ZeroRanger

Last updated
ZeroRanger
ZeroRanger logo.png
Developer(s) System Erasure
Publisher(s) System Erasure
Designer(s)
  • Eero Lahtinen
  • Antti Ukkola
Programmer(s) Eero Lahtinen
Artist(s) Antti Ukkola
Composer(s) Eero Lahtinen
Engine GameMaker Studio
Platform(s) Windows
Release28 September 2018 [1]
Genre(s) Scrolling shooter
Mode(s) Single-player, 2-player cooperative

ZeroRanger is a scrolling shooter developed by Finnish studio System Erasure and released for Microsoft Windows in September 2018. ZeroRanger is primarily a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up, with side scrolling in some levels. The player operates one of two spaceflight-capable fighter aircraft. Players unlock new weapons and abilities after defeating bosses, including the ability to transform into mechas. [2]

Contents

Gameplay

ZeroRanger takes place on an Earth-like planet called Daikon, where aliens known as Green Orange have invaded with the intent of destroying all life. The aliens take control of Daikon's planetary defense force with the exception of two fighters. These two remaining fighters must combat their planet's possessed defense force before they can reach and destroy the main Green Orange vessel. [3]

The game has a central theme of enlightenment that is communicated to the player through riddle-like interludes. [4]

Development

Gameplay ZeroRanger gameplay.gif
Gameplay

Development of the game started with a piece of concept art in February 2008. The game was named FINAL BOSS and revealed in November 2009. The game was later given more unique names so that the game would be easier to search for on Google; the game was first renamed to FINALBOSS, and in April 2018 it was again renamed, to ZeroRanger. [5]

The first idea during development was to create a vertical scrolling shoot 'em up like Guxt by Studio Pixel. The idea later evolved to become a mash-up of elements from many different shoot 'em up games. Taking inspiration from the limited blue and white color scheme of Guxt, ZeroRanger has a limited green and orange color scheme. The weapon collection system was at first taken from Guxt, where players can collect weapons during stages, and through trial and error evolved to the current system where two weapons are dropped by defeated bosses and players choose one of them. In 2011, the developers were particularly inspired by the "pure energy and spirit of adventure" from Eschatos . Other influences cited by the developer include Cho Ren Sha 68K , Ikaruga , and Flame Zapper Kotsujin. From Cho Ren Sha 68K, the developers tried to incorporate its "feeling of intimidation before you're actually facing the danger". In Ikaruga, "every enemy pattern is distinct from one another"; feeling the impact of this, the ZeroRanger developers aimed to minimize repetition. The release of the role-playing video game Undertale reinforced the developer's desire to make a game with a good soundtrack. [5]

Accessibility was a big goal during the last few years of development. The developers became concerned about how beginners would think about the basic concepts of shoot 'em ups. Concepts such as "continues" were tailored for players new to shoot 'em ups; continues must be earned, and players using a continue must start at a checkpoint within the stage, ensuring that they are learning how to play that part of the game. The developers believed this system caused players to feel more invested in the game and more serious about completing it. The aim was for ZeroRanger to be a very approachable "pick up and play" game, where players would not need to read guides to understand how to play the game. [5]

Scoring was a secondary goal during development. The developers did not want players to feel that they had to plan everything perfectly in order to maintain the game's combo-based score multiplier, or that there is only one correct weapon to use in each situation. The developers intended to release patches if players were to discover any issues that "break" the scoring. [5]

ZeroRanger was developed using GameMaker Studio as the game engine. Development started with GameMaker 6, then moved to GameMaker 8, and later to GameMaker Studio. Switching between these versions caused thousands of compilation errors that were time-consuming to fix. Justifying the effort, the developer cited GameMaker Studio's performance improvements and its introduction of shaders that allowed colors to be easily changed during post-processing, letting the developer make color palettes for the game without having to create new sprites for each palette. Sprites were created using Microsoft Paint. [5] With the exception of two commissioned tracks, all of the game's music was composed by Eero Lahtinen. Sound effects were created using Sfxr, Bfxr and Audacity, as well as free sound libraries. [6]

Several music tracks and two game modes were not finished before the release of the game. [5] The soundtrack to an earlier version of the game was released in February 2017. [7] The soundtrack for the complete game was released in June 2020. [8]

Reception

Reviewers noted that ZeroRanger was densely packed with references to other shoot 'em ups while still having its own identity. [2] [3] [12] Dominic Tarason of Rock, Paper, Shotgun called ZeroRanger a "lovingly assembled mix-tape featuring the best bits across all of shmup history". [13] Marc Golding of HonestGamers called the game's green and orange color scheme a strange design choice that helped it stand out from other games in the genre; Golding also recognized the game's references to shoot 'em ups developed by Qute. [9]

ZeroRanger was praised for being relatively friendly to casual players, while still having the difficulty expected of arcade-style shoot 'em ups. [13] [9] According to Gabriel Jones of Cubed3, players are "sufficiently challenged, but never frustrated". Players may die often but are awarded extra lives often as well. Players can earn continues, and can start the game on any stage they have previously reached. Gabriel Jones observed that the game has a dynamic difficulty "rank" system, ensuring that players are treated to gameplay appropriate for their skill level. Flawless controls and a lack of undeserved deaths further contribute to making the game frustration-free. [3] The response towards the game's difficulty was not universally favorable, as Miia Lyyra of V2.fi criticized ZeroRanger for not including selectable difficulty in the initial release. She warned that the difficulty is not attractive to beginner shoot 'em up players, and will leave experienced players thirsting for a greater challenge. Lyyra noted that the developers promised two more difficulty modes in a future update to the game, and suggested that beginners wait for that update. Lyyra felt that the game was otherwise perfect, and awarded it a high rating. [11]

Steven Wright of Variety placed ZeroRanger fourth on a list of the best indie games for 2018. [4]

Reviewers found themselves surprised by the deceptive length of the game. [10]

Related Research Articles

Shoot 'em ups are a sub-genre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain types of character movement, while others allow a broader definition including characters on foot and a variety of perspectives.

An action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction time. The genre includes a large variety of sub-genres, such as fighting games, beat 'em ups, shooter games, rhythm games and platform games. Multiplayer online battle arena and some real-time strategy games are also considered action games.

Shooter video games or shooters are a subgenre of action video games where the focus is almost entirely on the defeat of the character's enemies using the weapons given to the player. Usually these weapons are firearms or some other long-range weapons, and can be used in combination with other tools such as grenades for indirect offense, armor for additional defense, or accessories such as telescopic sights to modify the behavior of the weapons. A common resource found in many shooter games is ammunition, armor or health, or upgrades which augment the player character's weapons.

<i>Battle Garegga</i> 1996 video game

Battle Garegga is a vertically scrolling shoot'em up arcade game developed by Raizing and published by Eighting in 1996. It was later ported to the Sega Saturn in 1998, and an updated version, Battle Garegga Rev.2016 was released in 2016.

<i>Out Zone</i> 1990 video game

Out Zone is a run and gun arcade video game developed by Toaplan and published in Japan by Tecmo, North America by Romstar and Europe in August 1990. Set in a future where an alien race from the fictional planet Owagira are threatening to wipe out humanity after multiple failed attempts to defend Earth against their attacks, players assume the role of cyborg mercenaries recruited by the United Nations in a last-ditch effort to overthrow the invaders.

<i>Blazing Star</i> 1998 shooter video game

Blazing Star is a shoot 'em up video game developed by Yumekobo and published by SNK in 1998 for the Neo Geo arcade and home systems. It is a follow-up to Pulstar (1995) and features side-scrolling action similar to its predecessor and different ships with varying characteristics. It was made less challenging than its predecessor, and the graphic quality was improved upon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ABA Games</span> Japanese video game developer

ABA Games is a Japanese video game developer, composed solely of game designer Kenta Cho. ABA Games' works, available as open source, are predominantly shoot 'em up games often inspired by classic games in the genre. Its games feature stylised retro graphics, innovative gameplay features and modes and feature random rather than scripted events. These creations have been acclaimed as some of the best independent games available, though some commentators, including Cho himself, feel they are too simple for commercial release.

<i>Knightmare</i> (1986 video game) 1986 video game

Knightmare is a 1986 vertically scrolling shooter video game developed and published by Konami for the MSX home computer. It was included in compilations for the MSX, PlayStation and Sega Saturn, followed by a port for mobile phones, and digital re-releases for the Virtual Console and Microsoft Windows. It is the first entry in the Knightmare trilogy. The game stars Popolon, a warrior who embarks on a quest to rescue the princess Aphrodite from the evil priest Hudnos. The player must fight waves of enemies while avoiding collision with their projectiles and obstacles along the way, and facing against bosses.

<i>Curse</i> (video game) 1989 video game

Curse is a 1989 video game developed by Micronet for the Mega Drive video game console. It is a horizontally scrolling shooter with five levels. Although an American release was planned, it was never officially released outside Japan.

<i>Space Megaforce</i> 1992 video game

Space Megaforce, known in Japan and Europe as Super Aleste, is a vertically scrolling shooter developed by Compile. It was published by Toho in 1992 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System as part of the Aleste series. The player pilots a spacecraft through a variety of locales shooting enemy ships. The story in the Japanese version is different from the American and European one. Super Aleste also offers a "Short Game", with segments of the regular levels; the emphasis is on scoring as many points as possible.

A side-scrolling video game is a game viewed from a side-view camera angle where the screen follows the player as they move left or right. The jump from single-screen or flip-screen graphics to scrolling graphics during the golden age of arcade games was a pivotal leap in game design, comparable to the move to 3D graphics during the fifth generation.

<i>NebulasRay</i> 1994 arcade game

NebulasRay is a vertical-scrolling shooter arcade game developed and released by Namco in 1994. Players take control of a starship named the Fighting Ray through a series of levels in its mission to eradicate the universe of an intergalactic organization named the Master Force. It is noteworthy for its usage of pre-rendering, where 3D models are converted into 2D sprites, creating the illusion of a 3D world.

<i>BlaZeon</i> 1992 video game

BlaZeon is a horizontally scrolling shoot 'em up arcade game released by Atlus in 1992 and was ported to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in the same year. The game's most distinguishable feature is that players come equipped with a device that allows them to freeze and control certain robots.

<i>Star Parodier</i> 1992 video game

Star Parodier is a vertical-scrolling shoot 'em up video game developed by Kaneko and published by Hudson Soft for the PC Engine CD-ROM² in 1992. It is a spin-off of the Star Soldier series and was localized for North America as Fantasy Star Soldier, but this version was never released. The game was released for the Wii Virtual Console on March 7, 2008 in Japan, March 16 in Europe and later in North America on August 11. The title is also playable on the Turbografx-16/PC Engine Mini Console.

<i>Truxton II</i> 1992 video game

Truxton II is a 1992 vertically scrolling shooter arcade video game originally developed and published by Toaplan in Japan and Europe. It is the sequel to Truxton, which was released earlier on arcades in 1988 and later ported to various platforms.

<i>Clean Asia!</i> 2007 video game

Clean Asia! is a freeware vertically scrolling shooter video game. It was developed by Jonatan "Cactus" Söderström and released for Windows on February 1, 2007.

<i>Kokuga</i> 2012 video game

Kokuga (コクガ) is a shoot 'em up game released by G.rev in 2012 for the Nintendo 3DS. It was directed by Hiroshi Iuchi, famous for his seminal shmups Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga. Unlike many worldwide releases, the game wasn't released in Canada and the developer was only notified that they would not be able to, late in the preparation process.

<i>Cho Ren Sha 68K</i> 1995 video game

Cho Ren Sha 68K is a 1995 vertically scrolling dōjin shoot 'em up video game developed and originally published by Koichi "Famibe No Yosshin" Yoshida at Comiket for the X68000. Taking place in a ring structure, players take control of a space fighter craft to fight against an assortment of enemies and bosses.

<i>Super Hydorah</i> 2017 video game

Super Hydorah is a 2017 independent side-scrolling shoot 'em up video game developed by Locomalito and published by Abylight Studios. It features a 16-32 bit era look and feel as well as a CRT Monitor effect. The game was released for Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation Vita on September 20, 2017, and later, in 2018, ported to iOS on May 17 and Nintendo Switch on November 15, respectively. The game is an expanded and enhanced version of the developer's previous freeware game Hydorah.

<i>Dogyuun</i> 1992 video game

Dogyuun is a 1992 vertically scrolling shooter arcade video game developed and published by Toaplan. Set on the colonized fictional planet of Dino in the future, where an alien race of metallic robots have invaded a police communication center and held its inhabitants as hostages, players assume the role of two fighter pilots taking control of the Sylfers bomber space fighter crafts in an revenge attempt to overthrow the invaders and free the surviving colonists after one of their comrades is killed by one of them during a reconnaissance assignment.

References

  1. ↑ "ZeroRanger on Steam". Steam . Valve. Archived from the original on 25 February 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  2. 1 2 まきちゃん (28 October 2018). "メカ！変形！ドリル！俺たちの魂を沸騰させる真の男の激アツSTG『ZeroRanger』" [Mecha! Deformation! Drill! True man's intense app that brings our soul to boil STG "ZeroRanger"]. IGN Japan (in Japanese). Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Jones, Gabriel (18 January 2019). "ZeroRanger (PC) Review". Cubed3. Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  4. 1 2 Wright, Steven (27 December 2018). "5 Video Game Indie Stunners You May Have Missed This Year". Variety . Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Mark MSX (19 November 2018). "Episode XVIII: The Chosen One! Interview with Zero Ranger Developers". The Electric Underground: A Shmup Podcast (Podcast). SoundCloud . Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  6. ↑ waiwainl (17 October 2018). "Developer Interview with System Erasure from ZeroRanger". shmups.eu. Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  7. ↑ Lahtinen, Eero (5 February 2017). "GREEN SOUNDS -Raw Label-". Bandcamp . Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  8. ↑ Lahtinen, Eero (25 June 2020). "ORANGE SOUNDS -ZeroRanger Original Soundtrack-". Bandcamp . Archived from the original on 24 June 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 Golding, Marc (18 October 2018). "ZeroRanger (PC) review". HonestGamers. Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  10. 1 2 Forcada, Carlos (23 February 2019). "ZeroRanger, análisis" [ZeroRanger, analysis]. MeriStation (in Spanish). PRISA. Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  11. 1 2 Lyyra, Miia (10 October 2018). "ZeroRanger". V2.fi (in Finnish). Alasin Media Oy. Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
  12. ↑ ginger (17 October 2018). "インディーズゲームの小部屋：Room＃553「ZeroRanger」" [Small room of indie game: Room # 553 "ZeroRanger"]. 4Gamer.net (in Japanese). Aetas. Archived from the original on 3 November 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  13. 1 2 Tarason, Dominic (1 October 2018). "Shmup of shmups ZeroRanger shoots for the core, out now with demo". Rock, Paper, Shotgun . Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 1 March 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.