Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner
Encyclopedia
Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner, known in Japan as , is a video game that was developed
and published
by Konami
for the PlayStation 2
in 2003. The sequel to Zone of the Enders, the game was produced by, and is closely associated with Hideo Kojima
. The game is based around mecha
combat. Most mecha were designed by Yoji Shinkawa
, the character and mechanical designer for the Metal Gear Solid
series, with the exception of Lloyd and Inhert who were designed by Kazuma Kaneko
of Megami Tensei
fame. The character illustrations and select mecha illustrations were created by Tsubasa Masao.
A variety of weapons, enemies, and boss battles have been added to the game. The "Special Edition" PAL
and NTSC-J
versions of the game featured a variety of additions and extras to the game, including new VR Training options, added scenarios, more difficulties, a music video featuring a remixed "Beyond the Bounds" theme, improved anti-aliasing and graphical optimizations, and new Orbital Frames for Versus Mode, among other improvements to the game.
While the previous installment of the series covered themes such as the loss of innocence and the morality of killing, this game featured themes such as camaraderie, duty, vengeance, and mortality.
Today, the game is considered a rarity. In their July 2007 issue, the Official UK PlayStation 2 Magazine included The 2nd Runner in a list of hard-to-find PS2 games, along with ten other titles.
The player can unlock "Extra Missions" during the course of the game, as well as replaying the game with any incarnation of Jehuty. The game also includes a single- and multiplayer versus mode.
Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner also includes an unlockable 3D remake
of the original Gradius
arcade video game called Zoradius. In Zoradius, the player uses the Vic Viper in fighter mode, flying through a tunnel and shooting down various non-humanoid enemies from the game to gather powerups to increase the Viper's firepower and shields. Roughly halfway through the stage, the player has to fight through an area full of ring-shooting Moai
heads, also a staple of the Gradius series. The game ends in a Boss fight against the Train boss, also from the main game. The music and sound effects used in Zoradius are taken from the first Gradius arcade game, composed by Miki Higashino
.
. After he finds the orbital frame Jehuty, he is attacked by Nohman and his BAHRAM troops. After his capture, he is mortally wounded, but is saved after Ken Marinaris, a disgruntled member of BAHRAM, has Dingo wired into Jehuty’s life-support system. As the game progresses, Dingo and Ken get to be close friends.
The protagonist of the first game, Leo Stenbuck, returns in this game as a NPC (Non-playable Character). Between the first game and this one, he hid Jehuty on Callisto
to prevent it from carrying out its mission to self-destruct in BAHRAM’s base Aumann, because he had become close friends with Jehuty’s A.I., A.D.A.
. He inadvertently discovers the Orbital Frame, Jehuty
, that was hidden there by Leo. When he is attacked by BAHRAM forces who have come to seize it, Dingo climbs into Jehuty and engages the attackers, which include a female Orbital Frame runner named Ken Marinaris. During the battle, Dingo enters the BAHRAM battleship, seemingly defeating Nephtis, an Orbital Frame controlled by an A.I. program based on Viola's fighting style, but is subdued by Anubis, Jehuty's superior counterpart controlled by Col. Ridley (Nohman) Hardiman, leader of BAHRAM.
As a prisoner, Dingo is assaulted by Ken. Nohman arrives moments later and asks Dingo to join him. When Dingo refuses, Nohman shoots him, ordering Ken to dispose of the body. Instead, Ken has Dingo revived and placed inside Jehuty. When he comes to, she explains that Jehuty is acting as a life-support system, and if he leaves Jehuty, he will die. She then tells him that she is a UNSF spy, working undercover. Helped by Ken, Dingo escapes the battleship with Taper, a soldier with the UNSF who was hiding within the ship, and heads for Mars.
On Mars, Dingo is radioed by Ken, and she explains the situation. He is then attacked by Leo inside Vic Viper. While Leo at first tries to argue that he should be the one piloting Jehuty, he abandons his attempt after realizing Dingo cannot leave the frame. After several battles on the planet, Dingo runs into Nephtis once more and battles her. Ken arrives in her Orbital Frame Ardjet, but the A.I. within Nephtis possesses Ardjet, forcing Dingo to disable the Orbital Frame to purge the computer virus. Dingo manages to purge Ardjet of the Viola A.I. Ken climbs into Jehuty and, together, they seek out Lloyd, a BAHRAM scientist who can upgrade Jehuty, allowing it to stand a chance against Anubis.
Dingo and Ken find Lloyd after traversing through his heavily-secured complex, ending with a battle with Lloyd himself. After defeating Lloyd in combat, he agrees to upgrade Jehuty. While Jehuty is being upgraded, Lloyd tells Dingo about "Project Aumaan", a giant battle station capable of destroying everything around it, with a possible range of the known universe. Just as Jehuty is fully upgraded, Nohman flies in and attacks Dingo. Dingo is able to escape, but Ken is left behind, and Lloyd is killed.
Dingo meets up with Leo again, and they travel to Aumaan. Once there, they battle what they think to be Anubis, but it is later revealed to be a decoy with Ken inside. Nohman cripples Jehuty and flees the facility, destroying it. Ken tells Dingo and Leo that Aumaan is actually on Phobos, the largest moon of Mars. The three enter compressed space, where Dingo battles Anubis along the way. Upon reaching Phobos, Dingo does battle with Nohman again, this time destroying Anubis, but not before Nohman can activate Aumaan. Dingo is able to prevent the detonation by throwing Anubis' head into the core, and escapes with Leo.
During the credits Dingo is seen emerging from Jehuty with no ill effects. Ken rushes over and embraces him.
. The album was composed by the same artists as the previous album, , , , and .
The game's theme song, "Beyond the Bounds," was composed by Maki Kirioka and performed by Maki Kimura. (Lyrics) A remix
of the song, titled "Beyond the Bounds (Mitsuto Suzuki 020203 Mix feat.Sana)" also included on the soundtrack, is played during a music video extra in the PAL and NTSC-J "Special Edition" versions of the game, and appears on Pop'n Music
8. Non-English parts of the lyrics of "Beyond the Bounds" were influenced by the Finnish language
.
: the second reviewer called it "the best game I've played since Metroid Prime", but the first and third reviewers, while praising its gameplay as "breathtaking" and "consistently challenging", bemoaned its linearity, repetition and short duration.
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
and published
Video game publisher
A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that they have either developed internally or have had developed by a video game developer....
by Konami
Konami
is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
for the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
in 2003. The sequel to Zone of the Enders, the game was produced by, and is closely associated with Hideo Kojima
Hideo Kojima
is a Japanese game director originally employed at Konami. He is currently the director of Kojima Productions and was promoted to Vice President of Konami Digital Entertainment in early 2011...
. The game is based around mecha
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
combat. Most mecha were designed by Yoji Shinkawa
Yoji Shinkawa
is a Japanese artist. He is most famous for his character, environment and mechanical designs for the Metal Gear and Zone of the Enders series....
, the character and mechanical designer for the Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid
is a videogame by Hideo Kojima. The game was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and first published by Konami in 1998 for the PlayStation video game console. It is the sequel to Kojimas early MSX2 computer games Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake...
series, with the exception of Lloyd and Inhert who were designed by Kazuma Kaneko
Kazuma Kaneko
is a Japanese game designer and employee of Atlus. While working for the same company, he has also done work for Capcom and Konami, designing characters for the video games Devil May Cry 3 and Zone of the Enders 2, respectively. He is best known for his work in the Megami Tensei series of video...
of Megami Tensei
Megami Tensei
, commonly abbreviated as , is a Japanese console role-playing game metaseries which was originally based on the novel series Digital Devil Story by Aya Nishitani and has gone to become one of the major franchises of the genre in its native country...
fame. The character illustrations and select mecha illustrations were created by Tsubasa Masao.
A variety of weapons, enemies, and boss battles have been added to the game. The "Special Edition" PAL
PAL
PAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...
and NTSC-J
NTSC-J
NTSC-J is an analog television system and video display standard for the region of Japan.While NTSC-M is an official standard, "J" is more a colloquial indicator as used in Marketing definition but not an official term.-Technical definition:...
versions of the game featured a variety of additions and extras to the game, including new VR Training options, added scenarios, more difficulties, a music video featuring a remixed "Beyond the Bounds" theme, improved anti-aliasing and graphical optimizations, and new Orbital Frames for Versus Mode, among other improvements to the game.
While the previous installment of the series covered themes such as the loss of innocence and the morality of killing, this game featured themes such as camaraderie, duty, vengeance, and mortality.
Today, the game is considered a rarity. In their July 2007 issue, the Official UK PlayStation 2 Magazine included The 2nd Runner in a list of hard-to-find PS2 games, along with ten other titles.
Gameplay
Throughout Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner, the player controls Jehuty, the Orbital Frame piloted by Dingo, from a normally behind-the-back third-person viewpoint that centers itself between the player and enemy when locked on. The gameplay is linear, eschewing the "world map" of Zone of the Enders in favor of consecutive stages in which the player must defeat large amounts of robotic enemies, as well as other Orbital Frames and combat vehicles. The player can fully repair Jehuty by collecting Metatron, and save their progress at the beginning of each stage. The player can level up by destroying enemies, and collects "sub-weapons" by defeating bosses. Depending on the player's storyline progress, the capabilities of Jehuty can change. After certain missions, the player's performance is ranked with a letter rating; the entire game is given a score as well.The player can unlock "Extra Missions" during the course of the game, as well as replaying the game with any incarnation of Jehuty. The game also includes a single- and multiplayer versus mode.
Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner also includes an unlockable 3D remake
Remake
A remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
of the original Gradius
Gradius
The Gradius games, first introduced in 1985, make up a series of scrolling shooter video games published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper...
arcade video game called Zoradius. In Zoradius, the player uses the Vic Viper in fighter mode, flying through a tunnel and shooting down various non-humanoid enemies from the game to gather powerups to increase the Viper's firepower and shields. Roughly halfway through the stage, the player has to fight through an area full of ring-shooting Moai
Moai
Moai , or mo‘ai, are monolithic human figures carved from rock on the Chilean Polynesian island of Easter Island between the years 1250 and 1500. Nearly half are still at Rano Raraku, the main moai quarry, but hundreds were transported from there and set on stone platforms called ahu around the...
heads, also a staple of the Gradius series. The game ends in a Boss fight against the Train boss, also from the main game. The music and sound effects used in Zoradius are taken from the first Gradius arcade game, composed by Miki Higashino
Miki Higashino
is a Japanese video game composer best known for her works in the Suikoden series.-Biography:Miki Higashino first entered the music business as a student employed by Konami and contributed to various minor products, often uncredited or under the alias MIKI-CHAN or MIKI-CHANG...
.
Characters
The game’s protagonist is Dingo Egret, a former BAHRAM pilot who, at the beginning of the game, works as an ice miner on the moons of JupiterJupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
. After he finds the orbital frame Jehuty, he is attacked by Nohman and his BAHRAM troops. After his capture, he is mortally wounded, but is saved after Ken Marinaris, a disgruntled member of BAHRAM, has Dingo wired into Jehuty’s life-support system. As the game progresses, Dingo and Ken get to be close friends.
The protagonist of the first game, Leo Stenbuck, returns in this game as a NPC (Non-playable Character). Between the first game and this one, he hid Jehuty on Callisto
Callisto (moon)
Callisto named after the Greek mythological figure of Callisto) is a moon of the planet Jupiter. It was discovered in 1610 by Galileo Galilei. It is the third-largest moon in the Solar System and the second largest in the Jovian system, after Ganymede. Callisto has about 99% the diameter of the...
to prevent it from carrying out its mission to self-destruct in BAHRAM’s base Aumann, because he had become close friends with Jehuty’s A.I., A.D.A.
Story
The game begins with Dingo Egret, the protagonist, working at a mining facility on CallistoCallisto (moon)
Callisto named after the Greek mythological figure of Callisto) is a moon of the planet Jupiter. It was discovered in 1610 by Galileo Galilei. It is the third-largest moon in the Solar System and the second largest in the Jovian system, after Ganymede. Callisto has about 99% the diameter of the...
. He inadvertently discovers the Orbital Frame, Jehuty
Thoth
Thoth was considered one of the more important deities of the Egyptian pantheon. In art, he was often depicted as a man with the head of an ibis or a baboon, animals sacred to him. His feminine counterpart was Seshat...
, that was hidden there by Leo. When he is attacked by BAHRAM forces who have come to seize it, Dingo climbs into Jehuty and engages the attackers, which include a female Orbital Frame runner named Ken Marinaris. During the battle, Dingo enters the BAHRAM battleship, seemingly defeating Nephtis, an Orbital Frame controlled by an A.I. program based on Viola's fighting style, but is subdued by Anubis, Jehuty's superior counterpart controlled by Col. Ridley (Nohman) Hardiman, leader of BAHRAM.
As a prisoner, Dingo is assaulted by Ken. Nohman arrives moments later and asks Dingo to join him. When Dingo refuses, Nohman shoots him, ordering Ken to dispose of the body. Instead, Ken has Dingo revived and placed inside Jehuty. When he comes to, she explains that Jehuty is acting as a life-support system, and if he leaves Jehuty, he will die. She then tells him that she is a UNSF spy, working undercover. Helped by Ken, Dingo escapes the battleship with Taper, a soldier with the UNSF who was hiding within the ship, and heads for Mars.
On Mars, Dingo is radioed by Ken, and she explains the situation. He is then attacked by Leo inside Vic Viper. While Leo at first tries to argue that he should be the one piloting Jehuty, he abandons his attempt after realizing Dingo cannot leave the frame. After several battles on the planet, Dingo runs into Nephtis once more and battles her. Ken arrives in her Orbital Frame Ardjet, but the A.I. within Nephtis possesses Ardjet, forcing Dingo to disable the Orbital Frame to purge the computer virus. Dingo manages to purge Ardjet of the Viola A.I. Ken climbs into Jehuty and, together, they seek out Lloyd, a BAHRAM scientist who can upgrade Jehuty, allowing it to stand a chance against Anubis.
Dingo and Ken find Lloyd after traversing through his heavily-secured complex, ending with a battle with Lloyd himself. After defeating Lloyd in combat, he agrees to upgrade Jehuty. While Jehuty is being upgraded, Lloyd tells Dingo about "Project Aumaan", a giant battle station capable of destroying everything around it, with a possible range of the known universe. Just as Jehuty is fully upgraded, Nohman flies in and attacks Dingo. Dingo is able to escape, but Ken is left behind, and Lloyd is killed.
Dingo meets up with Leo again, and they travel to Aumaan. Once there, they battle what they think to be Anubis, but it is later revealed to be a decoy with Ken inside. Nohman cripples Jehuty and flees the facility, destroying it. Ken tells Dingo and Leo that Aumaan is actually on Phobos, the largest moon of Mars. The three enter compressed space, where Dingo battles Anubis along the way. Upon reaching Phobos, Dingo does battle with Nohman again, this time destroying Anubis, but not before Nohman can activate Aumaan. Dingo is able to prevent the detonation by throwing Anubis' head into the core, and escapes with Leo.
During the credits Dingo is seen emerging from Jehuty with no ill effects. Ken rushes over and embraces him.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack to Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner was released March 19, 2003 on the album ANUBIS Zone of the Enders Original Soundtrack by Konami Music EntertainmentKonami
is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
. The album was composed by the same artists as the previous album, , , , and .
The game's theme song, "Beyond the Bounds," was composed by Maki Kirioka and performed by Maki Kimura. (Lyrics) A remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
of the song, titled "Beyond the Bounds (Mitsuto Suzuki 020203 Mix feat.Sana)" also included on the soundtrack, is played during a music video extra in the PAL and NTSC-J "Special Edition" versions of the game, and appears on Pop'n Music
Pop'n Music
, commonly abbreviated as Pop'n, PM or PNM, is a music video game in the Bemani series made by the Konami Corporation. This game is known for its bright colors, upbeat songs, and cartoon character graphics...
8. Non-English parts of the lyrics of "Beyond the Bounds" were influenced by the Finnish language
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
.
| Track listing | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| class="wikitable" style="width:100%; margin-right:-1em;"> | |||
| # | Title | Artist | Length |
| 01 | Beyond The Bounds (Full Version) | Maki Kirioka | 5:37 |
| 02 | Jehuty -Vivid Transparency | Akihiro Honda | 5:18 |
| 03 | Seek Taper | Toshiyuki Kakuta | 1:33 |
| 04 | Leo! Leo! | Akihiro Honda | 2:08 |
| 05 | Phobos at Mars | Norihiko Hibino | 1:44 |
| 06 | VR Training | Toshiyuki Kakuta | 1:53 |
| 07 | Fake Aumaan | Maki Kirioka | 0:58 |
| 08 | Ardjet | Akihiro Honda | 4:39 |
| 09 | Compression Space | Maki Kirioka | 2:00 |
| 10 | Beyond the Bounds (Mitsuto Suzuki 020203 Mix feat. Sana) | Maki Kirioka | 5:52 |
| 11 | Bahram Battleship | Toshiyuki Kakuta | 2:42 |
| 12 | Train | Akihiro Honda | 3:25 |
| 13 | Air Fight | Maki Kirioka | 3:28 |
| 14 | ALOIVIA | Akihiro Honda | 6:12 |
| 15 | Inhert | Maki Kirioka | 1:30 |
| 16 | Explosion & Aftermath | Norihiko Hibino | 3:12 |
| 17 | Descending Aumaan | Toshiyuki Kakuta | 3:28 |
| 18 | Chaotic Fight | Akihiro Honda | 3:42 |
| 19 | Zakat | Toshiyuki Kakuta | 2:29 |
| 20 | Final Battle | Norihiko Hibino | 2:55 |
| 21 | Jehuty Returns | Norihiko Hibino | 2:07 |
| 22 | Trusting Peace | Norihiko Hibino | 1:55 |
Reception
The game was praised for its beautiful visuals and graphics, fast and intense boss battles, and excellent controls. The game received positive reviews from game sites, though its short length, cluttered story, and voice acting have been widely criticized by several critics. Though some viewers claim that the voice acting was okay and wasn't as bad as many claim it to be. It received a score of 7.5/9/8.5 from Electronic Gaming MonthlyElectronic Gaming Monthly
Electronic Gaming Monthly is a bimonthly American video game magazine. It has been published by EGM Media, LLC. since relaunching in April of 2010. Its previous run, which ended in January 2009, was published by Ziff Davis...
: the second reviewer called it "the best game I've played since Metroid Prime", but the first and third reviewers, while praising its gameplay as "breathtaking" and "consistently challenging", bemoaned its linearity, repetition and short duration.
Sequel
- Since 2008, ZOE3 has been in concept development by Hideo Kojima, but was kept away from game development until all the big titles were completed (these included Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the PatriotsMetal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriotsis a video game developed by Kojima Productions for the PlayStation 3 console. The game was directed by Hideo Kojima and made its worldwide release on June 12, 2008, ten years after the release of Metal Gear Solid and twenty years after the North American release of Metal Gear.Guns of the Patriots...
, Metal Gear Solid: RisingMetal Gear Solid: Risingis an upcoming action video game under development by Kojima Productions as a spin-off to the Metal Gear series. The game is in development for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The series' regular tagline, "Tactical Espionage Action", will be opted out for this entry in favor of...
, & Metal Gear Solid: Peace WalkerMetal Gear Solid: Peace Walkeris a video game produced by Konami and Kojima Productions that was released for the PlayStation Portable in 2010. Peace Walker is the fourth Metal Gear title for the PSP, although it is only the second to be considered part of the series' main canon, following Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops...
).
External links
- Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner - Konami Official Site
- Zone of the Enders: The Unofficial Site - Unofficial Zone of the Enders site. Contains various information on Zone of the Enders media.