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I know that there is already an "offical" Throwback Thursday on this site, but I figured, "why can't I make one, too? I pulled this game out of my cataloge, recently, and it completey renewed my love for this series.  I'll admit that, like most people, I discovered this game completely by accident. 

Back in 2001, the first Zone of the Enders was released for the PS2.  The main reason anybody had any interest: it came packed with a demo of Metal Gear Solid 2.  Now, anybody who claimed to be a gamer back then remembers the hype over this title.  The first MGS game was amazing and you couldn't get enough of any info you could snag on the up-coming sequel.  So, what did we do?  We picked up a game we didn't care about to get our hand on the first playable demo.  

This was all well before the name, Kojima, instantly brought a smile to your face.  You might know the name...if you were really hardcore you knew he did Snatcher and Policenaughts, but if you were young and dumb like me, all you knew was "I wanna play that fricken' demo".  

The demo was one hell of one, too, but, eventually, it came to an end and you were left with another disc that had a whole other game on it.  Might as well give it a shot.  And, believe it or not, it was pretty damn good.  Gundam Wing was at the top of my anime list (I already said I was young, remember this) and it was the closest you could come to that kinda of intense mech-on-mech action.  Fast paced, decent story, and great action made for a pretty well rounded adventure.  Finished it once or twice, had some good times, then put it away.  Not one of the "greatest games ever", but pretty high on the list of likeable games.  Then 2003 roles around.  And were we ever in for a surprise.  

Zone of the Enders: The Second Runner made it's way into my home pretty easily.  I liked the first one, the art direction was unlike anything I had seen before, and, once again, it was the only place I could get my Gundam-esce fight on.  Bring it home, pop it in, and was blown away.  

Kojima, as always, excels at telling an exciting story.  This time, as Dingo Egret, (replacing the whiny Leo Stenbuck as lead) you get your hands on the top of the line Orbital Frame (that's your mech), Jehuty.  You end up literally depending on this thing to survive.  Forced into a war you tried to hide from, things get intense fast.  Like God of War, this series has a tendency to throw you right into the thick of things, relying on your Frame's A.I., ADA, to guide you along the way.  

As Kojima likes to do, the control scheme is somewhat different then what you are used to at first, but quickly becomes second nature.  It quickly becomes clear that the only way to win is to not stop.  Don't stop moving and don't stop thinking.  Enemies swarm from every direction and don't let up.  You stop for a second and they will have the upper hand.  Without quick reflexes and quick eyes, you could easily lose track of what, why, when, and how everything is going down.  For some, I could see this being a problem as the screen can get cluttered fast and you end up have no idea what you are attacking or what is attacking you.  

The variety of missions allows a great flow.  From rescuing other soliders, protecting a cilivian area, chasing and destroying a fast moving train, destorying an entire flying armada, to fighting in one of the most intense field battles I have ever seen, it always leads you to something interesting.  During the final storm on the enemy base, when you see that second wave of red dots fill up the entire top half of your radar, you cannot help but think "Oh my god, we're fucked".  

All in all, this game is amazing, in my opinion.  If you like fast action and thinking on your feet, then you should try to find this sometime.  I am definetly an action gamer so this is surely my cup of tea.  If you like to take your time to be able to think about the best strategies or don't like that much intensity in one sitting, I would still recommend it but I can't gurantee that you'll like it as much as me.  

There have been rumblings of a Z.O.E 3 forever and Kojima has stated that he's been interested in making it, he's just been busy with MGS4.  Hopefully, he retains this interest after the game is finally released and we get another beautiful gem from that big brain of his.    

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