Zeno Clash

 PC
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 321 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 201 out of 321
  2. Mixed: 84 out of 321
  3. Negative: 36 out of 321

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  1. Voyou
    Dec 2, 2017
    3
    A very repetitive game with an excellent visual design but very poor controls indeed. Just an example : if you play with a gamepad, you still need the mouse to look up and down.

    Zeno Clash is cool to look at, but not fun to play, therefore it fails as a game. Perhaps Tripwire Interactive (the wire bit needs to go) should have made a short animation movie instead.
  2. kylebj
    May 5, 2009
    4
    WEIRD does not equal GOOD. You fight the controls in this game more than the characters. It's got a completely unnecessary lock-on function that will have you cursing in frustration when it won't allow you to move how you want. LONG parts of the game are boring and unchallenging (the river part, WTF?). It's also very repetitive--no real puzzles, just the same fighting WEIRD does not equal GOOD. You fight the controls in this game more than the characters. It's got a completely unnecessary lock-on function that will have you cursing in frustration when it won't allow you to move how you want. LONG parts of the game are boring and unchallenging (the river part, WTF?). It's also very repetitive--no real puzzles, just the same fighting scheme with more characters added to increase difficulty. The voice acting is also very bad, even by indie game standards. It does have some unique characters I won't forget soon.… Expand
  3. Laxxor
    Jan 4, 2011
    2
    Nice creature concepts and vistas, but ultimately not worth the payout, even on a sale day on steam. Story is 100% linear, despite some reviews here (ViscountA), voice acting is appalling (obligatory Clint Eastwood sound-a-like and co-star that would appear to be not very comfortable with reading the script) and some very dodgy attempts to introduce slang terminology which just does notNice creature concepts and vistas, but ultimately not worth the payout, even on a sale day on steam. Story is 100% linear, despite some reviews here (ViscountA), voice acting is appalling (obligatory Clint Eastwood sound-a-like and co-star that would appear to be not very comfortable with reading the script) and some very dodgy attempts to introduce slang terminology which just does not work, IMO.
    Combat engine is certainly different, but ultimately hampered by the "locking" concept, as mentioned by others here.
    There is no real depth to the story, with each step just an excuse for an out of context fight with weapons that magically appear in your inventory and then get randomly discarded. Weapons have unlimited reloads and as such means there is no real need for considered strategy other then the formulaic Boss fights.
    Quite how it managed to win "PCGamer 2009 Game of the Year" (listed on Steam store page) I don't know - it does not deserve it.    … Expand
  4. Fazan
    Jan 8, 2011
    4
    This game was so promising, but in the end it turned out to be a massive waste of potential. It feels like there's a much bigger game in this, but for whatever reason the bulk of it was cut and never saw the light of day. The story makes no sense, and not because it's bizarre, but rather because it's missing large chunks. Like the ending. Instead, it's padded with what I assume wasThis game was so promising, but in the end it turned out to be a massive waste of potential. It feels like there's a much bigger game in this, but for whatever reason the bulk of it was cut and never saw the light of day. The story makes no sense, and not because it's bizarre, but rather because it's missing large chunks. Like the ending. Instead, it's padded with what I assume was intended to be "weird" and "atmospheric" but just ends up being redundant and irrelevant.

    Other people praise it for its gameplay, which is just about mediocre, but a game with this much potential should not have been written so poorly and ineptly. The characters are flat, boring and uninspired. Every single line of dialogue that comes out of their mouths is exposition, every single action they take serves as a plot point. None of the named characters have any personality whatsoever. This doesn't make them weird. It makes them badly written.

    Visually, the game fails to deliver. There are several interesting set pieces, such as a beached whale and large walking things, but if you've seen a trailer, you've seen them all. Beyond that, it's essentially Heart of Darkness meets Another World. If you're looking for a "weird" setting and story, try either of those. Both are better written and more fun to play.

    The combat is clunky, stiff, limited and very, very repetitive to the point of boredom. If you've fought one large enemy, you've fought them all. If you've fought one humanoid enemy, you've fought them all. Even Father-Mother isn't all that distinct. Weapons are slow, cumbersome and largely useless anyway, making the achievement for not using any a no-brainer. It's an interesting idea, to be sure, but it's so cumbersome it just doesn't work. If you want a game that mixes weapons and and hand-to-hand combat, try Bungie's Oni. This is just slow.

    The only reason I don't give this title the lowest score I can is because I can appreciate the effort and I can appreciate the innovation. There really is a very good, very interesting game buried somewhere in Zeno Clash, but Zeno Clash itself ain't it. Contrary to people's opinions, I feel this would have been best served as a big-budget studio title, as they would have been able to spring for a decent writer, talented voice actors and actually a complete game that isn't padded to extremes and still far too short while missing any real depth.

    Zeno Clash should have been more than Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, and it just isn't.    … Expand
  5. JohnW
    Apr 24, 2009
    3
    I bought this game because of the originality of the character design, and for that I give it credit... But you've got to be kidding... This game currently has a 9.2 user rating. That puts it up there with HalfLife2... The controls suck, the action is repetitive and the graphics engine looks 10 years old. I played through the first 5 levels and uninstalled it. I understand this was I bought this game because of the originality of the character design, and for that I give it credit... But you've got to be kidding... This game currently has a 9.2 user rating. That puts it up there with HalfLife2... The controls suck, the action is repetitive and the graphics engine looks 10 years old. I played through the first 5 levels and uninstalled it. I understand this was an independent game, and I tried to like it, but if it's just not fun to play, then what's the point.… Expand
  6. ErikN
    Apr 24, 2009
    3
    Im not sure why everyones giving this game such a high rating.. i found it moderately entertaining, rather trippy and the voice overs.. the voice overs are just terrible. the melee combat isn't worth my $20. an what's up with all the men having oversized nipples and asses? theres no end to the weridness when it comes to zeno clash.
  7. MusicJJJ
    Sep 15, 2011
    4
    Game looks weird and good, but actually it sucks following with sh*tty controls.
  8. Balthazzar
    Jul 17, 2011
    0
    I quite literally vomited after the first 2 fights, 15 min into the game. Not only is the game camera giving me horizontal "vertigo" (yeah, I know what you're thinking) There are good implementations of "realistic head movements" and there are bad ones, and I don't feel well after having my view rotated without my consent.

    I'd also like to point out the controls (which other reviewers    I quite literally vomited after the first 2 fights, 15 min into the game. Not only is the game camera giving me horizontal "vertigo" (yeah, I know what you're thinking) There are good implementations of "realistic head movements" and there are bad ones, and I don't feel well after having my view rotated without my consent.

    I'd also like to point out the controls (which other reviewers have also pointed out) that are so frustrating to keep up with on the keyboard that make this game feel like a bad console port. The auto-lock system is fine (it feels strange to be the only one fine with it after everyone else criticized it) but the fights would have been better if the whole system had some sort of workaround.

    Animations and models are great, the story (at least the beginning) is scarcely delivered, but I can't give a higher score to the only game that actually made me vomit (and I've played hundreds)    … Expand
  9. JaredJ
    Aug 4, 2009
    0
    Highly over rated. It's disgusting, no story and increadibly boring gameplay. Try time and time again I try to bring myself to complete this game but I can't because it's so boring. I'm a shooter gamer and when I saw this had weapons I bought it. I was furious with it. It's no fun if you always have unlimited ammo and never get to use them because you have to Highly over rated. It's disgusting, no story and increadibly boring gameplay. Try time and time again I try to bring myself to complete this game but I can't because it's so boring. I'm a shooter gamer and when I saw this had weapons I bought it. I was furious with it. It's no fun if you always have unlimited ammo and never get to use them because you have to fight hand to hand. Stay away from this, even if it's free.… Expand
  10. HELLBOT
    Feb 7, 2011
    0
    Wow! All i read at pc gamer was how awsome this game was. What a joke. It only took 2.5 hours to beat, the story was just sad, and for a modern game the graphics suck. I dont mean just the in game visuals but the movies too. You just wasted half your day.
  11. Dalek
    Dec 3, 2009
    4
    I thought this game would be good, but it's not. It uses the source engine, but I hardly understood the game, it doesn't tell you what year it is, probably cavemen time, and your in some stupid training dream, I wanted to get to the action not get confused in some dream. What I also hate about this game is that it's extremely reppetative. It's just fighting, shoot with I thought this game would be good, but it's not. It uses the source engine, but I hardly understood the game, it doesn't tell you what year it is, probably cavemen time, and your in some stupid training dream, I wanted to get to the action not get confused in some dream. What I also hate about this game is that it's extremely reppetative. It's just fighting, shoot with your handmade guns, and then, cutscene, loading, cutscene, loading. Over and over.… Expand
  12. sloretheslore
    Jun 16, 2009
    2
    This game was really bad. If you took all the free models you could find around the interbutts, passed them through your G.I. tract, and then defecated; you'd have this game. You fight a giant androgynous chicken man for the games end boss. I am not making a joke; that is serious. I think the pubes that created this load had a lot of connections. You can tell by all the fake reviews This game was really bad. If you took all the free models you could find around the interbutts, passed them through your G.I. tract, and then defecated; you'd have this game. You fight a giant androgynous chicken man for the games end boss. I am not making a joke; that is serious. I think the pubes that created this load had a lot of connections. You can tell by all the fake reviews they paid for. There are so many other real independent games that are actually amazing why even bother with this steamy turd? You will by screaming at your screen after the stupid auto lock on feature gets you killed the the millionth time. You will be laughing at how crappy the characters look, (tweaked poser models they found around the net.) You will be wondering how many times they will reuse the same exact character that you just killed over, and over, and over again. This game wanted to be Alice; it was not Alice. It was crap.… Expand
  13. Lacuentadejoako
    Dec 26, 2012
    1
    Honestly I dont think I have played a game so bad in a long time. I got it in a steam sale for just 1 dolar , but it sucks. The story is bad,so is the voice acting. The level design,controls and enemies are the worst, I dont know how to describe this game I just finish it to see how it ended but I cant explain, pirate the game, play 10 minutes of it and you will understand why this gameHonestly I dont think I have played a game so bad in a long time. I got it in a steam sale for just 1 dolar , but it sucks. The story is bad,so is the voice acting. The level design,controls and enemies are the worst, I dont know how to describe this game I just finish it to see how it ended but I cant explain, pirate the game, play 10 minutes of it and you will understand why this game deserves a 1/10.… Expand
  14. Broyax
    Apr 19, 2020
    0
    Un indé qui aurait pu éventuellement sortir de la fosse à purin habituelle des indés merdiques mais qui reste finalement droit dans ses bottes et dans la merde jusqu'au cou, hélas ! en conséquence de quoi, il s'agit d'un étron de plus à rajouter à la longue liste des saloperies pas ludiques pour un sou !

    Alors que graphiquement, ça tient presque la route... malgré cependant une    Un indé qui aurait pu éventuellement sortir de la fosse à purin habituelle des indés merdiques mais qui reste finalement droit dans ses bottes et dans la merde jusqu'au cou, hélas ! en conséquence de quoi, il s'agit d'un étron de plus à rajouter à la longue liste des saloperies pas ludiques pour un sou !

    Alors que graphiquement, ça tient presque la route... malgré cependant une direction artistique pas très artistique, pour ne pas dire d'un goût douteux mais je suppose que le désir d'originalité du développeur est à ce bas prix d'exigence... Mais évidemment le souci rédhibitoire (et le coeur du jeu) reste ce système de combat en vue subjective, bancal et mal fichu, bourrin et con, stupide et mal conçu, ennuyeux et désagréable.

    Surtout que le jeu envoit régulièrement plusieurs ennemis et que dans cette vue (on a pas le choix de toute façon) on ne peut pas en tabasser plusieurs à la fois ; c'est plutôt l'inverse, car lorsqu'on s'en occupe d'un, les deux autres en profitent ! au corps-à-corps ou... à distance. D'ailleurs, la partie à distance est aussi ratée que la partie au corps-à-corps, ce qui fait de Zeno un vrai zéro en la matière.

    Signalons que le jeu est censé prendre en compte la manette mais qu'elle merde totalement, on est donc obligé de se taper le clavier-souris. La répétition s'installe de tout manière assez vite tandis que le pourquoi du comment de ce "monde" très bizarre confine au grotesque. On lâche donc l'affaire, ayant bien mieux à faire que de se faire chier avec une telle merde.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

62
#62 Best PC Game of 2009
32
#32 Most Discussed PC Game of 2009
62
#62 Most Shared PC Game of 2009

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 41 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 26 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 15 out of 41
  3. Negative: 0 out of 41
  1. HellBored
    89
    Zeno Clash is what a future cult favourite looks like. With a wickedly brutal melee engine, and some jaw-dropping visual design, this gorgeously demented indie brawler is short but sweet.
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  2. Destructoid
    70
    While I would have liked to see a bit more emphasis on the melee combat and less on shooting, I think you’ll still find that most battles give you a bit of a rush and are enjoyable to play, particularly the unique boss battles.
    Read full review
  3. Eurogamer
    80
    A fantastically involving and solid fighting game, enhanced by being set in one of the most imaginative and beautiful universes in the medium.
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