A sniper rifle, thousands of Nazi zombies and bodies bursting in slow motion: there is really no better description for the Zombie Army series. There has never been a thought-out story. That also applies to the fourth part, because – let’s be honest – a story about zombie Hitler is usually not very profound. The Zombie Army games must therefore have fun playing, but there too, this is lacking Zombie Army 4: Dead War.
Hitler is defeated, but the war against his half-dead army continues. Little by little, Europe is being taken over by the zombie army of the German dictator. Against their better judgment, an organized group of survivors is trying to stop this movement. Their strategy: crash as many as possible and then stamp on the bodies. After a number of missions, the group realizes that the zombies are still being given direction. A bunch of fanatics try to free Hitler from hell, it is the resistance to prevent that.
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A lurid sport
Of all the virtual worlds, that of Zombie Army 4: Dead War is perhaps one of the lurdiest. Everywhere you look you will find death and damnation. Bloody rituals, mutilated bodies, swastikas, mutants and biometric zombie tanks: you can hardly imagine that Rebellion put it in the game. It even goes so far that when you pause the game, zombie-like voices come out of your controller that call things like; “Where are you” and “Come back”.
Zombie Army started as a spin-off from the famous sniper game Sniper Elite. It is therefore no surprise that many of the concepts of that game have been adopted almost unquestionably, including the gunplay. However, the control of the weapons feels familiar and you will land headshot after headshot in no time. Before you realize it, this turns into a sport in itself. Fortunately, Zombie Army 4: Dead War recognizes this sport and combos are tracked and each shot is assessed with points.
This only becomes really interesting when you play the game in co-op mode. From that moment on, you will do everything you can to avoid wasting bullets. One bullet per zombie changes into two zombies per bullet and a simple shot through the chest can no longer pass through the bracket. In addition, the most spectacular kills stop the game for a while, so that the entire party can enjoy a well-coordinated shot. At the end of each chapter the points are compared and the group is shown who performed the best. This mutual competition makes infinite killing of zombies bearable and gives the gameplay a pleasant flow.
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The Zombie Army games rarely distinguish themselves visually, but the quality of some buildings and animations is very reminiscent of the previous generation of consoles.
Straightforward
One of the biggest shortcomings of the Zombie Army series, however, is the series of meaningless missions that saddle the game. Unfortunately, Rebellion again failed to incorporate more depth and variation in the missions. During the story, players come across roughly five types of assignments. The first time you go looking for gas, then again a blood fountain must be filled, then a blood seal must be lifted. However, you are usually expected to protect a certain area or make it zombie-free.
Often you walk from safe house to safe house while you walk into an ambush along the way – after a few hours that gets bored. Rebellion has done its best to make routes through the levels as interesting as possible. For example, there are various collectibles to be found and weapon kits can be searched with which weapons can be upgraded. However, there is no further question of non-linear gameplay. It is always clear what needs to be done and how you do it.
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Outdated gameplay and graphics
The game as a whole could have been finished a lot better. For example, it’s pretty annoying that you first have to bump into a wall twice before going through a door. In addition, it can happen that you are overwhelmed by zombies, because suddenly you can no longer walk ahead due to a slightly too large pebble. These carelessness not only feels superfluous, but also starts to work quickly on the nerves. The game is played entirely in a third-person perspective, and while this promotes tension, it causes unclear situations, for example during sprinting. Because the camera is very close to the protagonist, it is difficult to look beyond your own body while sprinting. That often causes you to bump into a horde of zombies. These groups are also easy to help with soap grenades. However, throwing grenades is not always smooth and looks clumsy.
Moreover, the graphics of the explosions and the fire of the grenades certainly do not deserve a prize. The Zombie Army games rarely distinguish themselves visually, but the quality of some buildings and animations is very reminiscent of the previous generation of consoles. This is particularly noticeable during cut-scenes and takedown attacks, which are presented as a kind of play. In that regard, it is perhaps better that the game is played almost completely in the dark.
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With Zombie Army 4: Dead War, Rebellion unfortunately does not deliver an unexpected gem. Outdated graphics, gameplay and carelessness errors undermine an otherwise well-thought-out apocalyptic world. Although the progression system keeps the game longer than usual, the boredom strikes quickly because of the repeating missions.
Zombie Army 4: Dead War will be available for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One from 4 February.
For this review, the game was played on PlayStation 4.
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