RE Zero My Last Review

[CrimsonElder]

I have completed every RE game to date except for one. I have owned the Gamecube copy of Zero since I bought Remake back in 2005. I figured that I'd save one game for the future so I'd have something new to play when it's all gone quite on the RE front. I had already played Re 1,2,3,Code,4 and I wasnt going to sit on RE5 so I figured I'd save Zero. To be honest I havent even been tempted to play the game untill playing through all the games recently.

I decided to finally give it a go. I have reached the Sanctuary just after the part where you fight the huge bat. In a way I am glad that I saved this game until last because it is 100% my least favorite RE game. There is some nostaglic moments like the Wesker/Birkin cutscenes, the music and the controls. However this game was very disapointing for me. I absoultley hate the Co-op controls. I have lost count at how many times I accidentaly switch player instead of going to the inventory. Also my main criticism with the game is when you have one of the players following you and you run past enemies and leave the room but they remain in the pervious room shooting at the enemies. You then have to switch player and go back into the room as the player who stayed. By this point I have usually been attacked and it almost always leads to me losing health. This is so annoying and I find it a piss poor fault. If you tell the A.I. to follow you then why are they stopping and taking it into their own hands to deal with enemies.

My second fault with the game is no inventory box's. Wtf? I had no idea Zero has no inventory box's. At first I enjoyed the benefits by leaving items wherever I please. However after playing the game for several hours and having items scattered all over the damn place I somehow forgot where the hell I left the Grenade Launcher and had to venture on without it :-( I only hope I can make it through the rest of the game with a Shotgun and Modified Handgun. The cutscenes start off with some good plot but then slowly as the game progresses I found them coming few and far between. Even when I did get a cutscene they had no significance to the overall plot.

This is definatley my least favorite RE game so far and I'm abit disapointed after my brother claimed it was a good RE title. Id take any of the other titles over this game anyday. I cant wait to blast the shit out of the weird singing guy. He is pretty random. Reminds me of something out of Devil May Cry. I keep waiting for him to pull out a huge sword and some hard rock music kicks in as he jumps around the room hacking and slashing. As harsh as my review is I still enjoyed the game for what it is but how some people can say this is the best RE game I will never understand. I have yet to finish the game but I imagine I'm over half way through and some pretty spectacullar shit would have to happen from here on out for this game to redem itself. I gave the game a 6/10.

Favorites:-
Remake
Nemesis
RE2
RE1 (Original)
RE5
Code
RE4
Zero

Also what is up with the extremley long loading times when you discover and item? I found a book and found myself getting really pissed off that I was staring at this book for like 7 seconds before the player picked it up. Godamn its just a book let me pick it up already. Also what is up with Rebbeca hanging on for her dear life but she can still manage to whip out her radio and contact Billy.

[Anders]

The "co-op" is cool, once you "figure it out". If you're going through a particularly troublesome area, it may be best to go in with only one character (at a time).

And you can see everything you've dropped - and where you dropped it - in the map menu.

The only real problem I have with this game is the enemies. Leaches mimicing a man? COME ON!
Oh, and the somewhat retarded locations which just seem like a collection of rooms rather than an actual facility.

[chris_survivor]

In my opinion RE Zero was a pretty good game when it came out, and it was something new the whole "co-op" thingy, I really never had any problems within. And the dropping items and stuff, sounds more realistic that the magic boxes that we know in past Resident Evil titles.

[CrimsonElder]

The "co-op" is cool, once you "figure it out". If you're going through a particularly troublesome area, it may be best to go in with only one character (at a time).

And you can see everything you've dropped - and where you dropped it - in the map menu.

The only real problem I have with this game is the enemies. Leaches mimicing a man? COME ON!
Oh, and the somewhat retarded locations which just seem like a collection of rooms rather than an actual facility.

Yeah I was thinking of going into more dangers rooms alone. I think I'll try this when I play again. Also agree with you about the facility. When I got to the main hall there I was really excited but the other rooms didnt really excite me as much. Possibly because the main hall felt really nostalgic. Why did you have to tell me the items appear on the map! I have to backtrack now damnit.

In my opinion RE Zero was a pretty good game when it came out, and it was something new the whole "co-op" thingy, I really never had any problems within. And the dropping items and stuff, sounds more realistic that the magic boxes that we know in past Resident Evil titles.

Yeah the item box thing is more realistic, I was thinking exactly that but its just the item box makes it so much easier. I'm not saying this is a terrible game. I dont think any RE main title games are terrible but considering this came out the same time as Remake, I guess I just expected more.

[Scream]

I would have to agree with you there CrimsonElder. I've said before that I have never played the final version of RE Zero. The whole thing seems like some sort of giant retcon, it doesn't seem right that Rebecca had been through all that stuff before ending up at the mansion.. RE0 N64 doesn't seem any better either, since the GC version is almost a remake of it.. And I never liked Marcus and his leeches, and how they just made him responsible for the mansion incident, yeah right.. And I hated how they put that leech guy in Outbreak.

The co-op idea wasn't new either, they've been experimenting with that since one of the early RE alphas, almost all the RE PSX titles have some weird co-op menus hidden away behind the scenes. It just didn't work that well on PSX I guess (or on GC lol).

[DONNIemo]

How about finnishing a game before you "review" and bag it. -_- It's a good game.

[Darkmoon]

It has it's good points, but it has a lot of issues to. In a lot of ways it feels forced into the cannon, storywise. There was never any hint any of these events happened, but it shows there were monster scattered across the countryside around Raccoon City...yet they were all meant to be whiped out, somehow. And the retconning of how the outbreak occurs is a most annoying point. Plus, a lot of people simply don't like Marcus and his leaches.

There are also game play issues. Yeah, it's great to able to drop items. Not so great when you have to lug all the weapons, healing items and important gear from one side of the building to the other if you want to be able to get to them without twenty minutes of back tracking every time you need a herb. It would have worked better if they'd auto-moved the bulk of your gear to a central location each time a new area opened up.

And the zapping mechanic is deffintely an aquired taste.

However, I like Billy. The game play is decent bar the item issues, and while not remake pretty it does look very good.

[Scream]

I watched someone else finish it a long time ago so I don't remember all the details exactly but how severe is the backtracking? I mean if your a good enough player would you still need to do it?

[leftshoe18]

I never had a problem with the backtracking in this game and I loved the different spin on the classic Resident Evil gameplay with the "zapping" back and forth between characters.

Edit: The level and enemy designs weren't as good as I would've liked though.

[Darkmoon]

I watched someone else finish it a long time ago so I don't remember all the details exactly but how severe is the backtracking? I mean if your a good enough player would you still need to do it?

I found it to be a bit of an issue. 'Now where the hell is that hookshot? Oh, it's over by the crashed train. And the herb I need is over there in that room. Grrr.'

You either needed to spend time moving everything to a central-ish location, or hope what you needed was somewhere close by when you needed it.

[Vixtro]

I never really had a problem with the game other than the fact that it felt too short, it was just over too quickly, I suppose I was enjoying it too much. The item dumping really isn't that troubling if you just leave your stuff in the main hall of the training facility.

I remember allot of people seeing it as a disappointment back in the day, I think too many were expecting 2 player co-op.

[Det. Beauregard]

I absoultley hate the Co-op controls. I have lost count at how many times I accidentaly switch player instead of going to the inventory. Also my main criticism with the game is when you have one of the players following you and you run past enemies and leave the room but they remain in the pervious room shooting at the enemies. You then have to switch player and go back into the room as the player who stayed. By this point I have usually been attacked and it almost always leads to me losing health. This is so annoying and I find it a piss poor fault. If you tell the A.I. to follow you then why are they stopping and taking it into their own hands to deal with enemies.

Managing your partner is kind of like another puzzle in the game to me. You can turn your partner to "idle," by the way, so they won't attack enemies. You have to figure out when it will be more beneficial for them to plug away at enemies (e.g. w/handgun) or just run past. I would actually recommend them being set to "idle" for most of the game, and only setting them to "attack" to chip away at zombies. You never want them on "attack" with anything better than the handgun, since they'll waste ammo.

I say "them," but what I really mean is Rebecca. You should try to play as Billy as much as you can, and keep Becky in the support role due to her weaker health.

My second fault with the game is no inventory box's. Wtf? I had no idea Zero has no inventory box's.

Many people don't like this, myself included. I feel they could have done a better job if they added boxes, but also allowed you to drop stuff anywhere. For all RE games, actually, this would be kinda cool.

[Anders]

I say "them," but what I really mean is Rebecca. You should try to play as Billy as much as you can, and keep Becky in the support role due to her weaker health.

I disagree. If you're moving both characters, it's better to play as Rebecca, to have more control over the most vulnerable character.

If you're going in somewhere alone, Billy is the obvious choice.

[TheSelfishGene]

I really like the gameplay. With dropping items, I just leave them all in the one room usually, so that floor acts like a storage chest. I didn't find backtracking to be an issue at all.

I think the game is alot prettier than REmake. Some of the backgrounds are amazing (eg. The outside of the train).

In my opinion the game is let down by the dodgy story line, and uninspired enemy design.

[Det. Beauregard]

I disagree. If you're moving both characters, it's better to play as Rebecca, to have more control over the most vulnerable character.

If you're going in somewhere alone, Billy is the obvious choice.

I suppose I could have worded my post a bit better. I mean that if you're going somewhere dangerous alone (e.g. stinger battle, 2F east wing of facility, giant bat fight, upper floor of Marcus' lab, etc.) you should use Billy and leave Rebecca in a deserted room. If you're about to walk into a room that you know will contain five zombies, you should probably just bring Billy.

I try not to move both characters (at the same time) through an enemy-filled area.

[Alexia_Ashford]

I hate RE Zero. It's the numbered main game in the series that I've never bothered to finish, because I just really don't like it. The gameplay gets on my nerves, don't like the enemies, don't like the atmosphere, don't like the final boss. Just really not a fan of it. Didn't feel the RE magic from the game and it's my worst numbered game in the franchise. I much prefer RE4 to this game.

[TheBatMan]

I disagree,I thought the atmosphere in Zero was spot on. The train section was nice and claustrophobic, with the rain splattering against the windows, and the training facility sections were great. I enjoyed exploring this run down, dusty old place discovering subtle hints about the early days of Umbrella.
Sure the game was by no means perfect, but I'd rate this above Code Veronica in the main series of titles.

[Zombie Fred]

I really like the gameplay. With dropping items, I just leave them all in the one room usually, so that floor acts like a storage chest. I didn't find backtracking to be an issue at all.

I think the game is alot prettier than REmake. Some of the backgrounds are amazing (eg. The outside of the train).

In my opinion the game is let down by the dodgy story line, and uninspired enemy design.

Pretty much this. Some of the creatures and plot elements made no sense, or was a full on mind fuck (magical elevator or how the fuck Leo the scropion was still latched on top of the express train with that size for example) that needed some depth looking. Or you could just say it's just a game and leave it at that, but the fan in me refuses to accept that realm of reality when it comes to the world details! The big problem I can see for some people is that it could be too similar to REmake and the story wasn't really its strong point when you can think on some of the contradictions if you only played in the Spencer estate and was with Chambers (and how she acted due to the script already then). I loved it for what it is however and would of been happy if they implimented some of that feeling into the outbreak games back then. It could of been something more special.

[Det. Beauregard]

The story in this game is definitely one of its weaker points. If you play RE2 or CVX before this (with their higher-quality plots), you will easily notice many "WTF?!" moments. We get it, Marcus - practical Al and scholar Will killed you. Why are you attacking Becky and Billy, then? Now I know that Marcus was always a bit insane, but... "the world will burn in an inferno of hate!" Seriously? I actually thought the leech thing was interesting, but it was tainted by horrible acting on the antagonist's part.

The characters were mostly okay by me, but that's just because they were all from previous games (minus Billy). His story was interesting, but I still find him to be one of the weaker supporting characters in the series. I also loved the Al & Will scenes.

The enemies were one of the weakest points of the game. It seemed that everything was a giant insect, arachnid, or annelid - stinger, plague crawlers, centurion, web spinners, leeches, etc. It got old. The bats never really bothered me, since the environments lent themselves to their habitats.

Speaking of habitats, some of them were awesome! I admit that the train was a unique idea for a RE game, but in the end it felt a little too "Mission: Impossible" at times (with the crawling on the roof). And a big "WTF?!" to the stinger just popping in. However, the training facility (w/basement) and Marcus' lab under the church were two of the most interesting environments in the series in my opinion. Something about the creepiness - that throughout the years, this is where Umbrella trained savages, and where ungodly experiments were performed - just hit me hard. The factory was cool, although I'm not sure if they intended it to be Birkin's facility from RE2 - was that ever cleared up? Finally, the treatment plant was something we'd all seen before (in almost every RE game), and was a bit stale at that point.

I have to hand it to RE0 - it has pretty nice weapons! The addition of the bonus submachine gun was nice, and I love the semi-auto magnum! It annoys me that Remake, RE3, and CVX don't have the semi-auto! The option for infinite ammo was cool (I'm lookin' at you, Remake and CVX), and the bonus game is probably my favorite of the series (I love scavenger hunts).

The music was good, too. From the creepiness of the training facility and lab themes to the intensity of the more upbeat pieces (Uneasiness, Save Rebecca!, the Cage Room), this game's music matched the atmosphere. Nothing beats the queen leech's theme, though - they liked it so much that they made it better for Umbrella Chronicles!