Zenith is a third-person role-playing game which revolves around a staff and the end of the world. You play as a rather clumsy and loudmouth mage who finds himself drawn into a giant conspiracy which deals with topics like possession and much more. While this sounds like a serious story, it’s told in a humorous manner which doesn’t sound epic at all. Casual and sometimes foul language is used throughout the experience to give it a lighthearted feel even though a lot of death and destruction happens around you.
The game is great and has an old-school feel to it. The locations are breathtaking and I enjoyed playing Zenith after the first few hours because I got used to the controls. However, the controls and the camera have to be the biggest detriment to the experience. The camera is fixed and you have to move around with one thumbstick. This takes some getting used to but can be overcome rather quickly. However, what takes even more getting used to is the odd combat. The combat feels floaty and unsatisfying. The only strategy for success—at least from my playthrough—was just dodging and running around. Striking powerful enemies from afar was the only way to insure you didn’t die. This was frustrating to begin with but I guess kiting is an efficient strategy used in many games like Diablo 3 and The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing. It’s still annoying though.
I’m not sure why the developers went with old-school mechanics for Zenith. I realize that nostalgia plays an important part in game design nowadays but we have to keep in mind the advancements the years have brought us. Having tighter and more player-focused mechanics would’ve elevated the game considerably. With that said, the title does get rid of annoying elements like going into the seventh level of some dungeon to collect a special knife. Zenith’s sole focus is on the main adventure and it doesn’t waver from it. It puzzles me how the developers thought of why going into random caves again and again was annoying but didn’t change the controls or improve the combat. Zenith is great but feels like a missed opportunity in many places.
One of the biggest drawbacks has to be the voice acting…well, lack of voice acting to be exact. Recently I was given access to a game called The Dwarves. While it might not be the most polished experience, it has great voice acting. Reading the dialogues is fine by me but having them voiced in hilarious ways would’ve made the game better. While my review might sound like a list of complaints, I’m just shocked as to how many missed opportunities Zenith presents with. Why was that not taken into consideration? I realize that budgets are tight when it comes to smaller experiences but the game offers you over a dozen hours of gameplay, it’s not a small game. Voice acting should’ve been part of the package. If they didn’t want to do that, maybe having characters mumble like what Oceanhorn does would’ve sufficed. Anything that gives the characters some more life!
The best part of Zenith as alluded to earlier has to be the exploration elements. While areas aren’t sprawling cities and forests like those found in Skyrim, they’re still unique and despite its problems, you’ll get lost in the world. You’ll encounter ruins which seem to have Buddhist-like influences to snowy hills covered with corpses. This aspects redeems the experience along with the story. While many people might be put off by the profanity and causal nature of the dialogues, I found them hilarious and many people will too. If you’re easily offended, I would recommend not picking this one up.
Summary
Overall, Zenith is a fun game even though the developers seem to have cut a few corners here and there. Due to its old-school feel it comes across as an unpolished experience which takes a significant amount of time to get used to. However, once you get used to the feel, the environments and story get a hold of you and never let go. The game will definitely make you laugh with its humor and pop culture references. If you’re going to pick Zenith up, just be sure that you have the willpower to handle the stark differences between it and modern games when it comes to the camera and controls. If you can get past that like me, you’ll absolutely love the title.
Xian was a regular ICXM contributor between 2015–2017, publishing 162 articles across game reviews, Windows and PC, and Xbox news. Their work focused on hands-on reviews, platform commentary, and breaking-news reporting during the Xbox One X launch year and Microsoft’s wider Play Anywhere / UWP gaming initiative.