Developer: Accolade Publisher: Infogrames Release: 11/17/99 Genre: Action
In the early days of the Sega Dreamcast I rented most of the initial lineup. From Ready to Rumble to Flag to Flag Racing, I was excited to try out everything. Except Pen Pen Tricealon, because even a dog can tell that game sucks. Slave Zero intrigued me as games starring giant mechs were few and far between. I did not play it long however as the controls irked me and the game was repetitive. Revisiting the game now my frustrations with the controls still remain but I can appreciate the game’s good points more. But I still would not recommend it.
500 years in the future Earth is ruled by a dictator named the SovKhan from his fortress in Megacity S1-9. The SovKhan uses giant robots called Slaves to enforce his rule and stamp out any resistance. However an ancient order known as the Guardians capture one of his slave units and reprogram it to wage war on the SovKhan. Dubbed Slave Zero and controlled by a special Guardian they wage war to free mankind from totalitarian rule.
First things first, I like the game’s aesthetic. Slave Zero takes place in a cyberpunk inspired world which means tall skyscrapers lining the skyline, neon signage, and futuristic vehicles left and right. This is one of my personal favorite settings so had my attention from the beginning. The game nails the sense of scale brilliantly. While the game can be a bit repetitive as you explore the various locations in the Megacity when it goes big it does so with aplomb. The later set pieces are impressive; I simply wish there were more of them. Beyond the setting the mechs and Slave units are a varied bunch. The slave units are slightly humanoid and make them look distinct from the typical giant robots from Japan. The bosses especially are a highlight in my opinion. Unfortunately Slave Zero has major technical problems.
The Dreamcast port is a rush job with cuts left and right. The game is buggy and prone to crashing to the point of embarrassment. Performance is also terrible. In still screenshots and with one enemy it looks impressive. But when there are two or three mechs and explosions going off the framerate drops to single digits. This is a common occurrence and one that leads to cheap hits left and right. It is hard to tell sometimes if your lumbering movement is intentional or a result of the game’s subpar framerate. I am not a fps snob but it is instantly noticeable, distracting, and detracts from gameplay. The performance is bad but the developers also removed all of the game’s music in the conversion too. The PC soundtrack was generally good and its absence is noticeable. This one is baffling and I cannot fathom why.
If you can overlook Slave Zero’s technical flaws you still have to deal with the controls. On the PC with a mouse and keyboard the game is zippy and fluid. Not so here. Slave Zero is a dual analog game on a system with one. The game has a number of preset configurations yet all of them are less than ideal. The default is a version of the Turok setup where you move with the face buttons and aim with the analog stick. It is….decent but falls apart once you start platforming and get stuck in the environment. I used the last config that moves with the analog stick and aim with the d-pad. It is slower but with planning can work. With a little more planning they could and should have worked around the controller’s limitations.
In terms of action Slave Zero delivers. In the first few levels you face a variety of mechs in the city and the game does not ask much of you. But soon enough they introduce bosses and mission objectives and things get muddied. The pacing suffers as the game does not know when to quit. The bosses are damage sponges and these encounters grow tedious regardless of the cool set pieces. The levels with specific objectives drag on too long and are repetitive. When the game is straightforward and plays to its strengths it is fun in spite of its issues. But when it strays too far out of its comfort zone it suffers. The excessive and awful platforming ratchets up toward the end and should never have been part of the game. I understand wanting to add variety but not when it fails this bad.
In Closing
Slave Zero is a fun, if flawed, action game that could have been solid with a little more work. It delivers a cool premise of piloting a massive mech in a dystopian world, but the repetitive gameplay, dated controls, and crippling difficulty hold it back. While I had fun with it initially its myriad flaws only grew worse as the game progressed until I could not tolerate it anymore. It is a damn shame too as there is a lot to like. A remake with dual analog controls and a stable framerate would clean it up but alas, as it is I do not think the mountain is worth the climb.
