[Review] – Zeno Clash: Ultimate Edition

Zeno Clash is a hard game to classify because it is so strange, but the closest you could probably get is to call it a first person brawler. You play as Ghat, whose objective is to smash in the faces of every elephantoid, birdman, and wolf-lady that he sees as he makes his way across the outlandish landscape of Zenozoik in his quest to find the truth about the freakish Father-Mother. The story is fairly obscure, but with enough backstory and interesting characters to keep it entertaining. Of special note are the Corwid of the Free, a group of insane individuals, each with their own hilarious quirk.

There is plenty of variety in the combat. There are dozens of ways to punch, kick, and grapple your opponents. While it may seem a bit complex at first, the melee system is fairly easy to get used to, and quite fun once mastered. Additionally, there are a variety of melee and ranged weapons at your disposal. The melee weapons are slow, bludgeoning weapons mainly used to fight the larger enemies in the game. The ranged weapons vary from crossbows, to rifles, to shotguns, and work very well to break up the melee. They never seem too overpowered, as you will always be more vulnerable when using them.

The music does a good job of setting up the creepy atmosphere, and setting the tone for imminent brawls. The voice acting is fairly good, despite the quirky dialog, adding to Zeno Clash's creepy charm. As for the sound effects, there are plenty of realistic grunts, whacks, and thuds, in addition to the bizarre screeches and combat banter of your foes.

The levels are fairly short, and segmented. This is probably my only real complaint about the game, as it felt like I was just going from point A to point B punching the hell out of anything in my way. Though this can be fairly amusing, the game would have benefited from more open level design.

Zeno Clash includes arcade style challenges which can be done in co-op, in which you fight through several rooms full of enemies until you have cleared the level. While this was quite fun, I had completed all of the levels in under 2 hours with a co-op partner. On the bright side, it was a quick and easy way to get most of the achievements in the game.

Tips and Tricks

- If an enemy is charging you while you are holding a ranged weapon, your best bet is to just throw it at them then engage them in melee, unless you are quick on the draw and can stun them with your gunfire.

- Fight dirty! Sometimes you have to kick an enemy when they're down to help you defeat them, especially some of the larger, tougher enemies.

- Ranged weapons have unlimited ammo. If you are able to avoid having them knocked out of your hands (usually by sprinting away from charging opponents), they can be very useful for taking down the enemies' health without getting hit.

Overall, I enjoyed Zeno Clash because it was unlike anything I had ever played before. The gameplay was unique, as was the bizarre art style and character design. There seems to be no consistency or reasoning between just what kind of mutant animal hybrid each character is, but there doesn't need to be. Zeno Clash has a strange sense of humor that is made funnier by the very straight faced seriousness with which it is delivered. All of the characters take all of the events of the game totally seriously, and don't seem to find anything out of the ordinary.

Though the game could have been a bit longer and much more open, it offers an experience that you won't find anywhere else. Fortunately, ACE Team has plans to make a more open, RPG-esque sequel, as well as another very unique looking title called Rock of Ages. Keep an eye out for this team of creative minded indie developers. If you are looking for an experience unlike anything else, Zeno Clash is the game for you.