How long have we all been on the zombie bandwagon now? I thought that zombies would be trending downward by now, but every year there’s a new TV show, three new movies, and 10 new video games. I guess people just love landing the perfect head shot to splatter zombie brains onto the ground.
So with Halloween approaching and a lot of zombie fluff out there, what are the best zombie games for you to sink your teeth into? Read on to find out…
Dead Rising series
Hordes and hordes of zombies wandering around a city, just begging for you to do them in with whatever you can get your hands on. Dead Rising added some comedy to zombie slaying, but things could still get real at times. Still, there’s nothing like running around mall, Fortune City or Los Perdidos, hacking apart zombies with a Paddlesaw — two chainsaws duct taped to a kayak paddle — while dressed like a cowboy. Or a clown. Or a sexy female police officer. That’s the destructive, zombie-slaying creativity behind these games.
The Last of Us
So technically the enemies in The Last of Us aren’t zombies. But let's face it, they're as close to zombies as you're going to get. While other groups of humans are the biggest threat, the scariest parts of The Last of Us is when you have to sneak by groups of Clickers, where any mistake or sound you make could mean the end for Joel and Ellie. Better keep those Molotov cocktails ready.
Left 4 Dead series
Some of my fondest zombie game memories come from Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2. The multiplayer pit players against each other, with some controlling survivors and others controlling a zombie — a Boomer, Hunter, Smoker, Tank or Witch. There were crazy moments, fun moments, and genuine “Holy sh*t we’re all gonna die” moments. Thinking about the fear of approaching a Witch makes me want to play it right this second.
The Walking Dead
Telltale Games does a great job of capturing the group dynamic in the post-zombie outbreak world of The Walking Dead with Season One. While you’re not actively fighting against zombies, the stress of the decisions in a tense moment stick with you throughout the season, and every single choice you make has consequences. The Walking Dead Season One shows that no one is safe from Zombies, and there’s only one fate for everyone in the end… Oh yeah, Season 2 is good too
Resident Evil
The original Resident Evil was, at the time, the scariest game I had ever played. At the time, I didn’t even notice the terrible voice acting that’s comical to me now. It had genuine scary moments. The survival horror genre, for me, starts with Resident Evil. In a huge, creepy mansion filled with zombies and experiments, having to decide what you’re going to carry in your six-slot inventory when you don’t know what waits for you behind the next door is terrifying. Whether it’s a dog jumping through a window (which nearly gave me a heart attack), or the first time you turn the corner in a hallway off the dining room to find a zombie munching on some dude’s face, Resident Evil is the go-to zombie video game experience. So go dust off your PlayStation or GameCube. "Hope that's not Chris' blood."
Notable Mention: DayZ
I put DayZ on this list because there are zombies, but it’s the interactions with other humans that makes this game special. Creepy, messed up, mentally unstable human beings that do things like speak in disguised voices while they ask you to remove your clothes and get on your knees, handcuff you in the middle of a forest and just stare at you. WTF, mate. WTF…
