ZombiU was one of the best games that came out simultaneously with the WiiU. The use of GamePad controller for WiiU was implemented in an interesting manner, interesting gameplay and solid quality, all combined to make ZombiU a WiiU favorite. On the other hand, bad sales of the console itself led the publisher to announce that there would be no sequel. However, that did not stop Ubi to publish ZombiU for PC three years later, under probably the worst name in last couple of years – Zombi.
And Zombi looks exactly how you might imagine a three-year old game made for graphically inferior console – so don’t expect any bells and whistles when it comes to graphics, animation and sound. Moreover, you’re better off placing all your hopes on gameplay experience, and luckily for all of us, it’s pretty good. And while someone might fault zombie-infested London for having more Royal Guardsmen and London Tower Guards than regular citizens, practically speaking it’s still a pretty scary experience to walk those streets and fear that something might ambush you from every corner. Even when you encounter a solo zombie you can’t be certain that you’ll come out on top, and if you encounter a group – you better run. That’s because if you die in this game, you die forever. Your character, that is. You will respawn as a different character and then you can look for your “old self” to retrieve your backpack and everything you had in it. Although you don’t have to do that if you don’t want to. Or you won’t even be able to, because if you die with the new character too, that previous gear will be lost forever. Even though the characters don’t speak, it’s a nice touch that they still emit some sounds – so they will act scared, or cackle maniacally while bashing zombies, or even show disgust with their surroundings.
Your fun while playing will almost surely be spoiled by the fact that the game is an obvious console port – settings options are minimal and don’t expect any of the standard PC tweaks. Because the GamePad that was used as a secondary screen on WiiU version isn’t available for PC, all of it’s utility was moved to the main screen, which isn’t a bad solution – when it actually works. Not only are there errors that cause the game to crash, but there are also many gameplay oversights that can prevent you from finishing a mission, opening parts of the map, collect extra gear, or even detect zombies on radar. And that’s not all – Ubisoft has decided to remove any kind of online/offline co-op multiplayer options from Zombi, so you’re resigned to solo survival, which is a big missed opportunity, because there was a real potential for zombie-bashing fun with friends. Another problematic feature is connecting with the uPlay service that is required to play, even though it was unwanted, unwarranted and nobody knows why it still exists, what it’s for, and it’s only use seems to be to aggravate the players.
All of this makes Zombia mixed bag, or rather, a “mystery bad” of toys. Maybe you get exactly the toy you wanted (i.e. Zombi works on your PC as intended an you have some fun), or you might draw a dupe.
Author: Stefan Starović
Zombi
Pros:
- Good survival feel
- Interesting game concept
Cons:
- Bugs
- All-around outdated
- No multiplayer
