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CHOJIN HEIKI ZEROIGAR (PCFX)
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a.k.a. Choujin / Tyoushin Heiki Zeroigar
Publisher: NEC. Developer: Fupac. Released: August 1997 (JP). Genre: Vertical-scrolling shoot 'em up. Posted 11th April 2025. By Tom Clare © 2025 |
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Chōjin Heiki Zeroigar is a quaint time capsule, a distress signal sounded too late to save the PC-FX it would remain anchored to, as both system and exclusive plummeted into the abyss of gaming obscurity. The PC Engine has long been hailed as a platform where scrolling shoot ‘em ups thrived. Rather ominously, its 32-bit successor would receive only one.
It’s garnered a little more attention recently in retro gaming circles, a beacon perhaps to what its hardware might have been capable of, had it not quickly drifted into the no-man’s-land of visual novels and dating sims. Appreciation is likely both relative and skewed by time, however. The PC-FX was starved of quality gaming experiences, averaging only around ten releases per year before its discontinuation in 1998. Discovering a dash of innovation and some solid old-school gameplay would have been like happening across an oasis amidst the barren desert that was the system’s library. Often, however, the mirage is a projection of circumstance.
The PC-FX's only shooter is very much in keeping with early nineties output, and feels dated next to the competition it faced in '97
The story is the usual chaotic hotch-potch of concepts the genre revels in: super-weapons, an imperial empire, troubled siblings and time travel. However, this time it’s tackled rather more grandly. In keeping with the PC-FX’s video capabilities and adding to its curio value, Chōjin Heiki Zeroigar possesses its own purpose-built anime, with scenes interspersed between its seven levels. Whilst there isn’t enough time to properly develop its characters, the animation is excellent and there’s no shortage of drama. Elaborate, action-packed scenes are backed by theatrical voicing and TV-production quality, helping elevate the FMVs far beyond the movie games of the previous generation. On the gameplay front, CHZ combines familiar vertical-scrolling shoot ‘em up fare with an RPG-like experience-based system and a pile of secondary weapons.
Though there’s plenty of promise, the game never quite takes advantage of its ideas. The levelling system highlights its erratic difficulty pattern, with some stages proving an absolute breeze and others a real headache. There are times when you feel cripplingly underpowered, to the point where your craft may struggle to defeat even the simplest of enemies as they dive-bomb your position. In these instances, you’ll have to grin and bear it, brute-forcing enough points to gain level-ups for the restart, bolstering your craft’s attributes. Both the middle and higher difficulties prove rampantly challenging from the get-go, a factor not helped by deaths returning the player to the very beginning of the level, with no checkpoints. Although levels are not excessively long and there are unlimited continues, this can become demoralising, especially if you’ve been on the receiving end of a boss a few times.
Though there’s plenty of promise, the game never quite takes advantage of its ideas. The levelling system highlights its erratic difficulty pattern, with some stages proving an absolute breeze and others a real headache. There are times when you feel cripplingly underpowered, to the point where your craft may struggle to defeat even the simplest of enemies as they dive-bomb your position. In these instances, you’ll have to grin and bear it, brute-forcing enough points to gain level-ups for the restart, bolstering your craft’s attributes. Both the middle and higher difficulties prove rampantly challenging from the get-go, a factor not helped by deaths returning the player to the very beginning of the level, with no checkpoints. Although levels are not excessively long and there are unlimited continues, this can become demoralising, especially if you’ve been on the receiving end of a boss a few times.
PATCH WORK: TRANSLATION INFORMATION
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Chōjin Heiki Zeroigar certainly isn’t unplayable in its original guise, though you may encounter a number of barriers with Japanese text and dialogue. Without subtitles, there’s no easy way of following the story-heavy Anime mode. Additionally, the menus will prove inaccessible, and most of the metrics (with the exception of health and the experience counter) will be similarly indecipherable. This is also a problem when switching between weapons, which you’ll have to learn by their symbols.
SamIAm’s English-language patch, named God-Fighter Zeroigar and released in August 2015, is an ideal and comprehensive solution. All the movie sequences are accompanied by unobtrusive, easy-to-read subtitles, and this includes the unlockable Sakuraiger side story. Weapons are now displayed in English and it is easier to track their grades in-game. Menus, options and even the Credits sequence have been fully translated. It’s an excellent and comprehensive patch that transforms game’s accessibility and, to my mind, is as good as an official localisation. [Patch available at ROMhacking.net]
SamIAm’s English-language patch, named God-Fighter Zeroigar and released in August 2015, is an ideal and comprehensive solution. All the movie sequences are accompanied by unobtrusive, easy-to-read subtitles, and this includes the unlockable Sakuraiger side story. Weapons are now displayed in English and it is easier to track their grades in-game. Menus, options and even the Credits sequence have been fully translated. It’s an excellent and comprehensive patch that transforms game’s accessibility and, to my mind, is as good as an official localisation. [Patch available at ROMhacking.net]
There are a mountain of secondary weapons, providing a range of options for tackling levels and bosses. Carrying limited ammo, their deployment requires careful consideration. Tornados, missiles and diffusion bombs are a few of the better ones, though many of the others are duds and frustratingly, given most of the console’s 6 face buttons go unused, the player must activate a menu (pausing the action) to scroll between them. Controls are responsive but not especially precise, which causes trouble when attempting to thread your way through the more elaborate boss attack patterns.
In contrast to the sparkling cinematics, the in-game visuals are undeniably dated by the standards of 1997. The standout levels include the unusual Mariana Trench setting of ‘Demon in the Deep Ocean’, whilst ‘Blazing Space’ delivers a late-game shot in the arm with a cascade of psychedelic colours that, though somewhat eye-melting, looks rather awesome. However, elsewhere it defaults to the usual genre hotspots of cloud-filled skies, Earth’s atmosphere, the moon, and various iterations of deep space. The 16-bit throwback graphics lack the charm or dynamism of other Japanese animated fair, such as Metal Slug. Save for the occasional, more substantial mid-boss or larger enemy, most of the ships look unremarkable, too.
In contrast to the sparkling cinematics, the in-game visuals are undeniably dated by the standards of 1997. The standout levels include the unusual Mariana Trench setting of ‘Demon in the Deep Ocean’, whilst ‘Blazing Space’ delivers a late-game shot in the arm with a cascade of psychedelic colours that, though somewhat eye-melting, looks rather awesome. However, elsewhere it defaults to the usual genre hotspots of cloud-filled skies, Earth’s atmosphere, the moon, and various iterations of deep space. The 16-bit throwback graphics lack the charm or dynamism of other Japanese animated fair, such as Metal Slug. Save for the occasional, more substantial mid-boss or larger enemy, most of the ships look unremarkable, too.
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The bosses are CHZ's most elaborate foes, and whilst some can be a pain, others are fun to do battle with
If the game grabs you though, there’s a reasonable selection of modes to sample. It was clearly designed with a home experience in mind and isn’t built like a one-and-done arcade game. In addition to the story-driven Anime mode, there’s Trial, which replaces the experience bar with a more-familiar, coin-op style score. Battle allows the player to choose between three pilots, as well as individual levels (after unlocking them). The main difference here is the ability to buy weapon upgrades, as opposed to their levelling up alongside the ship. Lastly, there’s the Sakuraiger mode, a fun parody of the main story that unlocks after its completion, though I found it excessively difficult.
Whilst we’ve developed an unfortunate habit of recontextualised games that sold poorly as ‘overlooked classics’, it’s as likely they were simply left behind by stronger contemporaries. That Chōjin Heiki Zeroigar is no match for competing efforts such as Darius Gaiden or Thunder Force V on a technical level is understandable. The trouble is, it falls some way short of the energy or enjoyment levels generated years earlier by Gate of Thunder and Blazing Lasers on the PC Engine. CHZ’s story has unusually extravagant production values, and its gameplay is solid if unspectacular. There were many better shoot ‘em ups on the market, just not on the PC-FX, where in the most literal of senses, it was without comparison.
Whilst we’ve developed an unfortunate habit of recontextualised games that sold poorly as ‘overlooked classics’, it’s as likely they were simply left behind by stronger contemporaries. That Chōjin Heiki Zeroigar is no match for competing efforts such as Darius Gaiden or Thunder Force V on a technical level is understandable. The trouble is, it falls some way short of the energy or enjoyment levels generated years earlier by Gate of Thunder and Blazing Lasers on the PC Engine. CHZ’s story has unusually extravagant production values, and its gameplay is solid if unspectacular. There were many better shoot ‘em ups on the market, just not on the PC-FX, where in the most literal of senses, it was without comparison.
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VERDICT"A notable showcase for the PC-FX's video capabilities, but an unremarkable shooter. Erratic difficulty and dated design result in a game that struggles to live with either its contemporaries or the PC Engine classics it followed."
OVERALL: 5/10 |
OTHER SHMUPS ON NEC SYSTEMS REVIEWED
Blazing Lazers (1989, PC Engine)
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Gate of Thunder (1989, PC Engine)
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