The epitome of innovation, art, and style.

[Z-Nine]

To anyone one on the fence that isn't afraid of trying something new I implore you to try out Zeno Clash. There is absolutely nothing like it. The fact that people have to reach as far as the melee in Condemned or Chronicles of Riddick to describe the kind of game it is self-explanitory on the unique flavor the game brings. It's nothing like those (apart from punching) either.

It's a shame that reviewers do not realize or emphasize on that point. Not only is it something brand new; it's done very, very well. The work presented (especially in Zeno Clash 2) seems to have more work put into it than many AAA studios are able to put in. There are literally hundreds of different Characters you encounter that add a spice of life and immersion. From complete and awe-inducing variation of environments to unique weapons and abilities never thought of before, it's something I wish more studios would at least take a little inspiration from.

The lore and story are destined to be a cult classic. Zeno Clash 1 creates many questions. Zeno Clash 2 answers them and leaves more. At face value it seems to be intelligible with no depth. You need to pry it open to realize exactly how much was put into it. The dialogue (Especially among Zenozoiks) is cryptic yet simple for a reason. Many are plagued with habits, deformities, and behavior that can be understood at least on a basic level.

Please, please, PLEASE support this kind of innovative entertainment from a company like this. It pains me to see the poor reception and likely lack of sales from them when it feels like they are focusing on the game entirely wrong. Technical aspects are talked about and quite frankly are poorly researched. Complaints of locking on, when the option to do it automatically can be turned off. The AI fits the behavior of the world. Sometimes hitting eachother to get them out of the way, but also working together enough to put up a fight. It honestly doesn't feel broken or bad as some reviews have stated. It feels real and the feedback of fighting is fantastic.

Anyone who has capability to understand what a game is portraying and looking beyond the face-value mechanics will find this game beyond exceptional. If you're the type of gamer who simply wants to play another game to waste time and kill things, ignore story and message, and rush through things - then please save it. Your criticism is drawing away from those who will have one of the best gaming experiences in a long time.

Edit: Seeing games, like the WarZ, selling a lot better than Zeno Clash 2 just shortly after it's release is extremely depressing to me.

[sere]

ditto, this is the most special game in a long while. I think there is a slight overlap with okami as far as that "special magic" is concerned. both games combine new ideas to rest upon a foundation of familiarity.

After several hours of getting into the game it makes you almost angry at other game companies for having deprived us of "unique" and "fantastic" over the course of several years! (the worst offender was EA, that soccer game that was exactly the same game as the year prior but they still charged 50 bucks for it as if it were a new game. all they did was change the roster!)

sadly, also, when they do catch on and pretend to start fueling innovation they will likely just rip off developers like ace team and make a zeno clash clone of epic perversion (can't copy zc)

[Z-Nine]

Originally posted by Duke Silver:

And here we have a combat game in the First Person View. Something you can barely call a genre unto itself. It has a truly bizarre, eye-catching style and world, and most importantly: it feels damn good. That's all Zeno needs to be. That's all so many of the best games have been. It might be buggy and lacking a sheen, but it's an oasis to someone who rarely gets excited about games.


This is why the industry feels broken from a journalistic perspective: slavery to the psuedo-empirical criterias, without so much as any regard for context, boldness, or effort. It's disgusting.

Right. There's too much attention to specific components of a game rather than how the game impacts the player and the overall experience. A recent example I can think of was Papo & Yo. At it's simple mechanical core, it's an extremely simple puzzle platformer and is nothing terribly special. Those who judge a game solely on that aspect hated it. To anyone else who could appreciate the message and had any sort of empathy in story-telling found it touching and had a huge impact.

This comes circle into Zeno Clash. There are completely new and unfamiliar mechanics being introduced to these reviewers. Features which they will still want to attempt the same scrutiny as, say, shooting mechanics in a standard FPS. If there was something they did not think felt right, then to them (completely ignoring story and experience) the game is bad.

[[ACE] cbordeu]

Thanks a lot guys for the incredible support! I really mean it... posts like these are truly meaningful for all us. It's been a bit hard reading the early reviews, when quite frankly we were expecting much better, given that we went through enormous effort to improve all things that you - the fans - asked for since ZC1.

For a tiny team of 15 people this was a monumental project - one that required our utmost commitment and dedication. We appreciate the incredible response we've gotten from the people who purchased the game. Hopefully word will spread out and the game will pick up.

[Varenzer_H8JK]

Can I create a negative post - about this game? Maybe it will encourage you to do a prooper PC port (do not even dreaming of creating a game for PC first) . Maybe it will enourage you for using modern technologies instead being bound by outdated console limitation? Can I?

[Z-Nine]

Originally posted by Asia + dva deebeella:

Can I create a negative post - about this game? Maybe it will encourage you to do a prooper PC port (do not even dreaming of creating a game for PC first) . Maybe it will enourage you for using modern technologies instead being bound by outdated console limitation? Can I?

What the hell are you talking about? Telling an indie studio to use the most advanced technology is slightly moronic. Zeno Clash 2 and Zeno Clash 1, as well as Rock of Ages were all developed for the PC first.

Originally posted by ACE cbordeu:

Thanks a lot guys for the incredible support! I really mean it... posts like these are truly meaningful for all us. It's been a bit hard reading the early reviews, when quite frankly we were expecting much better, given that we went through enormous effort to improve all things that you - the fans - asked for since ZC1.

For a tiny team of 15 people this was a monumental project - one that required our utmost commitment and dedication. We appreciate the incredible response we've gotten from the people who purchased the game. Hopefully word will spread out and the game will pick up.

Here's to hoping. Congratulations on the release.

[sere]

I think his post isn't true to the point he wanted to make. Although out of place (as far as I can best understand him) I don't feel he meant to sound so harsh. I think he just wanted an oustanding PC game that won't be set back by console limitations (typical internet talking point). It would help if we knew what was actually disliked so far in his 2 and a half hour playthrough (according to his profile). Obviously, there was a language hurdle and if I was feeling more playful I would draw comparisons between his use of English and perceived shortcomings of the PC build :-O but that would be wrong.

[Varenzer_H8JK]

I will try to make more dedicated post on that (my) topic later - and sadly english is not my mother tongue (and not my father tongue too :) ). I'm huge fan of the ZC1 and Preordered ZC2 once it appeared in steam.

[󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡]

I'm glad i bought ZC2 - totally worth it.

Awesome game, just awesome. Really enjoyed playing it from start to finish. It got nice story, beautiful visual style and all those bizarre creatures, i just can't help myself but punch them in the face, too tempting :D My only complaint is that combat feels awkward sometimes and combos are very hard to do outside of tutorial in real situations, so i ended up beating everyone with elbow and chain when i got closer to endgame :)

[[ A E ] WinD]

I have my video review coming on the 12 for Twitch.tv/blog/youtube/steam discussion; My reviews are Metacritic shown and only have a 10% less weight than IGN; (Metacritic gives weight on a scale of near 8 or 9 # differences depending on how "important" they see your journalism/website"

I gave Bioshock infinite 100; I gave The Witcher 2 100: These are two games with large budgets (alothugh Witcher 2 much much more a middle budget; CDProjektRED is a small company that grew after TW1.)

I believe BShock Infinite will be the game of the year but...

The original Zeno Clash I gave a 9/10 and said everything had to play it; or atleast try it atleast once. I going to give Zeno Clash 2 a 9.4 out of 10; and if I hold off for the next patch and the inclusion of arena then I will either do a seperate review again or wait on the review to be posted and most likely get the 9.6 to 9.8 range.

The game is that important to me and the gaming community. (esp PC gamers)

[[ACE] abordeu]

Glad you enjoyed the game! Thanks for the great review scores!

[Endalrin]

I fell in love with the first game, I loved the system, the strange art. granted I sucked at combat and barely beat father mother the first time and NEVER beet him/her, well him the last time and it was such a hard fight I gave up and youtubed the final scene and the end suprise was a little bit of a... "Oh, that's it? kidnapped babies? that's the big reveal? yawn." BUT STILL so awesome I can so easily overlook it!

I just hope this new game is everything I loved and more. One thing I despise that torchlight 2 did (yet I still love it.) is throw old characters to the way side. I havent seen his close friend from the first game yet and I really hope she's still around!!!

[[ACE] abordeu]

Originally posted by Nos Rin:

I havent seen his close friend from the first game yet and I really hope she's still around!!!

Deadra appears in this game. We didn't forget about her! :)

[Mark]

This game is exquisite. The art direction and style is mesmerising; the character design is so interesting that you can't help but stop and look at them (and club them in the face if you remember them from the first game); the combat feels natural and smooth; the environments are so abstract and quirky but also somehow believable; the music is great (especially the track that plays in the Pink Tower zone). I can't think of a single thing that wasn't presented well.

I totally agree with the original post. There must be something fundamentally different between the people who dislike this game and myself, because I just don't understand how you can dislike it.


I was a bit unsure about the story to start with, because the allegiances swapped 180 degrees from what they were in the first game. I wasn't very happy about having Rimat fight with me because she was my most hated enemy in ZC1, but after an hour or so she grew on me. It took me until meeting up with Pott before I was fully engaged with the story, but it kept getting better from then on.

I had no technical problems whatsoever, which is pretty impressive considering even the big developers always seem to have some issues.

I only have three (minor) complaints about the game:
1. The guns don't seem to be as useful as they were in the first game. The only one I actually bothered using was the one with the embers near the muzzle - the others I usually just threw away, preferring to use my fists
2. No challenge tower! I loved this in ZC1 and was really hoping something similar would appear in the menu when I finished ZC2. With the proper ally system in ZC2 I think there's a lot of potential for this.
3. Poor Oxameter :(

I'm looking forward to playing it again!

[nutcrackr]

I didn't like the original zeno clash much, but the sequel has eliminated many of the problems I had with the first one. I will be reviewing the game soon for a non-metacritic game website and it will be getting a better score than the original. Currently metacritic has ZC1 and ZC2 as 77 and 60 respectively. I'm really perplexed by this because I think the second is better in just about all areas. I haven't read the reviews yet, since I'm writing one myself I like to avoid influence.

The extra time really shines through in the environments (great use of UE3) and the combat is basically frustration free with some excellent tools. The golem hand and gauntlet are amazing. I think he ACE team have outdone themeselves when compared to ZC1.

[Chicken Wing]

Originally posted by ACE cbordeu:

given that we went through enormous effort to improve all things that you - the fans - asked for since ZC1.

Who ever asked you to destroy the great simplicity of zeno clash 1 and replace it with some messy hybrid that is zc2???