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Left 4 Dead was a fantastic game, just fantastic, but expensive? You bet. Those full price games don’t come cheap. Lucky for you tight wad Xbox 360 and PS3 owners there’s a cheap knock off alternative to Left 4 Dead that’s got plenty going for it in the fun department, Zombie Apocalypse. You choose one of four players (none of whom play any differently) who look just a little too cribbed from Left 4 Dead and get dropped into a small arena level where you have to survive a wave of attacking zombies.
It’s basically 3D Asteroids with zombies instead of rocks. If you were a fan of the old top down action games like Smash TV or Alien Breed you’ll be pretty familiar with the game type, third person shooting action in an enclosed space. Controls are dead simple, one stick to walk and the other stick to shoot in all directions, the game is mostly about strafing and circling to keep the zombie hordes at bay.
Zombie's and chainsaws, as inseperable as ninjas and electric guitars
You start the game with the classic Kalashnikov AK-47 with unlimited ammo but after a few levels you get dropped sub machine guns, shotguns, Molotov cocktails and a few other goodies. There are also two melee attacks mapped to the bumpers, one has you holding a chainsaw out in front of you and dodging back and forth butchers you’re attackers, the other move is an execution that skewers the zombie immediately in front of you. The latter attack nets you a big boost to your score multiplier but leaves you temporarily open to zombie attack.
In classic arcade blasting action style Zombie Apocalypse is really all about the big score and in addition to your chainsaw execution there are a few ways to earn some extra points and extend your multiplier. One is rescuing survivors; every once in a while a woman in a blue suit will run into the level screaming for help, accompanied by a sudden surge in zombie risings, and protecting her for a few seconds until a helicopter winches her to safety rewards you with a big points boost and pink teddy bear that works as a zombie lure explosive (as it squeals quips like “I’m packed with love… and C4”). The other method of expanding your points are environmental kills, every level is littered with gory opportunities to slaughter your zombie enemies if you shoot them into the danger area, everything from flaming crematoriums to shuddering wood chippers can be used. Naturally there are also exploding barrels and other weapons of opportunity here and there.
Everythings more fun when you add a little 'cooperation' (cue dancing Sesame Street monsters)
One of the best features of the game are the variety of zombies on offer with varying abilities and attacks that require you to change you’re game style on the fly. Unfortunately some of these zombies have quite cheap instant kill attacks which can be pretty frustrating. This is further exacerbated by the fact the graphics are not quite as good as they need to be and its sometimes hard to spot certain nasty zombie types and mistake them for the more sedate stumblers. The graphics are not poor by any means, but not quite up to your Trials HD or Shadow Complex quality.
By the games biggest failing is the limited number of levels on offer. The game has 55 levels but only 7 different locations. These are mixed up with different zombie types and a few novelties like chainsaw only levels and dark levels where you can only see a few feet around your character. But overall it can be a bit of a struggle to slog right to the 55 mark when you play the same levels over and over again. Another small problem is the difficulty; the games just too damn easy and offers you infinite continues to complete the levels with the only impact being to your final level score.
Airport, crashed planes, zombies.... hmmm, serious deja vu
The very best way to enjoy the game is with friends and Zombie Apocalypse offers both four player over Live and local if you’ve got four controllers to spare. Multiplayer really opens up the experience and adds a lot to whats an otherwise shallow game. There’s a lot of replay to be had there comparing and contesting high scores across the game. I strongly recommend that if you are planning on picking up Zombie Apocalypse you strong arm a couple of friends into buying it as well. So if you haven’t had your fill of zombies all ready Zombie Apocalypse is some quality low brain, high fun shoot em up action available to download on both Xbox Live Arcade and PSN. It's definitely one of the better arcade releases available for both systems but much like Left 4 Dead the value is definitely in the multiplayer.
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