Zone of the Enders

Zone of the Enders, also known as ZOE, is a videogame developed internally and released by Konami in 2001 for the PlayStation 2 console. It was produced by, and is closely associated with, Hideo Kojima. The game is based around mecha combat. The mechas were designed by Yoji Shinkawa, also the character and mechanical designer for the Metal Gear Solid Series.

ZOE was initially released in most territories with a demo version of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, the second installment of Hideo Kojima's popular stealth-based action game. Because of this association, initial sales figures could be counted as misleading; many buyers simply wanted the demo. A great many copies of ZOE appeared on "pre-owned" shelves of major gaming stores when the full version of Metal Gear Solid 2 was released.

Series
One sequel exists, Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner (known as Anubis: Zone of the Enders in Japan), also for the PlayStation 2. There was also a spin-off turn-based strategy title named Zone of the Enders: The Fist of Mars for the Game Boy Advance.

Two anime series were produced: a single-episode direct-to-video story titled ZOE: 2167 IDOLO, set prior to the events of the first game (it was originally created as a pack-in premium for a "Special Edition" release of the first ZOE game, and to supply some of the game's back story), and a 26-episode television series titled ZOE: Dolores, i. Both anime series were animated by Sunrise, the Japanese animation studio best known for the legendary Mobile Suit Gundam anime franchise.

All three games, and both anime series have been commercially released outside of Japan.

While ZOE focusses mostly on the loss of innocence of a child faced with having to kill to survive, "IDOLO" and "The Fist of Mars" explore issues surrounding colonialism, independence, political and personal power and ambitions, and revenge -- many of the same themes explored in the various Mobile Suit Gundam series. "Dolores, i" adds the emotional conflicts and tensions of a family, split by ditance and circumstance, as they try to come together to overcome their differences in the face of an impending conflict.

ZONE OF THE ENDERS