Zombieville USA 2 Review

Uncommonly Good 

This is the first video game review I have ever written. Such is has been my enjoyment of this simple, yet perfectly crafted game I felt compelled to write something about it. 

The tone of the game is comedic, and gory. A bit like Shaun of the Dead but a video game, and in cartoon form. What's not to like!

One of my favorite features of this game is the lack of in-app purchases. You pay for the game (costs less than a single weapons upgrade in other games - £=$0.99) and that is it, everything else is provided free of charge. 

This has left the developer free to concentrate on the game play, rather then rinsing every last cent out of the gamer, and as a result the game is 99% perfect. It is such a well balanced game I marvel at its conception. 

It doesn't go on forever. But once upon a time, that was the norm for games. You could "complete" them. 

Set Up

At the start of Zombieville USA 2 you begin with a selection of weapons that are fine for use straight away in early levels. You earn quite a lot of game money for every level you complete, or attempt. This makes the game quite relaxed, if you get you brain eaten half way through a level, you still get paid. You can then use the money earnt to buy new weapons, upgrade weapons, or buy and upgrade abilities. 

You can change you character (panda shown here), weapons, and abilities every time you start a level. 

Your Character, and Game Start Weapons

Characters 

Although the characters (skins I suppose) do not infer any different abilities there are quite a few to choose from. They are not customisable. But there are some fun options. 

Plenty of Character Sprites to CHoose From!

You can choose from Hazmat Suit, Cheerleader, SWAT Guy, Panda Bears . . .  there are quite a few, and again the fun cartoon theme adds a certain warmth to this Zombieville USA 2 which many will find appealing. 

If you choose a new character, they will also have their own unique weapons. This is quite fun, as you can build a weapons set around certain character. 

Weapons

As well as the more standard offerings of pistols & shotguns there are some more advanced offerings. However, the heavy weapons such as Minigun, and Flamethrower slow down the movement of the character during game play. Which can make them annoying to use. 

You can lessen this slow movement with upgrades, and abilities, although I haven't tried that. 

Weapons for Sale

My personal favorite weapons & abilities set is shown below. The Uzi when fully upgraded turns to twin Uzis which is a fin twist. Its just a shame some of the more powerful weapons come with that movement penalty.  

My Favorite Set

Weapons also include hand to hand items such as baseball bats and chainsaws, and items such as grenades and first aid kits.  

Abilities

As well as weapons, you can buy abilities. These are overall abilities that apply to all weapons of a certain type (such as "Full Auto"), or give you extra health (like "Body Armour").

Abilities - Plenty to Choose From

Top picks for me would be "Full Auto" (improves automatic weapons), "Quartermaster" (You can hold more ammo), and "Body Armour" (increases Max health). "Radioactive" is also quite good (recharges health), and "Speed" which can be used to overcome those heavy weapon movement penalties. 

Game Play 

So with your first set of weapons, or you carefully selected set of upgraded death bringers, you can start to have a crack at the zombies. There are 10 levels to choose from, with each subsequent level the "infection level raises". 

At first the levels past level 4 seams overwhelming, there are too many zombies to fend off. And you can make little headway. However, with a few upgrades (weapons & abilities) you soon start to make headway. 

Early Levels have a Few Zombies

The game controls are very simple. A movement pad, and three buttons for weapons or other items. Zombie burst out of the ground a various points, and you have to fend them off. You can also run away, if there is space to do so. 

Later Levels Have Many More

 However, by the time you get to higher levels such as 8 or 9 running away become very difficult as there are zombies everywhere. However, you will need to keep moving, as you need to pick up the bonus items received from killing zombies or shooting flower pots, road cones, and rubbish bins. Most important of these bonuses is ammo. There are small boxes, quite frequently, and larger caches less frequently. 

At the end of each level (whether completed or not) you will get a score table that shows you you score, kills earning etc. 

How did You Do?

Conclusions 

Zombieville USA 2 is one of the best games I have played in years. The last game I was hooked on before this was Pixel Gun 3D. But unlike Pixel Gun 3D I do not play this game impulsively. 

The thought that has gone in the balance of the game is impressive. For example, the power of the weapons vs the quantity of Zombies.  The amount of damage zombies do to you. And above all the whole experience feels unpressurized owing to lack of monetisation, and that if a level is proving tricky you can replay a earlier level (which is different every time) and "save up" game money to improve weapons. 

Its pretty much perfect. And of $0.99 practically free. Well done to the developers, and thanks!

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