Urban Chaos
A third-person action-adventure set in free-roaming city maps.
Urban Chaos, the first game from English studio Mucky Foot Productions, launched on Windows in 1999 before arriving on PlayStation and Dreamcast. Eidos Interactive handled publishing. In May 2017, Mucky Foot's Mike Diskett made the game's source code freely available on GitHub under the MIT license.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Mucky Foot Productions
- Publisher
- Eidos Interactive
- Genre
- Action-adventure
- Modes
- Single-player
- Platforms
- Microsoft Windows
- PlayStation
- Dreamcast
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
The game is an action-adventure from a third-person perspective set in largely free-roaming maps. Its fighting system includes kicks, punches, throws, sliding tackles, and two melee weapons: knives and baseball bats. The player can arrest enemies, making the populace more friendly. A later character is less agile but deals more damage. A Jamaican gang banger appears in bonus missions. City maps include indoor areas, people to talk to, fights, additional missions, and multiple ways to achieve goals such as assaults, hostage rescues, and preventing a suicide. There are 24 main levels, four bonus levels, and a separate demo level not in the full version.
Plot
The story follows D'arci Stern, who joins the Union City Police Department and deals with the Wildcats, a gang led by mayoral candidate Mack Bane. With vigilante Roper McIntyre's help, D'arci discovers the Wildcats plan to take over the city. After repelling a hostile takeover, D'arci investigates a murder committed by Bane's elite bodyguards, the Fallen. Bane is arrested but directs the Wildcats from jail. He later breaks out, claims to be an Ancient Warlock, and summons a Baalrog, which D'arci and Roper defeat. Bane and the Wildcats flee to a sanctuary tower to fulfill a prophecy; D'arci and Roper rescue civilians, battle remnants, and use the tower's ventilation system to destroy Bane.
Reception
The PC version received positive reviews, while console ports received mixed to negative reception according to GameRankings. The Dreamcast version received mixed or average reviews on Metacritic. Computer Games Strategy Plus gave the PC version four stars out of five, praising the graphics and storyline. Bernard Dy of GamePro called it a wild jaunt and a fix for those waiting for Tomb Raider to change. GameZone gave it 7.4 out of 10, calling it well crafted. Edge gave it seven out of ten, calling it a nearly there title. Jim Preston of NextGen called it a fun no-brainer. Rich Briggs of AllGame gave the PlayStation version two-and-a-half stars out of five, citing combat, control, and camera problems. Jon Thompson gave the Dreamcast version two stars out of five, noting that dealing with multiple enemies becomes a tremendous pain due to loose controls. The console port was a runner-up for Worst Game at GameSpot's Best and Worst of 2000 Awards, with the staff calling it an uncontrollable, choppy mess.
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