ZPF

About

ZPF is a single player platformer game with fantasy and science fiction themes. It was developed by ZPF Team and was released on April 16, 2026. It received neutral reviews from players.

Inspired by classic horizontal shooters like Lords of Thunder, Elemental Master, and the Thunderforce series, ZPF is a passion project from the designer and developer of Super XYX and Tänzer. Players will dodge and weave through intense bullet patterns, unleashing a barrage of firepower upon hordes of unique and challenging enemies. Choose your hero - from the teleporting trickster to the laser-…

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58%

Audience ScoreBased on 12 reviews

music6 positive mentions

gameplay3 negative mentions

The game features outstanding pixel art and a vibrant, colorful visual style that strongly appeals to fans of retro and Genesis-era shoot 'em ups.
The soundtrack is highly praised for being fitting, energetic, and enhancing the overall game atmosphere.
The gameplay includes strategic elements such as purchasing upgrades between levels and choosing from three distinct ships, adding depth and replayability.

The emulator port lacks many standard features such as save states, online or persistent leaderboards, CRT/scanline filters, and proper options saving, impacting the user experience.
Gameplay can be frustrating due to issues like one-hit kills, limited continues, underdeveloped melee mechanics, and poorly balanced difficulty spikes.
The game has some technical problems including bugs with the hint system causing crashes, broken achievements, censored graphics, no practice tools, and intrusive on-screen medal animations.

music
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
20%
20%
The music is widely praised for being energetic, fitting, and well-crafted, significantly enhancing the game's overall vibe. Reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a standout feature alongside the art, though some note the lack of separate volume controls for music and sound effects.
- “Awesome, headbanging and hype-filled soundtrack.”
- “Tight controls, killer pixel art, insane bosses, and that soundtrack goes way harder than it has any right to.”
- “The music is pretty on point and fitting for the game.”
- “There aren't separate sliders for music and sound effects.”
- “This clearly has a ton of love put into the art design, music and, somewhat into the gameplay, and at 6 dollars (my local currency) I feel very bad refunding it, but the following negatives are just unjustifiable in shmup standards.”
gameplay
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
28%
43%
The gameplay is generally fun and approachable with a good level of challenge, though some mechanics, like the melee button, feel underdeveloped and awkward to use. Despite the strong art and music, gameplay issues and unresolved bugs detract from the overall experience.
- “Challenging gameplay though fun and not too difficult to pick up.”
- “This clearly has a ton of love put into the art design, music and, somewhat into the gameplay.”
- “One of the game's mechanics, the melee button, is awful to look at and use; it's severely undercooked.”
- “They did not fix many of the visual and gameplay bugs found in the Mega Drive version.”
- “It does not come with a scan of the manual, so you're on your own if you want to learn the mechanics.”
graphics
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
The graphics are well-received, offering a fun and nostalgic art style reminiscent of late Sega Genesis shoot-'em-ups, though some visuals are censored. Overall, the style suits the game's retro theme effectively.
- “Graphics are pretty good and fun.”
- “As mentioned before, the art style is perfect for the era of late Sega Genesis shmups compared to the likes of Lords of Thunder.”