Zombie Nation (video game)

Last updated
Zombie Nation
Zombienation.jpg
Cover art for the North American release for the NES
Developer(s) KAZe
Publisher(s) Meldac / Liveplanning (NES)
City Connection (Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows)
Director(s) Norio Nakagata
Producer(s) Sueo Sekizawa (executive producer)
Junichiro Kawazoe
Designer(s) Takane Ōkubo
Programmer(s) Kunihiro Hiramatsu
Artist(s) Shin-ichi Ogawa
Takao Yoshiba
Composer(s) Takane Ohkubo
Norio Nakagata
Platform(s) Nintendo Entertainment System, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch
ReleaseNintendo Entertainment System
  • JP: December 14, 1990
  • NA: January 1991
Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows
  • JP: October 28, 2021
Genre(s) Shoot 'em up
Mode(s) Single-player

Zombie Nation [lower-alpha 1] is a 1990 Shoot 'em up game developed by KAZe and published by Meldac. It was first released in Japan on December 14, 1990 before being released later in the United States in January 1991.

Contents

The game revolves around the floating samurai head Namakubi goes to the United States to destroy Darc Seed—an alien who crashed to Earth via a meteorite in 1999, turned all the American people into zombies, and took control of various deadly weapons. Namakubi must recover the samurai sword Shura and destroy Darc Seed and its minions. This game features a juxtaposition of zombies, aliens and samurai.

Takane Ōkubo, its designer, had previously worked on Bōken Danshaku Don: The Lost Sunheart , [2] a similar title for the NEC PC Engine.

Gameplay

Depending on the version of the game, the player controls the giant levitating disembodied samurai head Namakubi (生首, namakubi, lit. "severed head") or a giant Tengu mask. The player can destroy structures and enemies by shooting rapid-fire eyeballs and vomit at them. [3] Enemies include zombie snipers, zeppelins and lava monsters. [4] The player can upgrade their firepower by rescuing zombie hostages that leap out of structures when destroyed. [5]

The player starts every level with a full life bar of eight units (displayed as mini Namakubi heads at the bottom of the screen), and as the player gets hit, the life bar decreases. When it is down to one bar remaining, the music changes to a dramatic theme. The game ends when the player loses all eight units of the life bar or is crushed by the scrolling of the screen. However, the player can regenerate some of their life by defeating enemies and structures. In addition, the player gets six (increasing by one for every stage section completed, up to a maximum of nine) continues to beat the game. [6]

Zombie Nation features two difficulty levels, easy and hard. The game also allows the player, like in the Mega Man series, to select any stage at will. Once a stage is selected the following stages will be played sequentially cycling from stage 4 back to 1. The objective is to clear all four stages and then destroy the final boss, Darc Seed. [7]

Story

The plot of Zombie Nation takes place in 1999, when a meteor known as "Darc Seed" (Eva in the Japanese version) crashes in the Nevada desert. Darc Seed/Eva then shoots magnetic rays and turns the people of the United States into zombies. Darc Seed/Eva also brings the Statue of Liberty to life to follow its commands. The magnetic rays also allow Darc Seed/Eva to control many deadly weapons, including the most powerful weapon of all—the legendary samurai sword Shura.

The head of the samurai Namakubi hears of Shura falling into Darc Seed's clutches. He then heads to the United States to destroy Darc Seed, free the American people from the looming zombification and reclaim the samurai sword Shura. [8]

Regional differences

Screenshot of Abarenbo Tengu. Abarenbou Tengu screenshot.png
Screenshot of Abarenbō Tengu.

The game was first released in Japan under the name Abarenbou Tengu on December 14, 1990. The US version was released a month later. As both versions only have differences between the sprites, with the Japanese version having a tengu mask belonging to Japanese folklore, the US version has major graphical and story changes, replacing the tengu mask with the decapitated samurai head. [9] Aside from the differences, both games are practically identical, with the Japanese version having only a few major differences:

Reception

The St. Petersburg Times tied the game with Splatterhouse 2 as the tenth-best video game of 1992. [15] Mashable, in ranking Zombie Nation the second-weirdest video game of all time, claimed it "brings the side-scrolling shooter genre to a weird and gross new height. As challenging as it is confusing, the high point of this game is the chance to take down an animated, evil Statue of Liberty." [16]

On the other hand, the Japanese version is criticized due to its difficulty and gameplay, and considered a kuso-gē (クソゲー, lit. "crap game"). However, both versions of the game are considered a cult hit among gamers.

Other media

Abarenbou Tengu is one of the video games adapted into a manga titled Susume!! Seigaku Dennou Kenkyuubu (進め！！静学電脳研究部, Shiawase no katachi), published in the Gamest Comics collection from April 1999, drawn by Kouta Hirano.

In August 2020, City Connection announced a re-release of the game [17] under the name Abarenbou Tengu & Zombie Nation (暴れん坊天狗 & ZOMBIE NATION, Abarenbō Tengu & ZOMBIE NATION). The game was released on both the Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows platforms on October 28, 2021. [18] [19]

Notes

  1. ↑ Known also as Samurai Zombie Nation, [1] and in Japan as Abarenbou Tengu (暴(あば)れん坊天狗(ぼうてんぐ), Abarenbō Tengu, lit. "Hooligan Tengu")
  2. ↑ GamePro gave Zombie Nation three 5/5 ratings for graphics, fun factor, and challenge and two 4/5 scores for sound and gameplay. [12]
  3. ↑ Nintendo Power awarded Zombie Nation a 3.6/5 for graphics/sound, 3.3 for play control, 2.8/5 for challenge, and 2.9/5 for theme/fun. [13]

Related Research Articles

<i>Tengu</i> Type of legendary creature found in Japanese folk religion

Tengu are a type of legendary creature found in Shinto belief. They are considered a type of yōkai or Shinto kami. The Tengu were originally thought to take the forms of birds of prey and a monkey deity, and they were traditionally depicted with human, monkey, and avian characteristics. Sarutahiko Ōkami is considered to be the original model of Konoha-Tengu, which today is widely considered the Tengu's defining characteristic in the popular imagination. He is the Shinto monkey deity who is said to shed light on Heaven and Earth. Some experts theorize that Sarutahiko was a sun god worshiped in the Ise region prior to the popularization of Amaterasu.

<i>Warios Woods</i> 1994 video game

Wario's Woods is a puzzle video game developed and published by Nintendo. It was released in Japan and North America in 1994 and Europe in 1995 for both the Nintendo Entertainment System and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. A spin-off of the Mario series, players control Toad in his mission to defeat Wario, who has taken control of the Peaceful Woods. Gameplay revolves around clearing each level by using bombs to destroy groups of enemies. The game also features a multiplayer mode that allows two players to compete against each other.

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

Alleyway is a 1989 video game developed by Nintendo and Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo as a global launch title for the Game Boy. It is a Breakout clone and one of the first four games developed and released for the system. The game was released first in Japan in 1989, in North America later that year, and in Europe in 1990. It was later re-released for the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console in June 2011, and on the Nintendo Switch Online service in May 2024.

<i>The Unfettered Shogun</i> Japanese television series started in 1978

The Unfettered Shogun (暴れん坊将軍) was a Japanese television program on the TV Asahi network. Set in the eighteenth century, it showed fictitious events in the life of Yoshimune, the eighth Tokugawa shōgun.

<i>Breath of Fire II</i> 1994 video game

Breath of Fire II is a role-playing video game developed and published by Capcom. First released in 1994, the game was licensed to Laguna for European release in 1996. It is the second entry in the Breath of Fire series. It was later ported to Game Boy Advance and re-released worldwide. The game was released on Wii's Virtual Console in North America on August 27, 2007. Nintendo of Europe's website mistakenly announced it for release on July 27, 2007, but it was in fact released two weeks later, on August 10, 2007. In 2013, it was released for the Wii U Virtual Console. In 2016, it was released for the New Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console. In 2019, it was released for the Nintendo Switch SNES games library.

<i>Battletoads/Double Dragon</i> 1993 video game

Battletoads/Double Dragon is a 1993 beat 'em up developed by Rare and published by Tradewest. It was originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System and later ported to the Mega Drive/Genesis, Super NES, and Game Boy. The SNES version was released on Nintendo Switch Online in September 2024; it was the game's first re-release as it was not released on the Rare Replay collection for the Xbox One.

<i>Image Fight</i> 1988 Video game

Image Fight is a 1988 vertically scrolling shooter arcade video game developed and published by Irem. It was ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System, PC Engine (Japan-only), Sharp X68000 (Japan-only), and FM Towns (Japan-only) in 1990. It was followed by Image Fight II: Operation Deepstriker.

<i>Bravoman</i> 1988 video game

Chōzetsurin Jin Bravoman is a 1988 beat'em up arcade video game developed and published in Japan by Namco. Described as a "comical action game", the player controls the titular character, a bionic superhero with telescopic limbs, as he must defeat the villainous Dr. Bomb before he takes over the world. Bravoman can use his arms, legs and head to defeat enemies, and can also crouch and jump over them. The game ran on the Namco System 1 arcade board.

<i>Wonder Boy III: The Dragons Trap</i> 1989 action-adventure video game

Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap, known as Monster World II in Japan, is a platforming action-adventure video game developed by Westone as part of Sega's Wonder Boy series. It was published by Sega and released for the Master System in 1989 and for the Game Gear in 1992 as Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap. It was ported by Hudson Soft and released in 1991 for the TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine under the name Dragon's Curse. It was also ported in 1993 by Brazilian company Tec Toy under the title Turma da Mônica em o Resgate, with the game retooled to include characters from Brazilian comic book series Monica's Gang. A remake developed by Lizardcube and published by DotEmu, titled Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap, was released in April 2017.

<i>Shadow of the Ninja</i> 1990 video game

Shadow of the Ninja, originally released in Japan as Yami no Shigotonin Kage and later released in Europe and Australia as Blue Shadow, is a side-scrolling action game developed by Natsume for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in 1990. The game revolves around a pair of ninja sent to assassinate a dictator in a futuristic version of New York City. A port was planned for the Game Boy, but was released in a rebranded form as Ninja Gaiden Shadow. A remake, Shadow of the Ninja: Reborn, was released in 2024.

<i>Batman: Return of the Joker</i> 1991 video game

Batman: Return of the Joker is a 1991 platform video game, the follow-up to Sunsoft's first Batman game on the Nintendo Entertainment System. Unlike that game, which was based on the 1989 Batman film directed by Tim Burton, Return of the Joker is entirely self-contained and based more on the modern comic book iteration of Batman, but the Batmobile and the Batwing are featured from the 1989 film. A remake of Return of the Joker, titled Batman: Revenge of the Joker, was released on the Sega Genesis by Ringler Studios in 1992. A Super NES version of Revenge of the Joker was completed but never officially released; a ROM image surfaced online in later years.

<i>Shinsetsu Samurai Spirits Bushidō Retsuden</i> 1997 video game

Shinsetsu Samurai Spirits Bushidō Retsuden is a role-playing video game for SNK's Neo Geo CD system, which retells the events of Samurai Shodown and Samurai Shodown II in greater detail. It was ported to the Sega Saturn and PlayStation.

<i>Karnovs Revenge</i> 1994 video game

Karnov's Revenge is a 1994 fighting game developed by Data East, released for the Neo Geo. It is the second game in the Fighter's History series. The game was later ported to the Neo Geo, Neo Geo CD and Sega Saturn home consoles.

<i>Clash at Demonhead</i> 1989 action-adventure video game

Clash at Demonhead, known in Japan as Dengeki Big Bang!, is an action-adventure platform game released by Vic Tokai for the Nintendo Entertainment System on January 27, 1989 in Japan and December 1989 in North America.

<i>Section Z</i> 1985 arcade game

Section Z is a horizontally scrolling shooter by Capcom, released as an arcade video game in 1985. A home version was published for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meldac</span>

Meldac is a Japanese music and video game company. It was founded in July 1985 by Hiromu Takamizawa, Tohru Sasaki, Tetsu Kiso, and Hajime Toyama — all members of the now-defunct vocal group Dark Ducks — with financial backing from the Mitsubishi keiretsu and its affiliates, including former Mitsubishi Electric subsidiary Nippon Crown.

The Edo period of the history of Japan is the setting of many works of popular culture. These include novels, stage plays, films, television shows, animated works, manga, and video games. Major events of the period, such as the Siege of Osaka, Shimabara Rebellion, and the decline and fall of the Tokugawa shogunate figure prominently in many works. Historical and fictional people and groups of the period, including Miyamoto Musashi, Izumo no Okuni, Yagyū Jūbei Mitsuyoshi, the fictional Isshin Tasuke, Yui Shōsetsu, Matsuo Bashō, Tokugawa Mitsukuni, Ōoka Tadasuke, Tōyama Kagemoto, the Forty-seven Ronin, Sakamoto Ryōma, Katsu Kaishū, and the Shinsengumi, as well as the fifteen Tokugawa shoguns were active for much or all of their public lives and are dramatized in works of popular culture. The cultural developments of the times, including kabuki, bunraku, and ukiyo-e, and practices like sankin kōtai and pilgrimages to the Ise Shrine, feature in many works set in Edo Japan.

<i>Captain Commando</i> 1991 video game

Captain Commando is a 1991 futuristic side-scrolling beat 'em up originally developed and published by Capcom as an arcade video game, and later ported to several other platforms. It was the seventeenth game produced for the company's CP System hardware. The game stars the titular superhero who was originally conceived as a fictional spokesman used by Capcom USA in the company's console games during the late 1980s. The game was included in Capcom Beat 'Em Up Bundle compilation title, which was released digitally for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows on September 18, 2018.

<i>The Battle Cats</i> 2014 video game

The Battle Cats is a free-to-play tower defense video game developed and published by PONOS Corporation for iOS and Android, originally released in Japan under the name Nyanko Great War. The Battle Cats debuted on the Japanese iOS App Store in November 2012 under the name Battle Nyankos, with Android support following in December of that same year, and became popular in both Japan and Korea. It later was deleted from both the US Google Play stores and App Store, with an improved version released on 17 September 2014. A Microsoft Windows port was released in August 2017, and was available for download until late 2018, when PONOS Corporation ended support for it. It was ported to the Nintendo 3DS in 2016 and Nintendo Switch in Japan in 2018 and Southeast Asia in 2021.

Takane Ōkubo is a Japanese video game composer. Before becoming dedicated to music production, he was involved in other aspects of game design. With an extensive career, he has worked on over 80 games, including mobile games. Some of his productions have been included in modern retrogaming soundtrack compilations.

References

Citations

  1. ↑ "Wayback Machine @ Archive.org: Nintendo Power issue 29 page 21, right half of page". Wayback Machine @ Archive.org: Nintendo Power issue 29 page 21, right half of page.
  2. ↑ "Abarenbou Tengu – 2013 Developer Interview". shmuplations.com. 14 January 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
  3. ↑ Instruction Manual, How to Use the Controller.
  4. ↑ Instruction Manual, Enemy Characters.
  5. ↑ Instruction Manual, Game Description.
  6. ↑ Instruction Manual, The Life Gauge.
  7. ↑ Instruction Manual, How to Play the Game.
  8. ↑ Instruction Manual, Introduction.
  9. ↑ GameCenter CX Episode 67, Fuji TV. AD Nakayama explains about the changes in both versions of the game.
  10. ↑ Lachel, Cyril (August 16, 2009). "Zombie Nation". Defunct Games. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  11. ↑ Lesser, Hartley; Lesser, Patricia & Lesser, Kirk (August 1991). "The Role of Computers". Dragon (172): 55–64.
  12. ↑ Toxic Tommy (September 1991). "Zombie Nation". GamePro . No. 26. p. 18.
  13. ↑ "Zombie Nation". Nintendo Power . Vol. 23. April 1991. pp. 90–91.
  14. ↑ "NES Reviews U–Z". The Video Game Critic. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  15. ↑ Schiffmanna, William (December 8, 1992). "Much to celebrate in video games". St. Petersburg Times (City ed.). p. 2D.
  16. ↑ Hockenson, Lauren (April 23, 2013). "The 14 Weirdest Video Games Ever Created". Mashable . Retrieved February 9, 2020.
  17. ↑ "暴れん坊天狗 & ZOMBIE NATION 公式サイト". 暴れん坊天狗 & ZOMBIE NATION 公式サイト.
  18. ↑ "『暴れん坊天狗』がSwitchとSteamで10月28日発売決定。海外版『ZOMBIE NATION』とセットで、 新モード、新機能、新曲を搭載 | ゲーム・エンタメ最新情報のファミ通.com". ファミ通.com.
  19. ↑ "Abarenbo Tengu & Zombie Nation announced for Switch, PC". 12 July 2021.

Bibliography

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.