Zax: The Alien Hunter

Last updated
Zax: The Alien Hunter
Zax Alien Hunter 2001.jpg
Developer(s) Reflexive Entertainment
Publisher(s) JoWooD Productions
Designer(s) Ion Hardie
Platform(s) Windows
Release
  • UK: September 28, 2001 [1]
  • NA: October 9, 2001 [2]
Genre(s) Action
Mode(s) Single-player

Zax: The Alien Hunter is an isometric shooter video game developed by Reflexive Entertainment, released in September 2001 for Windows.

Contents

Plot

The player is Zax, an alien humanoid, who crash-lands on an unknown planet overrun by hostile robot forces, led by Om. Zax joins forces with the local tribes on the planet, the Korbo, whose people have been enslaved by Om and the robot army, to stage a rebellion. Zax must help the Korbo from total destruction, and find as much ore and parts as possible to fix his ship.

Gameplay

Zax: The Alien Hunter is a shooter played in a top-down isometric perspective. Movement is controlled with the keyboard and weapon aim and fire is controlled with the mouse. The player invests minerals harvested on the surface of the planet to develop new weapons, and can also acquire power-ups that increase shields or gun power from defeated enemies, or replenish health from containers found throughout the environment. The game includes 22 missions over 100 maps. Progression is partly non-linear and relies on decisions made by the player during missions. [3]

The game also features several multiplayer modes for up to 16 players, including 'capture the flag', 'deathmatch', and 'salvage king', which requires players to gather as much ore as they can. [4]

Development

Zax: The Alien Hunter was showcased by JoWooD Productions at E3 in May 2001. [5] The game was marketed for its fusion of the features of Quake and Diablo . [6]

Reception

Reviews

Zax: The Alien Hunter received "mixed or average reviews", according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. [7]

Positive reviews of Zax: The Alien Hunter focused on its gameplay. Louis Bedigian of GameZone stated the game was "insanely addictive", praising its multiplayer play. [13] Ivan Sulic of IGN found the gameplay "legitimately gratifying" due to the "simply, refreshing and enjoyable" control scheme and "fast and furious" multiplayer mode. [4] Scott Osborne of GameSpot stated, despite the simplicity of the gameplay, the game's "excellent pacing and rewarding action" made the game "refreshingly fun", noting "there's just enough diversity to hold your interest and keep the action flowing". [10]

Reviewers were mixed on the merits of the game's isometric presentation and graphics. Scott Osborne of GameSpot praised the game's "beautiful graphics" with "fine attention to detail" and "crisp and colourful" landscapes and creatures. [10] Ivan Sulic of IGN similarly stated "graphically, the game is an artistic, albeit static feast...the game is an excellent still frame painting, but the vast majority of the environment is purely decorative." [4] James Lyon of PC Zone found the graphics dated, stating "(it) looks like a ten-year-old game". [12]

The game also received negative reception. Jason Babler of Computer Gaming World dismissed the game as a " Diablo clone", labelling it as "the buggiest game I've ever played". [8] Scott Osborne of IGN similarly noted the game "sounds like another Diablo wannabe, and in some ways it is", citing the game had not learned lessons from Diablo by having a short single-player campaign, few powers and abilities, and no character classes or skills. [4]

Criticism of the game frequently made adverse comparisons to the isometric role-playing video game Diablo . [8] Lead designer Ion Hardie acknowledged that this reception came from the dissonance between the action gameplay and the isometric graphics of role-playing video games normally reserved for Diablo . [14]

Legacy

Lead designer Ion Hardie states that developer Reflexive Entertainment was approached by Interplay subsidiary Black Isle Studios to develop a game after "because of the fun they had" playing Zax: The Alien Hunter. [15] The following Reflexive Entertainment game, Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader , was published by Black Isle Studios in 2003.

Related Research Articles

<i>Red Faction</i> (video game) First-person shooter released in 2001

Red Faction is a first-person shooter video game developed by Volition and published by THQ for PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows in 2001, and Macintosh platforms in 2001 and 2002. A version for the N-Gage was developed by Monkeystone Games, and the mobile version was developed by Blue Beck. The game was inspired by several works of contemporary science fiction.

<i>Max Payne</i> (video game) 2001 third-person shooter video game

Max Payne is a 2001 third-person shooter game developed by Remedy Entertainment. It was originally released for Windows by Gathering of Developers in July 2001, and was later ported by Rockstar Games to the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in December 2001, and by MacSoft and Feral Interactive to Mac OS X in July 2002. A version of the game for the Game Boy Advance, featuring an isometric perspective but retaining most of the original's gameplay elements, was released by Rockstar in December 2003, and an enhanced port for mobile devices was published in 2012 to coincide with the release of Rockstar's Max Payne 3. A Dreamcast version of the game was also planned, but was canceled due to the discontinuation of the console in 2001. Max Payne was also made available on Xbox 360 as part of Xbox Originals program in 2009, on PlayStation 3 as a PS2 Classic in 2012, on PlayStation 4 in 2016, and on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S in 2021, due to the consoles' respective backward compatibility and emulation features.

<i>Star Trek: Away Team</i> 2001 video game

Star Trek: Away Team is an isometric real-time tactics video game developed by Reflexive Entertainment and published by Activision. The game was initially released in March 2001 for personal computers using Microsoft Windows in North America. The game is set in the Star Trek universe, after the end of the Dominion War seen in the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It features a range of new characters, set on board the USS Incursion with voice appearances by Brent Spiner and Michael Dorn as Lieutenant Commander Data and Ambassador Worf, respectively. The game received mixed reviews, with criticism directed at the graphics, elements of the gameplay including the lack of any artificial intelligence, and the limited length of the game.

<i>Giants: Citizen Kabuto</i> 2000 video game

Giants: Citizen Kabuto is a third-person shooter video game with real-time strategy elements. It was the first project for Planet Moon Studios, which consisted of former Shiny Entertainment employees who had worked on the game MDK in 1997. Giants went through four years of development before Interplay Entertainment published it on December 7, 2000, for Microsoft Windows; a Mac OS X port was published by MacPlay in 2001, and the game was also ported to the PlayStation 2 later that year.

<i>Tactical Ops: Assault on Terror</i> 2002 video game

Tactical Ops: Assault on Terror is a first-person shooter video game developed in 2002 by Kamehan Studios and published by Infogrames as a MicroProse title. The game is a standalone retail version of a multiplayer modification of the same name published by Kamehan Studios in 1999 for the game Unreal Tournament. The game features match-based missions in which two teams, themed as Special Forces and terrorists, battle to complete mission objectives and kill their opponents. Upon release, Tactical Ops received mixed to average reviews, with critics faulting the game's similarities to the non-commercial version and lack of defining features compared to other multiplayer first-person shooters.

<i>X-COM: Alliance</i> Cancelled video game

X-COM: Alliance is a cancelled video game in the X-COM series. The game was developed by two different teams of MicroProse developers between 1995 and 2002. It had the player assume the role of commander of the militarized scientific mission lost in space during the aftermath of X-COM: Terror from the Deep.

<i>Project Snowblind</i> 2005 video game

Project: Snowblind is a first-person shooter video game developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Eidos Interactive for PlayStation 2, Xbox and Microsoft Windows. The game follows soldier Nathan Frost, who is enhanced with nanotechnology following injuries on a mission and sent against a military regime known as the Republic. Players control Frost through a series of linear levels, using enhancements both in combat and to manipulate security devices such as cameras. The online multiplayer allows up to sixteen players to take part in modes ranging from team-based to solo battles.

<i>Incoming</i> (1998 video game) 1998 video game

Incoming is a 3D shooter video game developed and published by Rage Software. The game was first released for Microsoft Windows in mid-1998, and was followed by a Dreamcast version, which was released in Japan on December 17, 1998, in Europe on October 14, 1999, and in North America on September 15, 1999. Set in the near-future of 2009, the game primarily revolves around controlling vehicles and turrets to fight alien invaders of Earth in one of the campaign modes, the arcade mode, and with or against another player. Some levels include brief real-time strategy segments.

<i>Delta Force: Black Hawk Down</i> 2003 video game

Delta Force: Black Hawk Down is a first-person shooter video game developed by NovaLogic. It was released for Microsoft Windows on March 25, 2003; for Mac OS X in July 2004; and for PlayStation 2 and Xbox on July 26, 2005. It is the 6th game of the Delta Force series. It is set in the early 1990s, during the Unified Task Force peacekeeping operation in Somalia. The missions take place primarily in the southern Jubba Valley and the capital Mogadishu. The game also features a mission editor with which players can make custom missions. The game is based on the book of the same name, not the Sony film.

<i>Delta Force: Task Force Dagger</i> 2002 video game

Delta Force: Task Force Dagger is a first-person shooter video game developed by Zombie Studios and published by NovaLogic. It's a stand-alone expansion pack to Delta Force: Land Warrior. It is set in Afghanistan in 2002 after United States invasion of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan in 2001.

<i>Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader</i> 2003 video game

Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader is an action role-playing game developed by Reflexive Entertainment and published by Interplay Entertainment subsidiary Black Isle Studios for Windows, released in August 2003. The game is viewed from a 3/4 isometric camera angle. It focuses on a protagonist, controlled by the player, as he travels on a quest that constitutes the central focus of the game. The plot stipulates a rift in reality that drastically altered medieval history by allowing demons and other similar beings to enter the mortal realm. During the game, the protagonist encounters and interacts with numerous historical figures such as Joan of Arc, Leonardo da Vinci and Galileo Galilei who are represented as non-player characters.

<i>MechWarrior 4: Vengeance</i> 2000 video game

MechWarrior 4: Vengeance is a vehicle simulation game, developed by FASA Interactive and published by Microsoft. It was released on November 22, 2000. It is the fourth game in MechWarrior series. It takes place in BattleTech universe where the pinnacle of all war machines are huge, heavily armed robots called BattleMechs. The player pilots one of these "'Mechs" and uses variety of available weapons to battle enemy 'Mechs, tanks and other vehicles. An expansion pack, MechWarrior 4: Black Knight, was released in 2001, and a subsequent stand-alone expansion, MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, was released on November 7, 2002. Two smaller expansions, Inner Sphere Mech Pak and Clan Mech Pak, were also released in 2002.

<i>Clusterball</i> 2000 video game

Clusterball is a 2000 video game featuring futuristic sport gameplay created by the Swedish Company Daydream Software and published by Strategy First, RealNetworks and Daydream Software itself.

<i>Attack on Pearl Harbor</i> (video game) 2007 video game

Attack on Pearl Harbor is a combat flight simulation game developed by 3DIVISION and Legendo Entertainment and published by Legendo and CDV Software. The game is based on the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the following Battles of Wake Island, Midway, and the Coral Sea. The game is presented through a third-person perspective. In the single-player campaign, the players assumes control of either a United States Army Air Force pilot or an Imperial Japanese Navy pilot. The multiplayer component allows players to engage in both cooperative and competitive gameplay.

<i>Diablo</i> (video game) 1997 action role-playing game developed by Blizzard North

Diablo is an action role-playing video game developed by Blizzard North and released by Blizzard Entertainment in January 1997, and is the first installment in the video game series of the same name.

<i>Far Gate</i> 2001 video game

Far Gate is a video game released for Microsoft Windows. It was developed by Super X Studios and published by Microïds. The gameplay consists of 3D space-based real-time strategy, and allows players to play as any of three distinct factions employing different units and structures. It was one of the first video games to offer fully 3D space-based real time strategy.

<i>Contra: Rogue Corps</i> 2019 video game

Contra: Rogue Corps is a run and gun twin-stick shooter in the Contra series developed by Toylogic and published by Konami. It was released on September 24, 2019 for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One.

<i>Diablo II: Resurrected</i> 2021 video game

Diablo II: Resurrected is an action role-playing video game co-developed by Blizzard Entertainment and Blizzard Albany and published by Blizzard Entertainment. It is a remaster of Diablo II (2000) and its expansion Lord of Destruction (2001). The game was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X and Series S on September 23, 2021.

<i>The Incredible Hulk</i> (2003 video game) 2003 video game

The Incredible Hulk is a 2003 beat 'em up video game developed by Pocket Studios and published by Universal Interactive for the Game Boy Advance. The game, featuring an isometric perspective, is based on the Marvel Comics superhero Hulk, who must traverse through a series of levels and destroy enemies with an assortment of physical attacks; a multiplayer mode in which players battle against each other is also featured.

<i>The Incredible Hulk</i> (Nintendo DS video game) 2008 video game

The Incredible Hulk is a 2008 video game published by Sega and developed by The Fizz Factor for the Nintendo DS. It is based on the film of the same name, following scientist Bruce Banner as he traverses across the Americas in search of a cure to a condition that transforms him into a monstrous being known as the Hulk. Unlike the console game that was concurrently developed and released by Edge of Reality, The Incredible Hulk is presented as a side-scrolling platformer rather than an open world action-adventure title.

References

  1. "Zax: The Alien Hunter". Chipsworld. Archived from the original on February 13, 2004. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  2. "Zax - the Alien Hunter". GameZone. Archived from the original on November 8, 2001. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  3. 1 2 Walker, Mark (2002). "Zax: The Alien Hunter". GameSpy. Archived from the original on 17 February 2005.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Sulic, Ivan (28 September 2001). "Zax: The Alien Hunter Review". IGN. Archived from the original on 21 February 2002.
  5. "E3: 2001 Directory". May 2001: 50.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  6. "Zax: The Alien Hunter". Reflexive Entertainment. 2001. Archived from the original on 3 March 2003.
  7. 1 2 "Zax: The Alien Hunter". Metacritic .
  8. 1 2 3 Babler, Jason (January 2002). "Zax: The Alien Hunter". Computer Gaming World. No. 210. p. 110.
  9. "Zax: The Alien Hunter". Eurogamer. 29 August 2001.
  10. 1 2 3 Osborne, Scott (May 2006). "Zax: The Alien Hunter". GameSpot.
  11. Cottee, James (December 2001). "Zax: The Alien Hunter". PC Powerplay (68): 72.
  12. 1 2 Lyon, James (November 2001). "Zax The Alien Hunter". PC Zone (108): 77.
  13. "Ion Hardie of Reflexive Entertainment". Eurogamer. 5 August 2002.
  14. Knudsen, Kurt (12 August 2003). "Lionheart Interview". Gamers Hell. Archived from the original on 19 August 2003.