Zero Gunner 2
Encyclopedia
Zero Gunner 2 is a 3D multidirectional shooter
developed by Psikyo
as a sequel to Zero Gunner
, the original arcade game. It was released for the Dreamcast in Japan in 2001.
machine called ONI, developed entirely for the purpose of taking over the world. Once ONI is activated, the countries of the world suffer and Igem's secret militia move in to destroy any opposition. It is here that the Zero Gunner squadron is called into action to stop Igem and to destroy ONI.
The game is particularly innovative by including a way to rotate the helicopter in 360 degrees, allowing the player to fire in any direction. Most of the time this is required to survive, as enemies not only come from the top of the screen, but the left, right, and bottom as well. Like other scrolling shooters, the game makes use of power-ups to improve a helicopter's firepower. Each player also has a "Special" Bar, which slowly rises whenever players collect the little "E" icons from destroyed enemies. Every time the bar fills, the player has an opportunity to unleash their helicopter's special attack which often is capable of destroying every enemy on the screen.
Shoot 'em up
Shoot 'em up is a subgenre of shooter video games. In a shoot 'em up, the player controls a lone character, often in a spacecraft or aircraft, shooting large numbers of enemies while dodging their attacks. The genre in turn encompasses various types or subgenres and critics differ on exactly what...
developed by Psikyo
Psikyo
is a Japanese video game company started in 1992. Psikyo is an off-shoot formed from the staff that created the Aero Fighters series for Video System. Psikyo focused on arcade games, mostly vertically-scrolling shoot 'em ups and pornographic mahjong games...
as a sequel to Zero Gunner
Zero Gunner
Zero Gunner is a shoot 'em up developed by Psikyo and released in 1997. The arcade game allows for eight-way movement using a joystick and supports up to two players at a time. It was notable for its lock on targeting mechanic that allowed players to rotate around targets...
, the original arcade game. It was released for the Dreamcast in Japan in 2001.
Story
In the near future, an Asian conglomerate known as Igem develops a unique energy source capable of developing a number of innovative machines. Their over-abundant research with the energy leads to the construction of a weather controlWeather control
Weather control is the act of manipulating or altering certain aspects of the environment to produce desirable changes in weather. Weather control can have the goal of preventing damaging weather, such as hurricanes or tornadoes, from occurring; of causing beneficial weather, such as rainfall in...
machine called ONI, developed entirely for the purpose of taking over the world. Once ONI is activated, the countries of the world suffer and Igem's secret militia move in to destroy any opposition. It is here that the Zero Gunner squadron is called into action to stop Igem and to destroy ONI.
Gameplay
One or two players can take their pick of three helicopters, each with their own firing pattern and battle oncoming waves of enemies through 7 different stages, each with a boss at the end. Each boss has a different form at the beginning, such as a train, boat, airplane, or submarine, but after the players have inflicted enough damage, it turns into a giant robot. After the players destroy the robot, the stage ends and they progress on to the new stage. There are 9 modes of difficulty, ranging from "Child", where enemies fire little to none when fired upon to "Very Hard", where enemies fire at almost any given moment.The game is particularly innovative by including a way to rotate the helicopter in 360 degrees, allowing the player to fire in any direction. Most of the time this is required to survive, as enemies not only come from the top of the screen, but the left, right, and bottom as well. Like other scrolling shooters, the game makes use of power-ups to improve a helicopter's firepower. Each player also has a "Special" Bar, which slowly rises whenever players collect the little "E" icons from destroyed enemies. Every time the bar fills, the player has an opportunity to unleash their helicopter's special attack which often is capable of destroying every enemy on the screen.