Zone of the Enders for PS2

Game developers are constantly pushing the envelope in Playstation 2 games, and Konami is no exception. Yoji Shinkawa, in cooperation with the legendary director of the Metal Gear series, Hideo Kojima, has created an exciting game featuring flying humanoid mechs and some of the fastest action you will see on your screen. In ZOE you control a fourteen year-old boy named Leo, who accidentally climbed into the "orbital frame" mech Jehuty while avoiding an enemy attack on his colony. Jehuty's onboard computer, ADA, registered him as the pilot and it is now up to Leo to use Jehuty to save the colony. During the course of the game Leo must overcome his reluctance of killing enemies in order to save the colony. He and ADA build an interesting human/machine relationship similar to the Terminator, where ADA tries to understand human emotions and Leo constantly struggles against her pragmatic computerized logic. ZOE is not heavy on dialogue or character development, but it has its moments of interesting plot twists and relationships.

Leo must descend into cities being held siege by enemies and save the civilians. However, you must not simply charge into battle, because it could destroy buildings and kill civilians in the process. The best strategy is to lure the enemies into an area with no buildings before engaging in battle. ZOE's biggest weakness is in repetition: there are only three types of normal enemies in the entire game. Although they gain additional abilities as you progress through the game, it becomes tedious destroying the same basic types of enemies over and over again. Boss encounters are challenging and intense, offering a nice break from the standard formula of descending into cities and battling endless drones. ZOE has an excellent control scheme and instantaneous responses to your commands. Although the action is lightning fast and intense, you have such precise control over the mech that it feels completely natural. After learning the basics in the tutorial and practicing for a few minutes, any ZOE player will be able to dash towards enemies while firing energy beams, come into close quarters slashing with the laser sword, flipping and dodging around enemy attacks like a pro.

ZOE's graphics are crisp and detailed in both texturing and special effects. The armor plates on the bodies of the orbital frames are reflective and glossy, giving the game a very clean appearance. The expansive areas are impressive with long sight distances and a sense of voluminous space. When engaged in battle, the special effects go into overdrive with dynamically colored lighting, lasers, explosions and particles flying in all directions as the mechs tear into each other. The destruction of buildings is also a treat to the eyes, although you must avoid reckless demolition in order to earn a high grade.

ZOE has clear audio that fits into the game well. The musical score consists of upbeat techno tracks that are calm during normal navigation mode but intensify when battles occur, enhancing the relentless pace of ZOE. The sound effects mostly consist of brisk battle noises which further give ZOE's gameplay a sense of blinding speed. The English-dubbed voice acting is surprisingly good, although Leo's whining can be aggravating at times. It would have been better if Konami had included an option between Japanese dialogue and subtitles and the English dub as Capcom did with Onimusha Warlords (the game is on DVD, after all, there should have been plenty of room to include both languages).

In addition to being a worthwhile game, ZOE comes with a fully playable demo of the critically acclaimed Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. MGS2 is the number one most wanted Playstation 2 game of the year, and it deserves it. The demo version alone will provide hours of entertainment and amazement from the jaw-dropping graphics to the tiniest details in gameplay. It is almost a shame that a relatively simple game like ZOE was packaged with a demo of such a revolutionary game. If you buy ZOE, be sure to play it before MGS2, for the latter game will change your perception on gaming forever and may steal a great deal of ZOE's thunder. Regardless, ZOE is an exciting, fun, yet repetitive game that will provide you with several hours of enjoyment. Completing the game unlocks a two-player mode that is fun to play with friends, providing even more hours of enjoyment. These features, in addition to the outstanding MGS2 demo, make ZOE a must-buy title for any Playstation 2 owner.