"Chip's Challenge" is a game from the early 90s, a time when cathode-ray tubes are the monitors of the day and Microsoft Windows is just about to stretch its legs.
The game is a tile-based, puzzle video game developed by Chuck Sommerville for the original Windows (included in the Microsoft Entertainment Pack and Best of Windows Pack), MS-DOS, the hand-held Atari Lynx, and ZX Spectrum, per Classic Reloaded.
The game is a nostalgia trip for many veteran gamers so much that in 2020, the game was added into the popular digital video game distributor, Steam, in its 16-bit glory for free.
Plot, Features, and More
"Chip's Challenge" plot is as simple as the game itself: the game follows high-school student Chip McCallahan as he navigates his way through various puzzles of differing difficulty in his school's science laboratory to gain entry into Melinda The Mental Marvel's very exclusive Bit Buster Club.
Players will have to solve Melinda's puzzles that consist of a tiled grid to get Chip to the next level, per Polygon. The player must collect several computer chips to unlock the exit portal and progress through the game to solve each level. However, players will have to keep in mind the puzzles' obstacles that the player must avoid to survive. These obstacles include enemies, movable blocks, locked doors, and difficult terrain (fire, water, etc.).
The game provides players with ways to overcome these obstacles, such as fire boots, rollerblades, and what seems to be diving flippers.
There are 148 to 149 levels in the game, depending on what version you had at the time. If you had Microsoft's version of the game, then you'll have to go through 149 levels to beat the game. Otherwise, you'll only have to beat 148 levels. These levels can be skipped by entering a four-letter non-case-sensitive password, which could be easy to crack if you had the Windows version of the game.
However, the game can be generous for players as it allows players to skip a level if they're having trouble getting past it. The Microsoft version even has a hidden option called "Ignore Passwords," allowing players to skip levels up to level 146 without providing a password, per the Chip's Challenge Wiki.
However, the game measures the player's progress using the number of levels completed and their total accumulated score - the sum of the scores obtained on each level.
2020 Steam Release
PCGamesN previously reported that "Chip's Challenge" was added into Steam for free on September 22, 2020. It is also accompanied by its sequel, Chip's Challenge 2 in a $4.99-bundle. The game is lightly updated to run on modern machines. As such, "Chip's Challenge" and its sequel can be played using devices with at least a 1GHz processor, 512MB of RAM, DirectX 6.0, 100MB of available storage, and a 16-bit sound card, per Steam Store's Chip's Challenge page.
Steam reviews of the game have been very positive, with a lot of players being hit by a sense of nostalgia and happiness of being able to play one of their favorite game again since the game was released around 30 years ago. Although there are some that frown on the game's new engine, animated graphics, and dated gameplay, "Chip's Challenge" continues to be played to this day.
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