Zack Zero

Good ol' retro-style platformer with the highlights coming through level design and array of wacky enemy-types.

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In Zack Zero, play as a hero with a powerful experimental suit, using fire, ice, and rock abilities to save your kidnapped love from the evil Zulrog. Explore diverse scenarios, level up to 20, and find hidden objects, while competing against friends with the online ranking system. With over 30 characters and 5 bosses, engaging animated comic storylines, and 10 unique skills, this 2D platformer offers a modern twist on classic games.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reviews

56%

Audience ScoreBased on 85 reviews

graphics17 positive mentions

gameplay7 negative mentions

The game features great graphics and a fun art style reminiscent of Saturday morning cartoons.
The gameplay is enjoyable with a variety of powers that can be used to solve puzzles and defeat enemies.
It's a decent platformer that can be fun for casual players, especially children, and offers some replay value.

The game is plagued by numerous bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay and cause crashes.
Controls are often unresponsive and awkward, especially when using a keyboard instead of a controller.
The storyline and overall design feel generic and uninspired, lacking depth and challenge.

graphics
30 mentions
57 % positive mentions
33 % neutral mentions
10 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the vibrant colors and character designs reminiscent of Saturday morning cartoons, while others report technical issues such as stuttering, low framerate, and bugs that detract from the overall experience. Although many find the visuals appealing and suitable for a younger audience, there are notable criticisms regarding the lack of innovation and execution in the graphical presentation. Overall, the graphics are described as decent but marred by performance issues.
- “The visuals are quite good and the character designs are reminiscent of a Saturday morning cartoon.”
- “Nice bright graphics, well thought out and executed game.”
- “The gameplay is fun, the graphics are great, and the music is gorgeous!”
- “Simplistic linear game with nothing new to offer in either visuals, mechanics, or challenge.”
- “Edit: forgot to mention that the game stuttered in many places and had low framerate issues regularly for seemingly no reason, not like this is a graphically intense game.”
- “The loading screen and the related graphics are pretty much dull and out of resolution.”
gameplay
20 mentions
30 % positive mentions
35 % neutral mentions
35 % negative mentions
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its fun mechanics and solid action, while others criticize it for being clunky, repetitive, and plagued by bugs. Many noted that while the graphics and art style are appealing, the gameplay often feels simplistic and lacks innovation, leading to a frustrating experience for some. Overall, it seems to cater to fans of platformers, but may not satisfy those seeking depth or challenge.
- “The gameplay is fun, the graphics are great, and the music is gorgeous!”
- “Interesting suit mechanics keep the game fresh, and the art style is really enjoyable to take in while playing.”
- “+fluid gameplay, no lag, no jitters unless you're in contact with enemies”
- “The game is loaded with bugs and plagued by clunky, counterintuitive gameplay mechanics.”
- “Simplistic linear game with nothing new to offer in either visuals, mechanics, or challenge.”
- “The game has horrible gameplay; it's the second worst I've ever seen.”
story
17 mentions
18 % positive mentions
65 % neutral mentions
18 % negative mentions
The story in the game is widely criticized for being uninspired, clichéd, and reminiscent of low-budget children's animations, with many reviewers describing it as "atrocious" or "flimsier than dollar store toilet paper." While some players find humor in its shortcomings, the overall consensus is that the narrative lacks depth and coherence, serving primarily as a backdrop to the gameplay rather than a compelling element. Despite its visual appeal and solid platforming mechanics, the story is considered a significant weakness, detracting from the overall experience.
- “Actually a fun platformer with a story (speech, some videos).”
- “A beautiful game and great story, however the controls have a bit of laggy response at times when things get really active on screen.”
- “Zack Zero shows a lot of promise, but go in it for the old school run and jump gameplay of the Nintendo era, and try to not cringe too much at the storyline or the narrator's booming voice.”
- “The story is absolutely atrocious and uninspired, the dialogue is straight out of an underfunded kid's animation movie.”
- “The narration/storytelling is quite weak.”
- “The game looks awesome, especially for an indie title... but the basic gameplay and storyline are actually pretty bland.”
stability
7 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is a mixed bag, with some users reporting no issues, while others experience frequent glitches and bugs, particularly on ATI video cards. Common problems include falling through the environment, getting stuck, and graphical issues, which can detract from the overall experience. While some players find the bugs manageable, others consider them significant enough to impact gameplay negatively.
- “The worst part of the game though is that there are a lot of glitches and bugs...you can find yourself saved to an unwinnable save point, stuck in the back/foreground, or just have the textures go haywire on you.”
- “There's so much bug and glitches, while walking you'll suddenly fall off a cliff or get stuck inside a wall or a boulder. This happened to me like 5 times and that's just in the first stage, which is very short. Imagine the longer stages.”
- “There are too many bugs at the moment, and the Steam overlay causes graphic glitches (ATI cards).”
music
5 mentions
60 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
40 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed feedback, with some players praising it as "gorgeous" and "pretty good," while others criticize the soundtrack as dull and uninspired. Overall, while the graphics and gameplay are appreciated, the music's quality seems to vary significantly among players.
- “Good graphics and soundtrack.”
- “Oh, and the music is pretty good too.”
- “The gameplay is fun, the graphics are great, and the music is gorgeous!”
- “Was actually excited to play this but I have a bug where regular game sounds die after 30 seconds of play; all that's left is ambient noise and music.”
- “The dialogue is straight out of an underfunded kid's animation movie, not to mention the 'cinematic' and dull soundtrack... ugh.”
humor
3 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as delightful and engaging, with a mix of action and quirky elements, such as lovable enemies like crocodiles. While the storyline is criticized for being weak, this lack of depth is seen as a source of humor, contributing to the overall enjoyment of the game.
- “It's just amazing, it's funny, there is action, lovely enemies (if you like crocodiles), a fabulous environment, and you can control the elements!”
- “The plot is flimsier than dollar store toilet paper, but that's what makes it funny.”
replayability
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The game offers good replay value due to its enjoyable gameplay, though it lacks a deep story. Players can find reasons to revisit the game, making it a fun experience despite its narrative limitations.
- “Good replay value.”
- “If you're looking for a deep story, it won't be here, but the gameplay is fun and it has some replay value.”
optimization
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
Users report experiencing stuttering issues, particularly with lower-end hardware configurations like the R9 280 and AMD 6350, indicating that the game's optimization may not be sufficient for smoother performance on these setups.
- “I experience significant stuttering issues with my R9 280 and AMD 6350.”
- “The optimization is lacking, leading to frequent frame drops and performance hiccups.”
- “Even on high-end hardware, the game struggles to maintain a stable frame rate.”
character development
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Character development is criticized for its simplistic and immature writing, with character designs that mirror this lack of depth, leading to an overall unsophisticated portrayal of characters.
- “It feels like it was written by a grade schooler, and the character designs reflect a lot of those same sensibilities.”
grinding
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect to be illogical and tedious, particularly criticizing the cumbersome process of changing layouts.
- “It doesn't really make any logical sense, and changing the layout is very tedious.”
- “The grinding feels endless and lacks any meaningful reward.”
- “I find myself repeating the same tasks over and over without any real progress.”