Zotrix

Fun to play with plenty of replay value, Zotrix sounds the part but the clunky interface and non-nonsensical controls prove to be frustrating.

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Zotrix is a single-player shooter game inspired by classic arcade machines, featuring brightly colored enemies and over 50 missions. Gameplay involves escorting cargo ships and avoiding enemy attacks, with rewards used to upgrade ships or purchase new ones. The game emphasizes repetitive arcade-style gameplay, requiring players to "grind" to progress.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

Reviews

35%

Audience ScoreBased on 54 reviews

music5 positive mentions

story4 negative mentions

Zotrix offers a nostalgic experience reminiscent of classic arcade shooters, with engaging gameplay and a catchy soundtrack.
The game features a variety of ships and levels, providing a decent challenge and enjoyable upgrade system for fans of the genre.
It runs smoothly on low-end systems, making it accessible to a wider audience.

The gameplay can become repetitive and grindy, with many players finding the missions and enemy patterns dull and uninspired.
There are significant balancing issues, with players able to obtain powerful upgrades too early, diminishing the challenge and excitement.
Technical problems, including bugs and poor controller support, hinder the overall experience and frustrate players.

story
24 mentions
13 % positive mentions
71 % neutral mentions
17 % negative mentions
The story in Zotrix is largely criticized for being minimal and repetitive, with players noting that it consists mainly of escort missions and lacks depth or engaging narrative elements. Many reviewers found the missions monotonous and uninspired, often leading to boredom due to the predictable gameplay and limited progression. Overall, the game's story fails to captivate, serving more as a backdrop for grinding rather than a compelling experience.
- “There are only a few hundred/thousand people that have even completed the story in this!”
- “Speaking of missions, there are 40 story-based 'levels' in all, but they are all the same.”
- “This game took me 30 hours to beat over three months because I could only handle one or two missions at a time before succumbing to sheer boredom.”
- “The story is almost non-existent, and even though you can upgrade your ship via stuff in shops (which are different every station), you can obtain the best parts well before you reach the 1/4 mark in the game.”
- “The story is boring and involves nothing more than political espionage; the true motives of the titular Zotrix that you mass-murder throughout are never extrapolated upon.”
- “Uninspired, repetitive gameplay with quests that are unrewarding and basically pointless.”
music
11 mentions
45 % positive mentions
27 % neutral mentions
27 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its catchy and diverse soundtrack, enhancing the overall experience, especially in a retro-style bullet hell setting. However, some players noted that the loud sound effects can overshadow the music at times. Overall, the soundtrack is considered one of the standout features, contributing significantly to the game's appeal.
- “Music was great.”
- “I love the music, this is the perfect game to play high!”
- “Sound effects for shooting are obnoxiously loud, completely obscuring the music.”
- “Each level begins with a (usually) different soundtrack, with the title of said soundtrack appearing on the screen.”
- “It's a retro style bullet hell arcade twin stick shooter with really catchy music.”
gameplay
8 mentions
25 % positive mentions
38 % neutral mentions
38 % negative mentions
The gameplay has been widely criticized for being bland, repetitive, and uninspired, with many players finding it boring and lacking meaningful upgrades or rewarding quests. The controls and mechanics are described as inadequate, failing to elevate the experience within the genre. Overall, the gameplay does not meet expectations, leaving players dissatisfied.
- “The gameplay is pretty much what this genre is all about; you fly a colorful collection of pixels around a black and white background, shooting squares at other collections of squares as they shoot squares back at you.”
- “The game features Newtonian mechanics.”
- “Horribly bland, boring, repetitive gameplay.”
- “Most upgrades do nothing to change the gameplay in any way.”
- “The gameplay is uninspired.”
grinding
7 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Players find Zotrix to be grindy and repetitive, with a simplistic economy and minimal story that contribute to a tedious gameplay experience. The uneven difficulty and weightless upgrades lead to a lack of motivation for grinding, as players often replay levels and complete side missions that feel unfulfilling. Overall, while the game is casual and easy to play, the grinding aspect detracts significantly from its enjoyment.
- “The difficulty varies wildly from level to level and the combat is tedious at best.”
- “This makes completing the game tedious and boring.”
- “The missions have you grinding through levels you've already done.”
graphics
5 mentions
60 % positive mentions
40 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game are widely praised for their superb quality, featuring beautifully colorful 2D classic arcade visuals and a vibrant techno soundtrack. Players report that the game runs smoothly even on lower-end hardware, enhancing the overall experience.
- “The graphics are amazing, so I have no issues there.”
- “The game has beautifully colorful 2D classic arcade top-down graphics.”
- “With a very nicely done techno soundtrack, colorful graphics and sound.”
replayability
2 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is considered low by some users, primarily due to its limited content and value. However, the ability to choose different routes does provide some variation in gameplay, potentially enhancing replay value for those interested in exploring alternate paths.
- “I think this game should be $4.99 or less just due to the replay value being very low.”
- “You can choose which route you take, which alters which levels you do and adds to the replay value.”
stability
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
The game is reported to be highly unstable, with numerous bugs affecting gameplay, and there are concerns that the developers have abandoned it, leading to a lack of support for fixes.
- “Sadly, this game is very buggy, and the developers seem to have abandoned it, so I can no longer recommend it.”
- “The game crashes frequently, making it nearly unplayable at times.”
- “I encountered numerous glitches that ruined my experience and made me lose progress.”
optimization
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Users have expressed confusion regarding the optimization of particle effects, indicating that this aspect may not be well-implemented or could benefit from further refinement.
- “The only thing I don't understand is the optimization of the particle effects.”