In ZoE's case it's definitely the day after yesterday.
Some of you may remember the original ZoE. You know, that thing that you got when you bought the Metal Gear Solid 2 demo. Yeah that one. The true tragedy of the original ZoE is that it was masterfully done, but woefully incomplete. Three enemy types. A handful of maneuvers. Three hours of gameplay, and you can't even kill Anubis at the end. (note: if you haven't played the original ZoE yet, that was a spoiler, and you probably shouldn't have read it)
ZoE2 makes a solid effort at making up for all of that. In ZoE: The Second Runner, you play as Dingo who, thankfully, is not the exceedingly irritating kid from the first game, but rather a pretty badass miner type guy from Ganymede who stumbles across uber-mecha Jehuty buried in some ice and is summarily attacked by BAHRAM (your stereotypical evil empire). From then on out the plot is pretty fragmented. The anime-style cut scenes and characters are pretty cool and well animated. The voice acting is pretty good, but you may find yourself wondering if something wasnt lost in the translation from Japanese, as the characters will sometimes have completely irrational emotional responses. If you manage to follow all of it the plot is at least buyable and manages to be a compelling incentive to proceed in the game.
Carried over from the original are the incredible graphics - I mean, some of the best I've seen on the PS2. I was so enthralled by the smoke-trail special effects on the "Geyser" subweapon and the warp-effect on the burst attack that looks suspiciously like a Spirit Bomb that I barely even noticed I had an erection. The PS2's affectionate moniker "The Steak Knife" doesn't seem to apply to the ZoE series, as the "jaggies" seem to be greatly reduced. I hear mixed stories as to whether or not the game actually uses an anti-aliasing process, but it certainly looks good.
But ZoE is all about gameplay. A basic rundown is that youre a flying mech. X makes you descend, (insert triangle here) makes you ascend, square attacks, circle grabs stuff and activates special moves. Youve got a sword and a gun, and which one you use depends on how far you are from the enemy. You pick up special weapons along the way that range from sticky sprinkle things that stun, to power-punches. It seems basic, but the amount of cool acrobatics you can do entirely by accident is astounding. Oh, this might be a good time to tell you that the game is challenging. Very challenging. Why is this not a drawback? Because its also very fun. Even though you may die six times on the same group of enemies, every time you try again its still fun. AI is top notch; monsters form groups, use formations, and will actually enhance each other and heal each others injuries. My only complaints are that the subweapons are a big pain to switch between. I usually find myself not bothering with them, even though theyre pretty useful, just because its easier to leave it on grab all the time.
All in all, I would highly suggest at least renting this game, but it has fairly high buyability. The controls and actions are fun enough that you may find yourself wanting to go back and play it again, even if youve beaten it a couple times. I know I do.
