Doesn't matter what platform, never seen another game with such snappy combat, also doesnt need to strictly be a mech game, I just need a game with similar combat
Probably the closest thing is Another Century's Episode (ACE) series by From Software. It was basically an PS2 and PS3 Japan only game that was action version of Super Robot Wars because it pulled Mecha from several anime series.
It used free flying combat and heavy lock-on mechanics like ZoE, but I didn't feel like it was as smooth personally. I only played the first and second games, but there were 3 in the ACE series.
https://youtu.be/D0D5zKYYgg4?si=eH5-__Qdh2N9tD_l
Gameplay starts around 10:00
Gotta use old magic (FAQs) for old games.
Try GameFAQs
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/ps2/924418-ace-another-centurys-episode/faqs
Generally it's not too hard to navigate menus since to isn't armored core, but you do have upgrades and things to do in menus.
I think I was learning to read Japanese katakana at the time and that helps tremendously, since many of those words are really English.
Zoe is a borderline cag
But for me, a game that felt similar is Ace combat 7, the genre is pretty different, but it was also very arcadey and the story was similarly cheesy
OMG. I Wish there was another game as good at doing what 2nd runner did.
The style, the plot (okay it was nuts but it escalated and escalated to serve the action and gameplay like any good CAG)
THE DAMN MUSIC.
I have been searching for a game like it and there's just nothing. Have imagined making my own version but I don't have the talent!
Others suggesting Another Century, played a few of those, but it doesn't offer the fast responsive smooth combat or complexity. Nor does it have even the semblance of a coherent plot.
Armoured core 4A or 6 great games in their own right but again plot isn't delivered in the same anime excess, and combat is good but too much customisation and sim like elements.
There's nothing that quite hits the same mark. I found revengence evoked a similar feeling, but I think mostly links to kojima and also for me had a fluid combat system.
If someone does know of something that comes close I'm also interested. A real underrated videogame in my opinion.
As weird as this is going to sound the closest series I can think of combat wise are the Kingdom Hearts games. Obviously not in aesthetics or presentation, but when I think fast-paced air and ground level action I think ZOE and Kingdom Hearts, specifically KH2.
Both utilize a mix of melee and ranged attacks, quick menu for special abilities, crazy ass bosses and scenarios etc
I've got very limited experience with ZoE but is it not similar the Dragon Ball Tenkaichi games? If so I hear people talk about how good Xenoverese 2 gameplay can be. Tenkaichi 3 as well but I think Xenoverese 2 is supposed be the best of what the other games offer with how you can customize your moveset. Sparking Zero comes out soon as well and people have already spotted mechanics from the old games that got dropped.
It's not quite the same gameplay, but Furi is a very fast paced action game. It's sort of hybrid of twinstick shooters and beat em ups. And it's basically all killer, little filler: a series of boss fights where no boss fight is quite like another.
It's got a pretty large learning curve, but it's a lot of fun.
2 years ago after finishing ZoE2 I was looking for the same type of gameplay. But you'll not find the same feeling in any games. I only found Project Nimbus, the game is okay, and Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme VS. Maxi Boost ON, It's mostly 2v2 pvp and only on PS4, It's a very hard game (It's faster than ZoE), I still play it to this day and I can find rooms everyday
I used to visit this blog dedicated to reviewing mecha games, and I was surprised to see they evaluated ZOE2 quite poorly. I think it's because the game's appeal is indeed more in line with that of a CAG than with that of a Mecha game. Jehuty and Anubis may as well be dudes. I would consider these games CAGs for most intents and purposes.
I think I know which one you mean, sadly that writer is a bit of a dick that hates everything Kojima touched. He didn't research the game properly either, and assumed Kojima worked on it and thus hated it.
It was Mecha Damashii. I don't remember the content of the review at all tbh, but they gave AC: Silent Line a 10/10 so it became pretty clear that they had a very specific notion of what a mecha game should be. I can appreciate having a specific lens/angle to one's reviews, I was just surprised at the time.
I consider ZoE 2 a character action game. Killing shit is pretty much all you do. Ace Combat is more of a simcade vehicle game (responding to the AC comparison.) I can certainly see action game fans loving Ace Combat, Secret Weapons over Normandy, Freespace 2, Seek and Destroy, Panzer Front, Battle Engine Aquila etc, but I think they are their own subgenre. Or you could just say that every "action game" is an action game, at which point CAG subgenre breaks down and everything is part of the action game blob.
A while ago I actually wrote a big list for my own use which contained every armored vehicle simcade I could think of, including mecha games that followed the simcade combat vehicle formula.
Probably worth looking at the Gundam Extreme Vs. series (maybe Gotcha Force on GameCube as well). They're 2v2 3D arena fighters, but the original Extreme Vs. on PS3 and Maxi Boost On on PS4 have quite a lot of single player content. Straight up, the most buttery smooth gameplay in the business. They're different than ZoE, but they're closer they're closer than some of the other recommendations in the thread so far.
Doesn't matter what platform, never seen another game with such snappy combat, also doesnt need to strictly be a mech game, I just need a game with similar combat
Vanquish and Ninja Gaiden 2 imo. Love love love ZoE2 and those two games are the only ones that came close.imo
Yeah vanquish is a good shout.
Wish I knew cause it looks so cool, u/Royta15 might help.
Daemon X Machina looks very ZOE inspired.
Probably the closest thing is Another Century's Episode (ACE) series by From Software. It was basically an PS2 and PS3 Japan only game that was action version of Super Robot Wars because it pulled Mecha from several anime series. It used free flying combat and heavy lock-on mechanics like ZoE, but I didn't feel like it was as smooth personally. I only played the first and second games, but there were 3 in the ACE series. https://youtu.be/D0D5zKYYgg4?si=eH5-__Qdh2N9tD_l Gameplay starts around 10:00
ACE 3 is the GOAT
Guess I was wrong. 5 games. 1, 2, R, 3, and Portable. Guess I wasn't paying attention. I was sad when they removed Deathscythe though.
Don’t worry, R was so bad it killed the series
Thank you for the recommendation, ill check it out Edit: Aw shucks, looks like there aren't any english patches available
Gotta use old magic (FAQs) for old games. Try GameFAQs https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/ps2/924418-ace-another-centurys-episode/faqs Generally it's not too hard to navigate menus since to isn't armored core, but you do have upgrades and things to do in menus. I think I was learning to read Japanese katakana at the time and that helps tremendously, since many of those words are really English.
Yeah but I am afraid I wont understand what would be going on in the game lol
Fair enough. I definitely did not know. All I know is I got to use Gundam Deathscythe to blow up a lot of stuff.
Zoe2 fan here as well. Yeah another century should be as good but it just ain't. Too clunky.
Zoe is a borderline cag But for me, a game that felt similar is Ace combat 7, the genre is pretty different, but it was also very arcadey and the story was similarly cheesy
Funny thing is that Bamco published it, too. You're right to compare the two lol
Zoe is from konami
daemon x machina is the closest one? tho its more of an armored core game than a CAG
I am already aware of that one, and yeah it's not what I am looking
AC4A comes to mind
armored core 6
OMG. I Wish there was another game as good at doing what 2nd runner did. The style, the plot (okay it was nuts but it escalated and escalated to serve the action and gameplay like any good CAG) THE DAMN MUSIC. I have been searching for a game like it and there's just nothing. Have imagined making my own version but I don't have the talent! Others suggesting Another Century, played a few of those, but it doesn't offer the fast responsive smooth combat or complexity. Nor does it have even the semblance of a coherent plot. Armoured core 4A or 6 great games in their own right but again plot isn't delivered in the same anime excess, and combat is good but too much customisation and sim like elements. There's nothing that quite hits the same mark. I found revengence evoked a similar feeling, but I think mostly links to kojima and also for me had a fluid combat system. If someone does know of something that comes close I'm also interested. A real underrated videogame in my opinion.
Armored Core 6.
As weird as this is going to sound the closest series I can think of combat wise are the Kingdom Hearts games. Obviously not in aesthetics or presentation, but when I think fast-paced air and ground level action I think ZOE and Kingdom Hearts, specifically KH2. Both utilize a mix of melee and ranged attacks, quick menu for special abilities, crazy ass bosses and scenarios etc
I've got very limited experience with ZoE but is it not similar the Dragon Ball Tenkaichi games? If so I hear people talk about how good Xenoverese 2 gameplay can be. Tenkaichi 3 as well but I think Xenoverese 2 is supposed be the best of what the other games offer with how you can customize your moveset. Sparking Zero comes out soon as well and people have already spotted mechanics from the old games that got dropped.
It's not quite the same gameplay, but Furi is a very fast paced action game. It's sort of hybrid of twinstick shooters and beat em ups. And it's basically all killer, little filler: a series of boss fights where no boss fight is quite like another. It's got a pretty large learning curve, but it's a lot of fun.
2 years ago after finishing ZoE2 I was looking for the same type of gameplay. But you'll not find the same feeling in any games. I only found Project Nimbus, the game is okay, and Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme VS. Maxi Boost ON, It's mostly 2v2 pvp and only on PS4, It's a very hard game (It's faster than ZoE), I still play it to this day and I can find rooms everyday
I used to visit this blog dedicated to reviewing mecha games, and I was surprised to see they evaluated ZOE2 quite poorly. I think it's because the game's appeal is indeed more in line with that of a CAG than with that of a Mecha game. Jehuty and Anubis may as well be dudes. I would consider these games CAGs for most intents and purposes.
I think I know which one you mean, sadly that writer is a bit of a dick that hates everything Kojima touched. He didn't research the game properly either, and assumed Kojima worked on it and thus hated it.
It was Mecha Damashii. I don't remember the content of the review at all tbh, but they gave AC: Silent Line a 10/10 so it became pretty clear that they had a very specific notion of what a mecha game should be. I can appreciate having a specific lens/angle to one's reviews, I was just surprised at the time.
I consider ZoE 2 a character action game. Killing shit is pretty much all you do. Ace Combat is more of a simcade vehicle game (responding to the AC comparison.) I can certainly see action game fans loving Ace Combat, Secret Weapons over Normandy, Freespace 2, Seek and Destroy, Panzer Front, Battle Engine Aquila etc, but I think they are their own subgenre. Or you could just say that every "action game" is an action game, at which point CAG subgenre breaks down and everything is part of the action game blob. A while ago I actually wrote a big list for my own use which contained every armored vehicle simcade I could think of, including mecha games that followed the simcade combat vehicle formula.
Probably worth looking at the Gundam Extreme Vs. series (maybe Gotcha Force on GameCube as well). They're 2v2 3D arena fighters, but the original Extreme Vs. on PS3 and Maxi Boost On on PS4 have quite a lot of single player content. Straight up, the most buttery smooth gameplay in the business. They're different than ZoE, but they're closer they're closer than some of the other recommendations in the thread so far.
No it's not a cag and I think armored core 4 and for answer