, but they can be instantly dismissed with the “disbelieve” spell, which every wizard possesses.

Imagine the scenarios that can result from this: Your enemy conjures a Golden Dragon. Ahhhh! No wait, it’s probably an illusion. Maybe? Ok, I’ll cast disbelieve! And….. Ahhhh! It was real! Cue laughter from your enemy as you’re eaten by a golden dragon. Awesome.

It is early, early days for Chaos Reborn. What’s amazing though is that I was already excited, and after playing this prototype version, I can barely contain myself. Bravo Julian Gollop and everyone on your team. Keep working, but don’t rush it. We already love what you’re doing, now just take the time you need to make it perfect.

Forbes Contributor Daniel Nye Griffiths had the chance to interview X-Com Creator Julian Gollop about his new kickstarter Chaos Reborn.

There’s something decidedly intimidating about taking on Julian Gollop at his new game, Chaos Reborn. As the co-creator of 1994’s X-Com: UFO Defense (released as UFO: Enemy Unknown in Europe), he is the author of probably the best turn-based strategy game of its generation, and arguably – an argument I believe has significant merit – the best PC game ever made.

20 years later, Gollop, who has been quietly plying his trade across many different games and franchises, from his own Rebelstar to Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell and Assassin’s Creed, has taken to Kickstarter to continue the development of Chaos Reborn.

Hence the invitation to play the current build of the game, and the suspicion that this is going to be a massacre.

Yon can now play a multiplayer online prototype of Chaos Reborn. If you are interested make sure you download the Unity Web Player.

"A third of the spells are implemented, but most of the graphics are place-holder and none of the creatures have animations yet. However, the game is fully functional and great fun to play. With your help we can implement all the features in our game design, and deliver the final game to you by spring 2015."

IncGamers has posted a new preview of Chaos Reborn.

It’s worth noting that whatever connection code the game was using seemed to be working well, though as our games identified themselves as numbers 32-33 the relevant server probably isn’t exactly being overloaded right now. Tim de-synced at one point, but refreshing the browser window put him right back in the match.

That Chaos Reborn feels very close to the original Chaos is no bad thing, especially as “Chaos, but with decent online options” is something that’s been high on fans’ wish lists for quite some time now. I’m predisposed towards it thanks to my history with the series, but Tim professed to be having a decent time too (when I wasn’t summoning a giant spider near his face.) There have been unofficial alternatives put out there over the years, but this one has the evident care and attention to detail from the game’s original creator.

There’s a wonderful simplicity to the process of playing Chaos Reborn and a real drive to think on your feet when your spellcasting luck is ebbing away. In this era of popular resurgence for turn-based games, I can’t think of a more appropriate time to bring Chaos back to the public’s attention.

The eight kickstarter update for Julian Gollop's Chaos Reborn shares information on a few Limited Edition T-Shirts You can add to your pledge.

Chaos Reborn Limited Edition T-Shirts

I am pleased to announce that we are now offering limited edition 30 Year Chaos Anniversary T-Shirts, exclusive to backers.

The design features a black T-shirt with the Chaos Reborn logo on the front and a special message on the left sleeve reading '30 YEARS OF CHAOS 1985-2015' and the gooey-blob sprite from the original Chaos, which is my personal avatar. It is an Anvil Jersey T-shirt made from pre-shrunk combed ringspun cotton (meaning it's very soft and comfortable).

I have created reward tiers which add the T-shirt to the original rewards, so if you would like a T-shirt all you need to do is change your existing reward for the equivalent reward plus T-shirt. Shipping is included for US residents. Please add $5 shipping for delivery outside the US.

NOTE: If you have backed at $250 or higher, you will automatically get a T-shirt included in your reward at no extra cost!

Additional T-Shirts

If you want additional T-shirts, please add $30 for each additional T-shirt you want to your existing pledge level. Shipping in the US is included in the price. For delivery outside the US, please add $5 per T-shirt.

At the end of the Kickstarter campaign you will be sent a survey for you to provide information for your mailing address and T-shirt sizes.

Delivery

T-shirts will be delivered to backers before the end of May 2014. However, we will endeavour to be as quick as possible with this delivery, so I hope you will get them sooner.

Tacticular Cancer interview Julian Gollop in a new video to talk about his recent kickstarter Chaos Reborn, and shared his development philosophy.

X-COM creator Julian Gollop talks about his latest project. Chaos Reborn is a tactical tun-based game about battling wizards. It involves various types of terrain, unique and interesting spells, and deceptive illusions.

Julian Gollop has posted the seventh kickstarter update for Chaos Reborn with information on the shrines for the gods, and shares some bear artwork.

Shrines of the Gods

For this update I am going to expand on some very interesting game elements which focus on Gods and their followers. If you have backed the game at 'God' level our art team will work with you to create a 3D avatar of your god head. It can be based on your own likeness, or you can create something entirely fantastical, such as a lovecraftian tentacled thing, as long as it is representative of a head (this is a special feature for backers only, otherwise known as the old gods, and other players who ascend to godhood through game play will be restricted to a selection of generic choices for their god avatar). Your avatar will then appear on shrines which are placed in battle arenas. Our artist Borus has created a hypothetical example of a player who is a god of Law and has an avatar closely based on his own image.

Finally - The Bear

Robert has created a concept for the bear, which is a powerful, neutral creature. He has a special attack - 'bear hug' - in which it rears up on his hind legs and batters its foe with a clawing action such that it can't move away in its turn.

Julian Gollop has posted a new update for Chaos Reborn with information his game is now on Steam Greenlight, and needs youy vote to help het it on Steam.

Chaos Reborn is now on Steam Greenlight

I am pleased to announce that we are aiming to put Chaos Reborn on Steam. As with every other game, we have to go through the Steam Greenlight process, which means that people have to vote for the game to be approved.

Please go here to vote for Chaos Reborn on Steam Greenlight. Where it says 'Would you buy this game if it were available in Steam?' click on the 'Yes' button.

If you would like to help some more, please post some comments there about your thoughts on the original Chaos and Chaos Reborn. If we get some interest from the Steam community it could really help boost our Kickstarter Campaign.

If we get approved for Steam I will give you the option of having a Steam key to manage your Chaos Reborn download. It will not affect any rewards you have backed on Kickstarter.

Thank you for your fantastic support, and I will be sending some more game design related updates very soon.

Julian Gollop has posted the next kickstarter update for Chaos Reborn with infomation on the fountain of life and the magic castle. We also get links to more game coverage.

The Fountain of Life and the Magic Castle

As I write this we are very close to $100k. We had a great surge on Monday because of a highly successful reddit AMA. Thank you to all of you who took part and asked questions or upvoted. 

This week I was on The Sausage Factory Podcast, talking about my career, games and, of course, Chaos Reborn. I have also done another couple of interviews with UnstableVoltage and FerrousPilot.

There are some more game play videos taken from the Chaos Reborn prototype. UnstableVoltage recorded a 2 vs 2 team match, in which our opponents battled against the odds with some excellently judged disbelieves by Fat Bat (aka Robert Faludi, one of our artists). You can see some more 4 player action over at Fire Water Gasoline.

The X-COM Files: How Alien Invaders, Rebel Squads, and Gooey Blobs Took Strategy Gaming by Storm is a new book by David Craddock which looks at the history of my earlier games all the way up to the first X-COM game. David's previous book, Stay Awhile and Listen: How Two Blizzards Unleashed Diablo and Forged a Video-Game Empire, is an excellent history of the early years of Blizzard Entertainment - I highly recommend it.

Julian Gollop's Chaos Reborn has managed to get $96,950 of the games $180,000 goal in eight days. He posted another update today with information on Unicorns.

Unicorns are Lethal

Wooo! we passed the half way mark. Thank you everybody for getting us this far, and a special thanks to our first Supreme Benefactor. We are planning some updates with more game design details and reward level details, but this update will be fairly brief.

Fire Water Gasoline has posted a few Chaos Reborn game play videos for you to look at. If you missed my reddit AMA you can check it out here. There were a lot of comments and questions about X-COM, Chaos Reborn and some of my other games.

Here is a new concept for our Unicorn. As you can see, it is not quite the cliche you might expect. The angular forms and cool colours are characteristic of a Law creature. It has a 'charge' ability which gives it a bonus to Attack after moving. It is also a mount, which means that it can be ridden by a wizard.

Julian Gollop's Chaos Reborn is getting closer to getting funed , and so far he has managed to get $80,651 of games $180,000 goal in in five days.

He also posted another update with infomation on more videso, and anew AMA.

Forgemaster Proving Ground

I will be doing a reddit AMA on Sunday, 23rd March at 3pm EST / 7pm GMT in /r/Games. Please drop by to ask questions about Chaos Reborn, or ask me anything else.

UnstableVoltage has posted a Youtube video of a 3 player game of Chaos Reborn. The next video should be a 2 vs 2 team match.

As some of you have pointed out, designing equipment with Forgemaster tier could be a bit hit and miss without the ability to test a design before you commit to it. This is entirely understandable, so I am proposing to create a Forgemaster Proving Ground which will allow you to test your equipment designs. This is simply a local game creation mode where you can set up your wizard with his designed equipment to compete against AI or human controlled wizards which can be equipped with any other item of equipment you may own. You will have the ability to set your equipment to any level for testing purposes.

Julian Gollop's kickstarter for Chaos Reborn has managed to get $76,978 of games $180,000 goal in just four days. He also released another kickstarter update today.

The update talks being a forgemaster, and shares a new lets play video,

A Wizard’s Staff is his Best Friend

Check out this video of a Chaos Reborn game that I played with UnstableVoltage. It was a close match, and it could have gone either way at the end. Clearly I made some mistakes, but UnstableVoltage played a good game as well. Notice how important Victory Points can be in a long game like this one.

I am planning to do some more game play videos, which I will publicise in future updates, but if you want to get the latest, up-to-the-minute Chaos Reborn news please follow me on twitter @julian_gollop.

If you are a Chaos old-timer please share your experiences of the game on my reddit thread. If you are new to the world of Chaos, just add whatever comments you like.

Being a Forgemaster

In future updates I will expand a little on the game design and how the backer rewards work in more detail. To begin with I will explain some of the cool things you can do with the Forgemaster tier. This gives you the ability to create a set of equipment, which you can do once at any point in your Wizardly career. I will show you how it works by telling a hypothetical story about my wizard called ‘Joolificus’.

Julian Gollop's new kickstarter Chaos Reborn has managed to earn $72,380 of the games $180,000 in just three days. He also posted the games first update today.

Extra copies, stretch goals, and more

Before we get to the juicy bits of this update I would first like to thank all of you who have backed the game, tweeted about it, talked about it, wrote about it or otherwise helped make the first few days of the launch a fantastic start. I would also like to thank my team for putting together great materials and a great prototype which really helped a lot. Well done guys! And thanks also to my business partner in Snapshot Games, David Kaye, whose wisdom and experience has guided me in the right direction.

I realise there is a long way to go still, so I will not be resting on my laurels. And if there is anything you can do to spread the word, it will help enormously. If you work in games related media, or know someone who does, I am available to demonstrate the prototype and talk about the game at great length!

Extra copies of the game

I am pleased to announce that you can buy extra copies of the game for $15 each. If you backed at the Apprentice tier or above, for each extra $15 above the price of your tier, you get an additional copy of the game. To do this you have to increase your pledge by multiples of $15 without changing your selected reward. For example, if you backed the game at Wizard Lord level for $50 and you increase your pledge to $80 you will get two extra copies of the game. I will send a survey out at the end of the campaign to check with you exactly what you required with your increased pledge amount. Please note that you can only buy a maximum of 8 extra copies this way.

Stretch Goals

Here are our first two stretch goals:

$200k pledge level reached - Localisation of game text - at a minimum French, German, Italian and Spanish, plus a small selection of other languages to be decided based on demand and costs.

$240k pledge level reached - Android/iOS platform support - a full version of the game available for mobile phones and tablets. The game will be a free download from app stores, and if you are a Kickstarter backer you will be able to unlock the full version without any additional cost.

Julian Gollop is interviewed on Strategy Informer to talk about his recently launched kickstarter Chaos Reborn. As usual here is a small sample of it.

Strategy Informer: It seems like you’ve decided to remain very faithful to the original, especially as far as gameplay is concerned.

Julian Gollop: Yeah, I’ve decided to keep the basic game mechanics pretty much the same. They make the game fairly quick playing and also it has this kind of brutal randomness which you have to be careful about – do you take a risk or do you not take a risk. As you saw in the game we just played, the tides can turn from one turn to the next. You can’t be certain of anything.

Strategy Informer: What’s your primary objective with remaking Chaos?

Julian Gollop: The main thing I’m trying to do is keep the gameplay immediate, fun, and not too overextended. I’m aiming for battles to be relatively short but interesting and exciting to the end. The other thing I’m going to do is expand on the spells so we get some more interesting combinations, because some of my favourite spells from the original were some of the more weird spells like the gooey blob (a spell which creates a randomly-spreading all-consuming goo) and the magic wood (a spell which creates trees which any wizard on the map can enter and sit in to get gifted a new spell for that battle) which are very useful but somewhat difficult to control and predict. So I want to put some more spells in like that which have some interesting and over-the-top effects.

Julian Gollop the creator of X-Com has finally launched his kickstarter. The game is called Chaos Reborn, and needs $180,000 to get funded in 30 days.

Wizard Tactics with Bluff and Deception, Procedurally Generated Realms, Online Multiplayer, Co-op and a Huge Single Player Campaign

Chaos Reborn is game with nail-biting decisions and twists of fate. Every battle is different, every realm is unique, and there is always something new to discover.

Based on my cult classic ZX Spectrum game ‘Chaos’, first published in 1985 by Games Workshop, Chaos Reborn is part sequel, part re-imagining of that original game brought up-to-date with high quality presentation. 

The magic combat system remains true to the original Chaos. It is all about summoning a host of weird and mythical creatures, moving and fighting with them, and using your wizard to attack, defend, buff and de-buff with large array of spells. It is highly tactical and fast paced. But Chaos Reborn expands considerably on this by offering multiplayer modes, a single-player RPG system and co-op play.

Currently, we have an online multi-player prototype working, which you can see in the video. A third of the spells are implemented, but most of the graphics are place-holder and none of the creatures have animations yet. However, the game is fully functional and great fun to play. With your help we can implement all the features in our game design, and deliver the final game to you by spring 2015.

Thank you for your support, and I hope to be playing Chaos Reborn with you soon.

Chaos Reborn has two development updates on the games webpage.

The New Terrain System in Chaos Reborn

Chaos Reborn features a 3-level terrain system with various types of environments and different objects like trees and rocks. Creatures may normally move one level height difference from one tile to the next, but they cannot wallk up or down two levels. These 2 level drops create impassable hex sides. When attacking from a higher level, creatures get a combat bonus. You can see this in the screenshot below. The Giant is selected and the interface shows information about movement and combat. The orange circles show where he can move, and the red circles show enemies that he can attack. The percentage chance of killing the enemy is displayed. There are two percentages below the Goblin, reflecting the fact that the Giant can attack from positions at different levels. From the higher position he would have an 85% chance of killing the Goblin, but from the same level it would be 75%.

Chaos Combat

So here are some new screenshots with some improved graphics. I also thought it would be a good opportunity to show the combat interface of Chaos Reborn. It is remarkably simple - on the surface. When you select a creature, every space you can move to is highlighted, and every enemy you can attack is highlighted. For each enemy there is a percentage number which tells you the chance of killing that enemy in combat. This number is derived from the ratio of the attacker's Combat Rating to the defenders defence rating. Combat always has two possible outcomes - either you kill the enemy or you don't. It may be obvious from this system that it is always possible to kill an enemy, no matter how unlikely. This is a major part of the Chaos experience - the uncertainty, the hope, the desperation. Everything matters and everything can change.

Anything Geeky interviews Julian Gollop about his upcoming game Chaos Reborn.

Julian Gollop is almost ready to launch a Kickstarter campaign to help him bring back the now classic, Chaos series under the name, Chaos Reborn.

Check out the video as Alex from AGR quizs the man himself on the new game and many other questions concerning past work and future plans.