Zenith: Video Game Overview

Anachronox, THE BARD’S TALE, DeathSpank, South Park: The Stick Of Truth – You probably have already guessed that it combines all these role games. That’s right, the abundance of humor, satire and parodies on the stagnant genre standards, on films, modern culture and still God knows what. Now in this series you can put and Zenith – The game with the caressing ear of each St. Petersburg name, tons of humor, bright characters, an interesting plot … and completely terrible technical performance.The game is translated – and very successfully – into Russian.
Magic do not offer

Main character Zenith – Magician Argus Vidernil, who once searched for very important artifacts for the empire of people, decipher the ancient texts and conducted sacred rituals. And then one of these artifacts enslaved the Sollfish Emperor, who had wanted to find an unprecedented force and smash, finally, the elves, and turned it into a cunning flying villain – he now calls dragons, sows death and opens portals to hell and back.

Argus, feeling partially and guilty in what happened, went in a protracted drink and began to work as a conventional pharmacist, which sells potions from gazes for cats and analogue of Viagra to leader Local Mafia Orcs. But soon, two events make him leave the place based on the place and go to a dangerous adventure again.

First, the “Don Corleon” of local orcs remained extremely dissatisfied with the use of “Viagra”, because he did not use it, and the whites … where should not. Secondly, in the city there was a pedestrian company of young people with huge swords behind his back and multicolored hairstyles, as if escaped from some Final Fantasy, – One melancholic emo with an intelligence of a 14-year-old transvestite (so says Argus himself), the other and at all idiots. But the blue-haired girl is clearly smarter than the rest – she conceived a trip to the neighboring ruins, which our hero can not allow any.

Soon they, naturally, will already travel together – as usual, progressing and flirting with each other. And ahead of them is waiting for a lot of work: a new demonic invasion, which happened in their same fault, disassembly with former colleagues – magicians, penetration with hacking, the car of the vessel’s day, the salvation of the world and the transportation of a very important scepter in the fashionable lady’s handbag ..When solving tasks and overcoming traps periodically, you have to carry gravity.
Flying Circus Argus Wonderlie

Zenith – It is a parody not only on the role genre as a whole and Final Fantasy in particular. There are still references to a variety of other games and films, including “Star Wars” and “Harry Potter”. In one of the taverns, you can meet a sad volonderort – once he blew up the western wing of the local Magic Academy, trying to transfer part of his soul to the lampshade, and now asks to bring him glasses for five thousand gold to continue his dangerous experiments.

Humor, as often happens in such situations, it turned out uneven. Jokes about gonoron and punching cats frankly below the plinth, and the parodies on the suffering Emo rubley still in the dilogy GroteSque Tactics. And yet more than once and not two authors make us be sincerely smile. Argus constantly falls into ridiculous situations, but never loses the presence of the spirit and sense of humor – and no wonder if you have quartermasses to 999 levels. He shoots frightened elephants on demonic portals, observes how imperial golems are thrown by marinated elves in barrels, and still becomes God for the race of reasonable rats – thanks to the unsuccessful potions from his pharmacy, merged into the sewer, they found the mind and now pray for censens and red bottles now.

And all this bloody scripts manage to competently combine and alternate with a really interesting story. Why, in fact, Argus became a pharmacist, which hides the blue-haired girl, why the evil former emperor the next magic scepter (maybe he really just wants to look fashionable?)? The story constantly intrigues and presents surprises. Yes, and the images of the characters, their relationship with each other is written perfectly – they quickly penetrate sympathy to them, and then you begin to worry about them, wanting to see what it will end.

Spontaneous games

Final Fantasy And others like them and the structure of the game itself. There is an epichny story about the salvation of the world and the blue-haired girls, which flows linearly and only occasionally interrupted by pieces of side assignments (“Find a green gangster who breaks all the pots in the city, and bring me proof of his death. – Well, if I accidentally be far in the mountains, where he is hiding, and I suddenly want to kill him, then it is possible … In general, do not wait for me!”).“Bosses” are large here, and to each, as it should be, you need to find your approach.
And there is a global card for which we move between important locations, running away from counter-cross monsters or, on the contrary, looking for dates with them to “roll up” and earn money. In addition to participating in dialogues and battles, periodically needs to run in closed premises, overcome a variety of traps and solve more or less simple (and sometimes not very simple) riddles. There are even stealth elements.

Role-playing system is also simple, but with a highlight. Everything is twisted around three elements – fire, water, land. And yours, and enemy weapons cause a spontaneous damage. And you and enemies have a certain resistance of one or another element. At the same time, each weapon is distinguished by some special attack, but it does not differ in power: the force with which this “earthy” male will be hit, does not depend on it, but from how the damage parameter of the corresponding element is developed. And you can develop these indicators using equipment – each ring or boots raise some characteristics, but reduce others.

Accordingly, it is necessary to constantly select optimal equipment and change the weapon to a specific situation and concrete enemies – somewhere will suit the same Bulava, able to strike at the area, but the fiery worm is better to beat the fast single blows of the “water” fist. In addition, there are three more talents, developing which you again strengthen one or other essential power and resistance, open new types of attacks, increase mana and get other spontaneous bonuses.The global map has to close demonic portals – almost like in Oblivion!
They would have money ..

And everything would be fine, but Zenith There are some serious minuses. First, the authors for some reason decided instead of step-by-step, in the spirit of the same Final Fantasy And Anachronox, Battles use isometric action in real time, equipped with three types of attack, terrible animation and perfectly “curved”. When using the gamepad, the situation becomes better, but not so much to consider the problem of solved.

Get on the enemy some spell from a distance sometimes very difficult – the charge often flies there. It is difficult to even just go along the desired stoves to solve the riddle, – Argus itself flashes to stumble. The camera is also disobedient – in some ries you are not clearly visiting where you need to accurately put a stone to overlapping a stream, so it’s easier to run forward, drinking a potion.

Secondly, the engine, of course, is able to issue cute species – thanks to the virtual director and artists, – but in general, the graphics and in general the technical component is frankly outdated. And the sound can not be muffled, neither turn off, despite the fact that some melodies are quickly starting to annoy (although there are much more successful).You can save only at special points. And yes, Melniks are bred here dinosaurs!***
Zenith Very reminds Anachronox – both with its advantages and minuses. The same ironic is not Japanese (in this case – the Latin American) look at the Japanese role-playing games, offering a gorgeous story, which is interesting in itself, even outside the context of the ceremonial parody of the genre in general and fantasy in particular. The same spirit of the present adventure, where in addition to the fight and “pumping” there are riddles, traps, stealth elements, large cities and a fairly free study of the world. And the same terrible technical performance. But humor (albeit is not always successful), a fascinating story, memorable characters and the spirit of the present adventure in the end, outweigh all cons.