Zone of the Enders HD Collection

I remembered Zone of the Enders on PS2 for two reasons – because it looked great and was so much fun to play. Both these qualities were carried over to the HD version. [CD-Action 02/2013, p.66]

Just as brilliant as they were on PS2, ZOE HD is a mech fan's dream. [Jan 2013, p.79]

ZoE's fighting system has aged well. While you can't say that for the rest of the first game, 2nd Runner is every bit as excellent today as it was in 2003. The HD makeup makes the games prettier, but unfortunately also causes some drops in the frames-per-second count. [Jan 2013]

The first Zone of the Enders serves more like an introduction to the mythology. The real meat of this collection is the gorgeous and fast-paced Zone of the Enders: 2nd Runner. Complete with all the additional content only previously available in the original limited special edition release, it's still a treat to play. And of course, there's that demo disc of Metal Gear Rising: Revengance.

Hindsight be damned, these games are still fantastic.

There's really no excuse to see frame rate issues spoil what is very nearly a perfect conversion, but it's a price worth paying to see Jehuty fly again.

If you're an old fan, dedicated fan, or a would-be brand new fan of the series, Zone of the Enders HD Collection is easily worth your time and money, especially with the inclusion of the Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance demo and The 2nd Runner alone.

Considering you're getting two good mecha shooters at a reasonable price, we heartily recommend this package.

Zone of the Enders HD Collection is a solid package and a good chance for all videogamers to replay a classic series of games.

Zone of the Enders HD Collection was one of the most important games on Playstation 2: 2nd Runner, but the original ZOE is as limited as ever, and the remakes suffer from poor frame rate.

The game deserves a look if you can look past the framerate issues.

While Zone of the Enders sometimes feels like a retro grind, The 2nd Runner is stylish and engrossing.

In the end, for all its faults, this is still an easy to recommend package. 30 Euros for two very competent games that have aged well and without losing anything of their dashing, boosting and metal-disintegrating fascination.

Ultimately, Zone of the Enders HD Collection is something of a niche product. While the HD remakes are competent, The 2nd Runner is the reason to purchase the collection. It is noticeably the better game, in every respect. The original Zone of the Enders is nice to have for historical sake, but anyone who's not a core fan won't spend a whole lot of time there. It's all about the second outing. If these are ever made available as separate digital downloads, The 2nd Runner will be the one to get.

Zone of the Enders HD Collection is a solid package that truly only suffers from its technical flaws. The frame rate might not have been such an issue if the original hadn't been so smooth. As it stands, being able to finally play both games on Xbox 360 and having them in one nice package is almost worth it, unless of course you still own them on PS2.

The artistic style, from the Orbital Frames' designs to the vibrant and varied presentation of the world, stands out above any update.

Except for the new intro anime sequence, there's nothing particularly interesting in ZoE HD Collection if you already played the games on PS2. If you never played them instead, it's surely a solid game with good controls and a nice anime feeling, but it didn't age quite well.

In the end, this feels like a love letter aimed at a very specific group of fans, and I'm sure those fans are thankful for a chance to remember this oft forgotten franchise.

The aerial combat is still thrilling, but some inexcusable issues make Zone of the Enders HD Collection a disappointing repackaging of two cult classics.