Zed Blade

File:Zed blade control marquee.PNG Arcade Marquee on Neo Geo
Developer(s)	NMK (company)
Publisher(s)	Neo Geo
Platform(s)	Arcade
Release	1994
Genre(s)	Horizontal shooter
Mode(s)	2 players can play simultaneously

Zed Blade / Operation Ragnarok is an arcade game from NMK (company), released in 1994 as a Neo Geo MVS cartridge for the MVS (arcade) system. Zed Blade is known in Japan as Operation Ragnarok.

Story

Many years in the future, mankind travels to every planet in the Solar System. A large project to establish the Space Frontier is started with the development of an automated space station called Yggdrasil which is controlled by a state of the art super computer. However, the crew of the Yggdrasil refuse to respond to any of Earth's communications months after deployment. Suddenly, Yggdrasil attacks the Earth using a large fleet of highly developed space fighters, robots and war machines. Operation Ragnarok is enacted wherein three of the Earth's best space fighter pilots must restore order by seizing control of Yggdrasil and halting the invasion.

Gameplay

File:Zed blade screen shot arcade.png

Gameplay of Zed Blade

One or two players simultaneously choose one of three characters to play, each with varying speeds at which they control their ships. A selection of three weapons are used for the front and back of your ship. You must defeat various enemy ships and the boss near the end of the planet as you travel through every planet in the solar system. Weapons can be upgraded during the battle, and you can also collect HyperBombs that cause maximum damage.

Soundtrack

Composed by Manabu Namiki, Zed Blade/Operation Ragnarok was one of his earliest soundtracks for a shooting game. This was the seventh Soundtrack out of 55 that Manabu Namiki composed since his first in 1992 with Super Space Fortress Macross.

History

The marketing theme on the cover art said "Are you ready for the Battles ?" Zed Blade's format as a Shooter / Flying Horizontal game is one of the only games out of the 154 games for the Neo-Geo video game system in its format.

MVS Arcade Kit

MVS (Multi Video System, the arcade version) The MVS market can be divided into two distinct groups: home carts, and complete arcade kits. Zed Blade / Operation Ragnarok runs on the Neo-Geo MVS and was not released on the Neo-Geo AES home console Complete MVS arcade kits. These consist of all the materials that would be initially sent to an arcade operator, including the brown cardboard shipping box (with label), the insert materials to decorate the marqee and arcade cabinet (including separate move lists), warning information, dipswitch settings, in some cases even posters and/or any packing materials.

The Neo Geo arcade cabinet also has a memory card slot on the front so you can save your progress on Zed Blade. The insert materials to decorate the marqee and arcade cabinet are inserted into a slot at the top of the cabinet marquee. The neo geo arcade slot allowed for up to 6 slots depending on how many ports the cabinet offered giving the specific game artwork design for promotional purposes, joystick movement, and button instructions.

File:Neo Geo 6 port arcade cabinet.JPG

Marquee Slots (Top) where Zed Blade and other Neo Geo game lists are displayed

References

• Zed Blade/Operation Ragnarok Soundtrack
• Zed Blade alternate name and Console release
• Zed Blade Game Description at Mobygames

External links

• Zed Blade / Operation Ragnarok at Coin op.org
• Zed Blade at the Killer List of Videogames