Zone of the Enders

 Well, we haven't had one of these in a while.

One of the phenomena I have always found interesting is how some series become major players during one gaming generation, only to be largely forgotten once new consoles are released. I found this to be especially prevalent in the 6th generation, especially with the PlayStation 2 and GameCube. I've already looked at titles like Onimusha: Warlords and Jak and Daxter, which were huge, heavily hyped 6th gen series that just disappeared after the 7th gen started. It's not like they haven't received HD remasters or ports or collection re-releases, but in terms of new games, there has been nothing. And no, mobile games don't count. Zone of the Enders fit perfectly into this category. It was a huge, huge deal when it came out and was extremely well received critically. It came out in a time where game creators didn't get the director treatment they do now, but it was created by Hideo Kojima, one of the earliest people to start receiving that kind of reverence. It was widely considered one of the must-play games of the early PS2 lineup.

So, what happened? Well, it's sequel, subtitled The Second Runner, didn't sell particularly well. But there was more to it than that. Because ZOE's strong sales were largely attributed not to the game itself but the demo disc that came with it. ZOE was packaged with a preview for an upcoming AAA title, a game in that OTHER series Kojima is known for working on. You know, the one about snakes and metal and gears? Look, I think it's pretty clear that the inclusion of a Metal Gear Solid 2 demo massively increased the sales of Zone of the Enders. How else would a game about giant mechs sell more in the U.S. than in Japan? But while the MGS2 demo had an impact on sales, it doesn't mean that Zone of the Enders couldn't stand on its own as a game. There was a lot to like here and ZOE is definitely one of the better titles of its era. The PS2's early library was very underwhelming, and this was one of the first titles to really show what the console was capable of.

ZOE puts you in the shoes of Leo Stenbuck, a young boy from the Antilla space colony in Jupiter's orbit. The year is 2172, man has colonized Mars and begins setting up colonies throughout the rest of the solar system. He doesn't love life on Antilla, but it's relatively peaceful and it's all he knows. Things take a turn for the worst when the colony is attacked by the paramilitary force known as BAHRAM, who are seeking a giant mech called an orbital frame. The attack is swift and brutal, forcing Leo to run for his life after watching his home get destroyed and his friends get killed. He makes his way to one of the colony's hangars, thinking he's at a dead end. He nearly resigns himself to his fate before he discovers he's taken refuge in the exact orbital frame, called Jehuty, his attackers covet. Jehuty activates suddenly, with its onboard computer ADA recognizing Leo as the pilot. He's shocked, doubly so when he uses Jehuty to effortlessly take down some of the BAHRAM forces despite having never piloted a mech before. And then things get even MORE crazy (did I mention this was a Hideo Kojima game?) when Leo is contacted by Elena Weinberg, commander of the Atlantis of the United Nations Space Force. She asks Leo to to help her with her initial mission: bring Jehuty to the Atlantis so it can be transported to Mars to battle with BAHRAM. Leo is initially reluctant; he doesn't want to help anyone do anymore killing whether it's BAHRAM or the UNSF. But convinced by his friend Celvice, who he rescues in the chaos, and realizing he is out of options if he wants to survive, Leo decides to go along with the plan.

There are a lot of moving parts story wise, as would be expected from the game's creator. I guess at the end of the day it doesn't really matter too much because the focus is on the action, but it was a bit heavy handed with the whole "I don't want to fight because ethics" stuff. Leo's cause is noble, and his morals are sound, but he's so obnoxious and self-important that he still comes off as miserable despite all that. It may not be an RPG, but he's definitely an "RPG Kid."  Still, it's kind of nice to see a game that's largely focused on action put some thought into its story and message. At least it was in those days. I like that they attempted to make your actions mean something, like the game was about more than just making other robots go boom. It doesn't really manifest itself in the gameplay, but it's kind of cool.

Fortunately, the gameplay is still awesome. ZOE was fast paced and frenetic in a way that made me want to keep playing and playing. It's unfortunately short, but it still offers a surprising amount of depth for only being a few hours long. The biggest positive here is the combat, which is as good as any action game of its era. Hey, if it got me hooked on a game about mechs, then it's obviously doing something right. Each area you enter will be filled with enemies, which you can avoid or engage. Engaging enemies at range will bring up battle mode, where you have a variety of options to attack. First, the game has a targeting system similar to what you saw in the N64 era Zelda games. You can lock on to one enemy with the push of a button and switch your target or break contact with another. You fight in full 3D, with the ability to dash both vertically and horizontally, as well as forward and backwards. Attacking from range will utilize Jehuty's guns, which can be modified with a variety of different items ranging from a javelin to a mortar. You can also perform a charged shot by firing while dashing. Once you are close enough to an enemy, you enter melee moder, where your attacks will now come from an energy blade. Essentially, this makes the game both a 3rd person shooter and an action game at the same time, something that I think is very cool. The melee combat is especially intense, with crazy back and forth battles and intense camera cuts. A lot of games that shift like that tend to be inconsistent, like you think you are going to swing only to shoot instead, but that wasn't the case here. It was about as well done as it could possibly be in a game of this era. Every encounter feels like it's a big deal and even battles against minor enemies are some level of exciting.

I think the biggest thing that ties this all together is how well the game is designed around Jehuty's abilities. There aren't a huge variety of enemies, but each type is best defeated with different kinds of attacks. Some require you to get up close, while others are better handled by using your guns. Sometimes you need to use charged attacks, while others require quick strikes. Sometimes you need to be proactive, while other enemies require you to block and react. ZOE also does a great job varying one on one fights with battles against multiple enemies. All of the bosses are unique and require you to master tough but fair patterns to defeat them. Most of the game is fairly straightforward, but there are some side missions that ask you to rescue civilians while also preventing further damage to the colony. These basically require you to be more careful about when you are going to attack, because mashing buttons will most certainly cause you to damage the environment. A lot of games get heavy handed with this stuff, but these missions really work here and if you absolutely can't stand them, they can be skipped. There are even a handful of exploration missions and while they aren't particularly complex, they do break the game up a little bit. There's a lot of variety here without straying too far from the formula that makes the game work to begin with.

The biggest problem here, if I'm being honest, is that the game is too short. Usually that's one of those "nice problem to have" kind of issues, but the length really is an issue here. At only five hours, ZOE feels like it ends just as it's gameplay mechanics and story are starting to hit their stride. It really needed to be way longer, maybe double that length, to fully flesh out all of those things. It would have been nice to see a bigger world with more to explore and more enemies to fight. Maybe the story wouldn't come off as pretentious as it does if everyone's motives were explained a little bit better. Leo especially comes off as an obnoxious little brat who doesn't understand the world around him and maybe if he were better developed that wouldn't be the case. His writing is generally weird, and he presents a lot of paradoxical character traits. He's an outright nihilist who hates everyone around him, yet he's so averse to being in combat? And he's so attached to Celvice, yet his relationship to her isn't ever explained? I think it kind of goes back to the length, there just wasn't time for that. Remember, this is a Hideo Kojima game, you would expect a lot of nonsense and there just isn't the time for it. The other big issue is the camera. Games like this were relatively new and there wasn't a set way to make the camera work yet, which really shows here. You would think you would rotate it with the right analog stick, but that isn't the case. The camera will focus behind Jehuty, so sometimes you have to move just to get it to reset. This was very frustrating and got me into a few fights I wanted to avoid, although it wasn't nearly as bad as I would have thought. Still though, it was a pain to deal with.

Despite all of that, I really liked ZOE and I'm a bit upset I missed it when it came out. I might do something on this later, but the PS2 launch was really considered underwhelming and it took quite a while for really well received games to come out. ZOE came out a few months after launch and it was one of the first PS2 titles I remember receiving universally high scores. It may have been overshadowed by the demo that came with it, but I think ZOE does more than enough to stand on its own. It may be a little too short and is more linear than I would like, but the combat is so fun and engaging that I couldn't stop playing. I do wish it were longer, but what was there was fun, unique and exciting. Of all the games from "forgotten" series' I reviewed; I think ZOE would be the one I would most like to see made into a modern game. I think you could do some absolutely insane things with its gameplay, setting and story. Who knows if it will ever happen, but it would be pretty cool.

9/10