''ZPC'' (''Zero Population Count'') is a

first-person shooter First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the pl ...

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

which uses the '' Marathon 2'' engine. It was developed by

Zombie LLC Zombie Studios was an American independent video game developer. It was formed in 1994 as Zombie, LLC by Joanna Alexander and Mark Long, formerly of the Sarnoff Research Center. Alexander and Long founded Zombie after they completed the design of ...

, published by GT Interactive and released on October 31,

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

. It was noted for its stylized look adapted from artwork by

Aidan Hughes Aidan Hughes is a commercial artist. He was born in 1956 in Merseyside, England, and was trained as an artist by his father, himself a landscape painter. In the 1980s, Hughes published a pulp-style magazine called ''BRUTE!''. ''Brute!'' has b ...

(also credited with the game's concept).

Gameplay

The story focuses on Arman, an exiled "Warrior Messiah" who has come of age and sets out to reclaim his throne.

Development

The game had a development budget of less than $1 million.

In other media

At some point prior to November 2003, Hughes announced plans to create or bring about a full-length ''ZPC'' film, but nothing came of this.

Reception

Air Hendrix of ''

GamePro Gamepro.com is an international multiplatform video game magazine media company that covers the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software in countries such as Germany and France. The publication, GamePro, was originally la ...

'' found ''ZPC'' severely outdated, for both its 2D graphics and its gameplay, which he found made little advance beyond 1993's '' Doom''. However, he remarked that the "stark, sombre visual style" and moody music would highly appeal to many, and that this would make the gameplay more enjoyable to those players. A ''

Next Generation Next Generation or Next-Generation may refer to: Publications and literature * ''Next Generation'' (magazine), video game magazine that was made by the now defunct Imagine Media publishing company * Next Generation poets (2004), list of young ...

'' critic said much the same: "Gameplay sticks to the tried-and-true tactics of the legion of ''Doom'' clones ... While the level and puzzle design are entirely satisfying, ''ZPC'' would be just another pretender to the throne if it weren't for the tremendous atmosphere provided by artists Aiden Hughes and musicians Roland and Paul Barker". He elaborated that "Hughes's predominantly black and red palette and structuralist approach make ''ZPC'' one of the most unique-looking games around."

References

External links

Zombie Studios

Archive
of Infogrames's official website for the game (no longer online as of 2004)
ZPC
at Traxus Project, a

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

wiki * {{Zombie games 1996 video games Classic Mac OS games First-person shooters GT Interactive games Marathon engine games Sprite-based first-person shooters Video games developed in the United States Video games with 2.5D graphics Windows games Zombie Studios games