Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

---

A playthrough of FCI's 1987 shoot 'em up for the NES, Zanac.

When it was first released for the MSX in 1986, Zanac AI established the framework upon which virtually all of Compile's later shooters - including such classics as youtu.be/ky6CtLVo8nM, youtu.be/Qn4ytqbZD3E, and every game in the Aleste series - were built. Later that year, the MSX game was remade and expanded for its Famicom Disk System release, and that version was then adapted to the cartridge format for its North American NES debut in late 1987.

Zanac is a vertically scrolling shooter in the style of Namco's Xevious, but it innovates in a few important ways. Its primary claim to fame was its sophisticated rank system that dynamically scales the difficulty level based on the skill of the player, hence the "A.I." subtitle on the title screen. It also has a massive variety of weapons - the primary gun can be leveled up four times, and the eight distinct secondary weapons each have between three and six power levels.

And then there was the sheer technical prowess on display. Zanac blasts dozens of enemies and bullets across the screen with no slowdown and very little flicker. It runs like butter, and it's all the more impressive when you see how fast the final stage's backdrop - with its layers of vertical parallax scrolling - flies by. It would've been impressive at any point in the NES's life, but compared to even the likes of youtu.be/M8Z78WC-xGQ, this must've looked like magic in the mid/late 80s.

The gameplay is nearly as polished as the presentation. The controls are faultless, the ebb and flow of the level design does a good job of balancing the chaos with moments to catch your breath, and the way the difficulty adjusts to your play style gives it a ton of replay value. It's more forgiving than most NES shooters of its time - it showers you in 1-ups, and even at its roughest moments, the patterns generally feel fair, but you'll still feel it when you're taken out and lose your upgrades. ("ARER 8" says hello!) I really like that it gives you a fighting chance to recover in those moments, even if it's easier to reach the end than I would've liked.

In its time, Zanac was a high-water mark in the NES library. Like many of Compile's North American releases, it never won the mainstream recognition that it deserved, but it left a lasting impact on the people who gave it a chance.
_____________
No cheats were used during the recording of this video.

NintendoComplete (nintendocomplete.com/) punches you in the face with in-depth reviews, screenshot archives, and music from classic 8-bit NES games!