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Chex Quest

 
Games: Chex Quest
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Chex Quest
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  • Platform: IBM PC Compatible
  • Release Date: 1996
  • Genre: Shooter
  • Style: First-Person Shooter
  • Similar Games: Doom (Atari Jaguar), Doom (IBM PC Compatible), Doom (Sega Genesis 32X), Doom (Sega Saturn), Doom (PlayStation), Doom (3DO), Doom (Super Nintendo Entertainment System)

Game Description

Chex Quest was used as a promotion to help increase cereal sales, and was only obtainable through the purchase of specially marked packages of Chex cereal. A volcano erupts on the planet Bazoik and releases creatures known as Flemoids from another dimension. The Flemoids eggs hatch when they come in contact with the nutritional content of the citizens of the Intergalactic Federation of Cereals who are stationed on Bazoik when the eruption occurs. As a member of Chex Squadron, you volunteer to go to the caverns of planet Bazoik to rescue the citizens and send as many of the Flemoids as you can back to their own dimension.


~ Jonathan Sutyak, All Game Guide

Roots & Influences

The game was originated by Ralston Foods and developed by Digital Cafe as a promotion for Chex cereals.
~ Michael L. House, All Game Guide

Review: Overall

Chex Quest uses the same engine used in the game Doom by id Software, Inc.. Very similar to Doom in game play, Chex Quest can be called the Doom for kids. While this is a first-person shooter, the violence is extremely minimal. The main character shoots laser blasts or uses a spoon to make the evil Flemoids disappear from the screen.

Controls are exactly like other first-person shooters. You have the ability to switch between weapons, open doors, activate elevators and switches, sidestep and run. There are a total of seven weapons, all of which are used via the fire button. One problem that occurs is that certain weapons are difficult to aim. Some of the weapons are held at an angle and can cause a player to fire shots into a wall. This can be frustrating when an enemy is standing directly in front of the player.

Weapons themselves are all quite similar is function. The weapons, called zorchers, are basically lasers. Ammunition is limited, so many power-ups will need to be collected. Power-ups are not hard to find as most of them are simply located in plain sight but there are hidden areas that also contain extra power-ups. If you do happen to run out of ammunition, you can always fight with a spoon.

Levels all look fairly similar to each other. Since the game takes place in a research base you will come across scientific-looking backgrounds and plenty of crates. As the game is intended for a younger audience, the difficulty is minimal. Five settings are available, but, for the experienced gamer, Chex Quest is a piece of cake.

Graphically, although the colors and backgrounds are limited, the game looks fine. Everything scrolls smoothly and no bugs are apparent. Enemies are not too detailed but, after all, they are just piles of slime. Sounds mainly represent weapons fire. Flemoids are usually quiet but will make noises once in a while. Effects for items such as elevators are very reminiscent of the sounds used in Doom. Voices are used in the opening and closing animation sequences and sound decent.

Chex Quest is a good game, taking into consideration that it is intended for a young audience and that it came free in a box of cereal! This is a game for a child who enjoys first-person shooters but is not ready for the violence that occurs in most games of this genre.
~ Jonathan Sutyak, All Game Guide

Review: Enjoyment

A younger audience should enjoy the search and destroy action.
~ Jonathan Sutyak, All Game Guide

Review: Graphics

Graphics look okay but are rather bland.
~ Jonathan Sutyak, All Game Guide

Review: Sound

Not bad but not great either.
~ Jonathan Sutyak, All Game Guide

Review: Replay Value

The game is short and all of the secrets are easy to find.
~ Jonathan Sutyak, All Game Guide

Review: Documentation

All of the instructions are located on the disc and are very simple to follow.
~ Jonathan Sutyak, All Game Guide

Production Credits

Original Design and Storyline: Todd Waters, Tom Gunderson, Dean Hyers, Michael Koenigs, Dan Snyder, Lee Snyder; Creative Director: Dean Hyers; Technical Director: Michael Koenigs; Production Supervisor: Mary Bregi; Art Director: Charles Jacobi; Artists: Charles Jacobi, Josh Storms; Programmers: David Brus, Scott Holman, Joel Koenigs; Sound Designer and Composer: Andrew Benson; Intro Animation Sequence: Shank Studios
~ Jonathan Sutyak, All Game Guide
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Wikipedia: Chex Quest
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Chex Quest
Photograph of the CD.
Developer(s) Digital Café
Publisher(s) Digital Café
Engine id Tech 1
Platform(s) MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows
Release date(s) 1996
Genre(s) First-person shooter
Mode(s) Single-player, Multiplayer
Media CD

Chex Quest is a child-friendly non-violent first-person shooter video game, created by Digital Café. It is a total conversion of the more violent video game Doom (specifically Ultimate Doom). This game, notable for being the first video game ever to be included in cereal boxes as a prize, was found in boxes of Chex cereal in 1996.[1] In addition to the original game, Digital Café later made a sequel to Chex Quest called Chex Quest 2, which was only available for download on the Internet. Eventually the promotion ended and the game's availability effectively stalled until it was posted for download on fan pages several years later. In September 2008, a second sequel, Chex Quest 3 was developed and released as a service to fans by former Digital Café members Charles Jacobi (art director and lead artist) and Scott Holman (programmer).[2][3]

Within the active Chex Quest fan community, numerous unofficial projects have been undertaken and several completed. Examples which have arguably entered the fanon include a fan-made Chex Quest 4 (which for many years the author did not allow to be distributed), and such .wad and Game Maker sequels as Return of the Chex Warrior, Chex Quest Project Z, and the Chex Quest platformer. There are fan-made Chex Quest WADs designed for nearly all major Doom ports, even the original Doom engine.

Contents

Story

Zorching a Flemoid.

Set on a distant planet named Bazoik, the game follows the Chex Warrior, a humanoid in an anthropomorphic piece of Chex cereal armor, as he fights to eradicate the Flemoid invasion. These slimy, green creatures have infested the planet and captured many helpless citizens whom the Chex Warrior must save.[4] His only weapon is a device called a "zorcher", which teleports his enemies instead of killing them. The game starts at the landing pad of the research facility on Bazoik, after which the protagonist is teleported to the storage facility. The other levels include the laboratory, the arboretum, and finally, the underground caverns of Bazoik, where the Flemoids seem to be making a home for themselves.

Relations to Doom

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Some parameters used to start Doom are also used to start Chex Quest. Despite Chex Quest's major changes from its predecessor, there are still a few remaining relics (e.g. levels from other Ultimate Doom episodes and some in-game text).

While Doom has a cheat code scheme in which every cheat starts with 'ID', the codes in Chex Quest are based on the names of the people in the production crew of the game, with a few exceptions. PC speaker sound effects from the DOS version of Doom have been modified and are used in Chex Quest. Whereas Doom is rated M for Mature, Chex Quest was made to be a child-friendly game for all audiences. Nearly every graphic and sound effect from Doom has been replaced, from textures to enemies to weapons.

The Leftover Levels

Chex Quest has only the first five levels from Ultimate Doom converted for the game. Some leftover levels are playable (as Chex Quest conversions) only via the level warp parameter at startup. These leftover levels include maps 6 through 9 from episode 1 as well as all maps in episodes 2, 3, and 4. In these levels the music reverts to the original score from Ultimate Doom. After the level warp parameter is used to access maps E3M1 or E4M1, the remainder of the levels (through map 5) within the episode selected can be accessed by completing the levels in the episode in order (just as with the standard level progression in Doom or Chex Quest). Unfortunately, bugs prevent any of the other levels from launching upon completion of the level before it, and similarly E4M9 cannot be reached from E4M2 as previously. Completion of E2M5 (via either exit) displays the end graphic originally displayed at the end of The Shores Of Hell, the second episode of the original Doom, and completing E3M5 displays the end sequence from Inferno, the final episode. Likewise, completing E4M5 displays the end graphic from Thy Flesh Consumed, the final episode of Ultimate Doom. Both of the latter two end sequences feature a decapitated rabbit named Daisy.

Episode intermission texts which originally (i.e. in Doom) were displayed upon completion of E1M8, E2M8, E3M8, and E4M8 are now found in modified form for Chex Quest. Thus completion of E1M5 in Chex Quest now displays the new message: "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. ARE YOU PREPARED FOR THE NEXT MISSION? PRESS THE ESCAPE KEY TO CONTINUE..." Interestingly, completion of the leftover level E2M5 now displays the message: "YOU'VE DONE IT!!" which never appears in the original Ultimate Doom. Likewise, the episode intermission text displayed upon completion of E3M5 reads: "WONDERFUL JOB!", and that displayed upon completion of E4M5 reads: "FANTASTIC" again neither of which ever appeared in the original game. Charles Jacobi says that he knew Scott Holman, another programmer, ran through the text strings and changed any that seemed inappropriate, without knowing where they went.

The skins for the more difficult enemies from Doom have not been converted as these enemies were not employed in Chex Quest levels, but rather the skins have been removed entirely in order to tone down Doom's hellish imagery. This introduces an additional experience for those playing the "leftover levels" as these difficult enemies still exist in a completely invisible form. This also goes for items like the partial invisibility, berserker pack, light amp goggles, and all skull keycards. In addition, the music from the original registered Doom as well as the overworld graphics (depicting Gigeresque scenes of death and hell) and maps that were not modified (E1M6 through E4M9) were left intact, allowing anybody with WAD file editing knowledge to create their own copy of registered Doom (specifically Ultimate Doom).

Chex Quest Multiplayer

Starting in the summer of 2008, there have been Chex Quest cooperative and deathmatch games hosted on the Doom Multiplayer Client Skulltag by ChexCommander. Games were hosted daily from July to August, and were popular among many Chex Quest fans. This has proven that Chex Quest, along with many of its GZDoom mods, is able to be played online between players across the world. More information is available on the Chex Quest Fan Forums.

References

  1. ^ Ross Miller (2008-04-18). "Ask Joystiq: Chex Quest, He-Man and broken 360 gamepads". Joystiq. http://www.joystiq.com/2008/04/18/ask-joystiq-chex-quest-he-man-and-broken-360-gamepads/. Retrieved 2008-07-16. 
  2. ^ http://www.chucktropolis.com/gamers.htm
  3. ^ http://chexquest.org/index.php?topic=918.0
  4. ^ "Moby Games - Chex Quest for DOS". Moby Games. http://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/chex-quest. Retrieved 2008-07-16. 

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Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Chex Quest".  Read more