Zoids Saga facts for kids

Zoids Saga is a cool series of video games based on the popular Zoids franchise. These games let you control giant robot animals called Zoids! They were first released for the Game Boy Advance and later for the Nintendo DS, mainly in Japan. The series includes four main games and one that came out in English: Zoids Saga, Zoids Saga II (also known as Zoids: Legacy in English), Zoids Saga III: Fuzors, and Zoids Saga DS.

The Zoids Saga games are closely connected to the Zoids TV shows. Because the TV shows happen at different times in the Zoids world, these games often use time travel to bring characters and Zoids from different eras together.

Playing Zoids Saga: What's it Like?

The Zoids Saga games are role-playing games (RPGs). This means you lead a team of Zoid pilots and their Zoids on an adventure. You move around a big map (called the overworld) and explore different areas (like dungeons). As you play, you'll fight wild Zoids and enemy pilots. Your main goal is to complete the story and win the game.

You get to build your own Zoids using special data you find. You also assign your pilots to specific Zoids and arrange them in a battle formation. This helps you plan your strategy for fights!

How Battles Work

Battles in Zoids Saga are turn-based. This means you and your enemy take turns attacking, like in a board game. You deploy six of your Zoids onto a grid. Then, you use your Zoids' weapons, your pilots' special skills, and unique commands to defeat your enemies. It's all about strategy and choosing the right moves!

Zoids Saga: The First Adventure

The very first game in the series is simply called Zoids Saga. Its story takes place between the Chaotic Century and New Century Zero TV shows. You play as Prince 'Atory' from the Arcadia Kingdom. Atory has to escape his home after it's attacked by a mysterious person known as the Emperor.

You soon discover that the Emperor wants to use a new "Time-Space Transmission" technology. He plans to travel back in time and take over the world of Zi! Most of the game involves you and your team traveling through time. Your mission is to stop the Emperor's helpers from changing history.

Time Travel Missions

Atory and his three bodyguards (who start with him) travel through time many times. They chase the Emperor's four helpers to different points in the Zoids: Chaotic Century and New Century Zero TV series. They even visit the time of the Silver Liger Zero Game Boy game. It's a wild ride through Zoids history!

Zoids Saga II: Merged Timelines

In Zoids Saga II, something big happens! An accident with the Time-Space Transmission unit causes all the different Zoids timelines to mix together. This means events from the first three anime shows, the Zoids VS game, and even the events after the first Zoids Saga game are all happening at the same time!

You follow 'Zeru' and Juno as they try to stop the Backdraft Group and the Terra Geist organization. Their main goal is to fix the timelines and put everything back to normal.

Game Improvements in Zoids Saga II

Zoids Saga II brought some cool updates to the gameplay. For example, you no longer saw groups of enemy Zoids on the map. Instead, battles would happen randomly as you moved around. Also, you could now move in 8 directions on the map, which made exploring feel smoother.

Zoids: Legacy: The English Version

Zoids Saga II was released in English-speaking countries under the name Zoids: Legacy. The gameplay stayed the same, but the entire game was translated from Japanese to English. Sometimes, the translation wasn't perfect, and some names might seem a bit different from what you're used to. For example, some characters like Brad Hunter were called 'Ballad', and Jamie was called 'Jimmy'. Also, some Zoids had their American names, like 'Zaber Fang' for the Sabre Tiger, while others kept their Japanese names.

Zoids Saga III: Fuzors: Combining Zoids

Zoids Saga III: Fuzors (sometimes just called 'Zoids Saga III') is set in the world of the Zoids: Fuzors TV show. You play as 'Will', and a lot of the game's story follows what happens in the Zoids: Fuzors anime. Like in the first Zoids Saga game, you often return to one main city (Blue City) after finishing parts of the story.

New Ways to Combine Zoids

One of the biggest changes in Zoids Saga III was how you could combine Zoids to make "Unizon Zoids." In earlier games, once you combined Zoids, they stayed combined for the whole battle. But in Zoids Saga III, you could combine them during your turn in battle! They would stay combined for a few turns, getting more attacks, and then split back into their original Zoids. This made battles more exciting and strategic.

Flying and Land Modes

Another cool addition was that some Zoids could switch between flying and land modes. For example, the Liger Zero Phoenix could have stronger weapons in land mode but would be slower. In flying mode, its weapons might be weaker, but it would be faster and harder to hit!

Customizing Your Zoids

The game also changed how you could upgrade your Zoids' weapons. You could make your weapons super powerful! But as a weapon got stronger, it would cost more "Energy Points" (EP) to use. Your Zoid had a limit on how much EP it could have. This meant you had to think carefully about how to upgrade your Zoids. Instead of always needing a new Zoid, you could just make your current Zoid's weapons stronger to face tougher enemies.

Zoids Saga DS: Legend of Arcadia

Zoids Saga DS: Legend of Arcadia is a game that brings together the stories from the first three Zoids Saga games. It combines parts of their stories, making some sections shorter and expanding others. As you might expect, this DS game has better graphics and sound than the older Game Boy Advance games. It also includes characters, Zoids, and story elements from the Zoids Genesis anime series.