Zanac x Zanac PSX, opinions?

[Strider77]

I bought most of this stuff as it came out, granted there are a few that I wasn't aware of, forgot about, or was broke at the time. I don't feel bad about spending a pretty penny on a few titles but some these days I don't "buy" the rare expensive crap.....

"remember that its price is not going to decline. If you don't like it there is a demand for it, it sells relatively quickly when it does come up. In most cases expensive games keep their value so its high value, low risk."

this isn't totally true, dracula x, Soukyugurentai, Ys 4 (pc engine) have come down quite a bit.... alot of pc engine and saturn stuff came down from about 7 to 8 years ago. I use to see dracula x go for 400 at times (at least 300 was not uncommon), Souky for 80, and Ys 4 for 80 or more. granted not all the time though. I use to see the Striker games go in the upper 70's at one point on the saturn....

i've noticed that some prices are going up on a few titles and are probably gonna stay or rise.... like silvergun. some I don't understand though at all or think it's silly.... BlastWind comes to mind. i paid 50 and that was to much. I've seen Anet Again go for 100 before and that game is not great, but el viento (the 1st game in that series) go for cheap and is way better and not that common of a game to come across either (not speaking of the domestic vers).

still it's kinda funny, there are games i get a "hunch" about now so i'll be sure to pic em up when they are new. silvergun and sapphire i'm happy to have avoided ebay for

[Turrican]

Decent game, but has its share of problems. It does include a version or three of the original Zanac, but the exclusive Zanac Neo is the main event. It plays somewhat similarly to the original, but with better graphics, 3 (4, once you unlock it) ships to choose from, and a special attack you use to both save yourself and "chain" enemies for extra points. The other scoring mechanic is simply killing absolutely everything before it leaves the screen: miss one enemy and you miss a bunch o' points.

The latter scoring system, unfortunately, tends to limit the weapons that are practical to use if you're playing for score (you hafta be able to pick off the swarms of popcorn enemies or else you don't have a chance most of the time), not to mention that, as tends to be an issue for Compile games in general, certain weapons work well in certain areas and are almost useless in others, and unless you've played before you can easily end up stuck with an ill-fitting weapon and doomed to die repeatedly until you get out of the area (and unlike Super Aleste, there's no real "bomb" to help you recover). Also, I found certain enemies blended in with the backgrounds, leading to regular "arrgh" deaths, although perhaps more regular playing could help with that...

Granted, others swear by this game, so there's definitely something to love here, if it's your style: it's not a bad game by any stretch of the imagination, but be aware of what you're getting before you shell out the cash (I was lucky enough to win it for cheap).

We discussed this before:

http://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=2257

Also Kiken's review of the game:

http://www.insertcredit.com/reviews/zanac/index.html

[ROBOTRON]

COMPILE RULES.

Zanac x Zanac is sweet...perhaps easy on an easy setting, but the difficulty is adjustable. It has the NES Zanac as well? Beastly.

I bought the game when it first came out...had it ever since. I had no idea it would become so expensive...happy I kept it.

I rate it 9/10...I love Compile shmups.

Look whats on my TV screen! LOL

[Ceph]

I paid close to 140$ for a copy from Play-Asia a year ago (because the case was broken I exchanged the game, both times Pay Asia marked it as merchandise at full value even though I asked them not to and I had to pay import tax TWICE). And you know what? It was worth it! Fitting swan song for the late and great Compile.

And Turrican is right, by the way, this has been discussed more than once before; use the search function, dammit!

[Super Laydock]

Yes, on default the game is way too easy...

Then again, ... why don't you try hard!?

Superb OST makes this a must anyway!!!!!!!!

[UnscathedFlyingObject]

Average at best game. Some people like it, but I found it long and repetitive.

[professor ganson]

I paid close to 140$ for a copy from Play-Asia a year ago (because the case was broken I exchanged the game, both times Pay Asia marked it as merchandise at full value even though I asked them not to and I had to pay import tax TWICE). And you know what? It was worth it! Fitting swan song for the late and great Compile.

Hey Ceph, I bought mine from Play-Asia too. As usual it was worth the few extra dollars to get the item in perfect condition. EASILY worth the money, and easily makes my top 25.

[Strider77]

ROBOTRON..... that turbo 16 and genesis are missing cd roms....

[Shatterhand]

Zanac Neo is awesome stuff, it's the best game on the whole PSX library imo.

[Turrican]

Zanac Neo is awesome stuff, it's the best game on the whole PSX library imo.

I was expecting your comeback on this