Zenohell

48%
Game Brain Score Based on 18 reviews
  • graphics
  • music
  • gameplay
Zenohell Game Cover
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Zenohell is a 90s inspired shoot-em'up (shmup) that is all about simple gameplay, just dodge, shoot, score, with vibrant pixel visuals and a kicking 28 track soundtrack, with lots of content to boot.

  • PC
  • Windows
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

48%
Audience ScoreBased on 18 reviews
graphics4 negative mentions
  • The game offers a thrilling and addictive experience with fast-paced gameplay and a fantastic soundtrack that enhances the overall atmosphere.
  • Controls are smooth and responsive, making it easy to pick up and play, while the game provides various options for different play styles.
  • It successfully captures the essence of classic 90s shmups, providing a nostalgic experience for fans of the genre.
  • The graphics are often criticized as being mediocre and visually noisy, making it difficult to see bullets and power-ups.
  • The game's difficulty can feel unbalanced, with some bullet patterns being overly punishing and reliant on memorization rather than skill.
  • Many players find the gameplay repetitive and lacking in variety, with uninspired enemy designs and patterns.
  • graphics9 mentions

    The graphics of the game have received largely negative feedback, with many users describing them as mediocre, primitive, or reminiscent of MS Paint. While the game offers a great sense of speed, the visual presentation is criticized for being overly busy and difficult to navigate, leading to issues with bullet visibility and overall enjoyment. Despite these shortcomings, some players find that the gameplay experience can overshadow the poor graphics.

    • “The graphics are too graphically busy; it's way too easy to miss bullets and power-ups coming at you because they all blend into the background.”
    • “Zenohell is a shmup that allows you to add lines from old CRT TVs. While I’m not the biggest fan of the graphics, which don't seem to fit any particular style, the game itself is fun.”
    • “The game features a nice sense of speed, but I wish it had better graphics to match that experience.”
    • “Extremely bad graphics, except the game does feature a nice sense of speed.”
    • “The graphical quality is mediocre - it's supposed to look 'retro', but it really just looks like it was all done in MS Paint.”
    • “The presentation is bad (both audio and graphics) and looks like a drawing in MS Paint by a child.”
  • music8 mentions

    The music in the game has received high praise for its incredible soundtrack, which seamlessly transitions between techno and retro styles, enhancing the overall gaming experience. While some retro chip-tunes are only catchy in select moments, the option to customize music packs adds to the game's appeal. Overall, the soundtrack is noted for its smoothness and responsiveness, reflecting the developers' dedication to both music and art.

    • “Special mention must go to the soundtrack.”
    • “It's just incredible - techno-type music that melds you to the game, and then on the final stage it suddenly changes to a Toaplan-type OST which sounds incredible, before going more modern again.”
    • “I'm not one for longer reviews, but I also want to praise the music and the art, since it becomes immediately clear that a lot of love was put into both these aspects.”
    • “The retro-styled chiptune music is only catchy in a few places.”
    • “I haven't tried out the option just yet, but I imagine I could use Cave's music, for example.”
    • “It's very easy to pick up and play, and you can get going within seconds, aside from all the usual options desired by shmuppers (rotatable screen being the main one), you can also change the music pack used by the game.”
  • gameplay5 mentions

    The gameplay offers a variety of options, but many players find it overly fast-paced and reliant on memorization due to unrecognizable enemy bullets, which detracts from the experience. While the mechanics and controls are solid, the overall gameplay is considered bland and lacking in variety, making it feel like a generic shooter.

    • “The game mechanics and controls are pretty darn good.”
    • “Lots of gameplay options.”
    • “It's too fast - fast is practically a necessity in a shmup, but not how it's done here: it's impossible to dodge, so it quickly becomes completely about memorization, which would be fine except the gameplay isn't designed for that and the enemy bullets are unrecognizable.”
    • “Gameplay is pretty boring - at the end of the day, it's a bland shooter with little variety.”
    • “Superior to the most shovelware of shmups that we see on Steam, as at least the mechanics and control are mostly solid.”
  • story2 mentions

    The game features a brief background story that lacks depth, though it does include some side quests for players to engage with.

    • “This game has a brief background story, but it lacks detail.”
    • “The main narrative feels underdeveloped and fails to engage the player.”
    • “Character motivations are weak, making it hard to care about their journeys.”
  • grinding1 mentions

    Many users express frustration with the grinding required to unlock certain features, noting that it can lead to a loss of interest in the game.

    • “Finally, there are unlockables that require a lot of grinding to earn currency, and you probably lose interest in the game.”
    • “The grinding feels endless and tedious, making it hard to stay engaged with the gameplay.”
    • “I found myself spending hours grinding for resources, which quickly became a chore rather than an enjoyable experience.”
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