Zeno Clash: Ultimate Edition

It's one of the few games where the hype is well deserved, and I'm really curious to see what the ACE team does for the next endeavor.

While it won’t be to everyone’s taste, for those with whom it does click, there’s every chance it will become something of a defining experience and the source of many nightmares to come – rousing stuff indeed, and for 1200 MS points it really shouldn’t be missed.

Zeno Clash: Ultimate Edition isn't a terribly long game, and gamers shouldn't have a problem getting through the main campaign in under seven hours. However, regardless of length, the strange, brutal, and somehow beautiful world that ACE Team has created here is one that you won't want to miss out on.

While the added content may not be enough to entice gamers who have already bashed their way through the PC version, Zeno Clash: Ultimate Edition is a near essential title for any 360 owner looking to unleash their freakier side and experience the finest that indie gaming has to offer.

It's not the best looking game and the extras are a little shallow but there's really very little wrong with it. If you like to punch, kick, and explore gorgeous worlds, this is the game for you.

If you're looking for something with an edge that's able to say "look at me, I'm different" and pull it off, look no further. Zeno clash is a winner and comes with a shiny NZGamer.com recommendation.

Zeno Clash Ultimate Edition is an addictive first person fighting game that also happens to have one of the weirdest stories and worlds ever conceived for a video game. It takes the right combination of open mind and FPS/fighting game fan to get into, but once you've been immersed into the world of Zenozoik it's a strangely difficult place to leave.

The game's appeal stretches well beyond its absurdities. [Aug 2010, p.99]

In an age when design risks are often squashed by budget concerns, Zeno Clash is a runaway success. There is literally nothing else like it.

You'll need a hot bath and some strange dreams to get over this one, but then the same is true of Peggle.

Even if the story is a little unrefined, though, Chilean developer Ace Team has crafted a world brimming with potential and worth checking out.

Zeno Clash features a world with exponential promise, great melee combat, and a completely unique setting; for players unfamiliar with Zenozoik's outlandish scenery, it's an easy recommendation.

Worth the investment to both appreciate its unique graphical style and just plain have fun beating the ever-loving snot out of pitied fools, made all the more visceral from first-person.

Despite the lack of exhilaration, it's a haunting, beautiful journey. The music is perfect. The water is inviting. Lulls in the action are filled with fascinating dialogue and plot development.

Zeno Clash is incredibly hard to explain; it's so off-the-wall that it demands to be experienced first-hand.

Several hours of unforgettable oddness. This is no Hollywood blockbuster, but we like it for that. [Aug 2010, p.120]

Zeno Clash remains the same gorgeous, grotesque, and unique experience it was on PC, and it's nice to actually see a game worth its 1200 point price tag for once.

Zeno Clash gives off an aura of being bigger than it actually is, and its less-refined spots really stick out. Constantly bizarre, if you can overlook its blemishes, you'll find an experience like nothing else out there.

If you get a chance to buy it after the inevitable price drop sale in the future, you can't go wrong with Zeno Clash, but at fifteen bucks (and one huge 1.5 GB download), it might be worth holding on to that red pill for later.

Despite the combat being flawed, and the "story" failing to live up to its potential, it's still remarkably fun to play.

As a whole, Zeno Clash is a decent game. There are some hitches here and there, and sometimes the game can get frustrating and downright boring. But, if you stick with it you will find a unique experience that was well crafted by the developers.

Zeno Clash offers some very otherworldly character designs along with a good overall story and a fun first person fighting system, but, even with the extra challenge modes there is really not much to do once the game is completed

At the very least, Zeno Clash provides an experience that most gamers probably haven't experienced before. It is provocative, violent, and definitely interesting, and sporadically fun.

When you look at it, Zeno Clash: Ultimate Edition is a pretty good package. You have a slightly flawed, yet still enjoyable seven hour campaign, and a couple of bonus modes that can be tackled with a friend on Xbox Live.

Trippy plot. [Issue#60, p.107]

Though Zeno Clash ends like an episode of Lost, with questions outweighing answers, one of the last lines in the game is "there are...things bigger even, than Zenozoik." In a capsule, this is the allure of the game.

For 1200 MS Points, the asking price seems too high for what it is. It's definitely more of an intriguing look rather than an instant classic.

At 1200 MS Points ($15), it's a tough one to completely recommend given its faults but in its favor it is probably the best looking game in Xbox Live Arcade and there really isn't anything else quite like it as a whole.

Beat'em up lovers won't feel disappointed, but the rest of gamers should think twice the purchase.

Zeno Clash: Ultimate Edition adds a new multiplayer mode to this strange action game, but it's still an average beat-'em-up at best.

Zeno Clash is an ambitious title that ultimately fails due to an underdeveloped story and weak combat mechanics.

Putting looks before substance doesn't seem so bad in this superbly surreal first person fighter.

Combat issues can make it frustrating and repetitive, but 15 dollars is a paltry sum for experiencing the intense mind-blowing world of Zenozoik. Zeno Clash deserves to be played for its unequaled experience, but probably just not for too long.

The game's story is so confusing, we didn't understand why things were happening. [July 2010, p.84]

It's not a must-have title, but may provide a refreshing alternative to bald space marines and army recruitment programs.

Neat ideas, but lacking longevity. [July 2010, p.104]