Review: The Raging Dead - Zombie Infestation Simulation

Overview The Raging Dead is a real time strategy game with zombie infection simulation. Zombies have appeared in the city looking to infect the entire population, and it’s up to you to stop the spread of zombies. Hundreds of intelligent items are on screen at once with zombies actively pursuing humans, and humans pursuing safety, the entire time smart enough to avoid items in the landscape like buildings, and such. For each level you’re presented with a city landscape, and there are blue dots - humans, and red dots - zombies. As you begin there are few zombies to begin with, but as you continue there are more and more red dots at the start of a level. To protect the city you have a machine gun and bombs, and you fire by tapping looking down upon the city with an aerial view. Features 22 levels are included with increasing numbers of red dots to contend with to start. Your two weapons are gun which is for precise killing of one and bomb to destroy larger areas that can kill zombies and humans. Both weapons can be upgraded three ways and three times each, which are power, reload speed, and number of clips. Each level is graded A-D depending on the number of humans saved, the percentage of the city saved, and the amount of cash earned. There are 10 local achievements/medals. The Good The Raging Dead is a unique game for the iPhone, and definitely changes up the typical zombie game. Rather than being on the ground shooting zombies one by one with no hope to control the spread. You’re instead up above seeing the whole picture, and attempting to stop the zombies in their tracks as quickly as possible. The best part is that the game never plays the same in that the landscapes change, and so does the layout of zombies. Also the zombies attack randomly, not always going after the closest humans, and sometimes grouping together. The humans also crowd together actively running towards edges and corners to survive. It’s the intelligent AI that really makes the game. It may seem simple with just red and blue dots running around with your goal to destroy all the red dots. It’s much more complex as the red dots quickly manifest as they take over the blue dots. You have to hit the zombies early, otherwise the game gets out of hand quickly as the red dots multiple faster than you can kill them. Not only that, but your goal is to save 100 % of the population, and as many humans as possible. The grading system is very harsh, so even 100% doesn’t guarantee an A, and any ranking system can always help with replayabiltiy. Deciding to use the bomb or the gun is a tough decision as a bomb is much more effective, but risks killing humans in its wake as well as destroy part of the city. The gun on the other hand is easy for precision, but many times you will be overwhelmed by the number of red dots to go one by one. You will need to find a balance, and upgrade your weapons accordingly. The upgrade system of the weapons is essential to success later on. Each level begins with more red dots so you will need multiple bombs with quick reload time, and more power to stop the infestation. The artwork of the each of the aerial cityscapes is extremely well detailed. Then when you drop a bomb there is a deluxe explosion, and the building deterioratex appropriately. As the level continues the bomb blasts continue to smoke, and there are the smushed red dots. A great action soundtrack is included which fits with the survival theme. Then there are great blasts and gun fire. The controls are super easy as you just tap where you want to fire your weapon. The Bad Only 22 levels are included which feel a little cheap for a game that costs $2.99, just based on what else you can get for $0.99. The game goes by relatively quickly, and there are no online highs scores or achievements just the local awards and level rankings. Also there are a few cityscapes, but not 22 different ones, and not even 10 different ones. Another problem is that there are only two weapon types which also limits varaibility. Though the intelligent AI of the system helps variability, every level does come down to blasting red dots, and that mechanic never changes. The Verdict Overall the attempt at realistic zombie infestation simulation is a unique idea that is executed nicely. It’s a different gaming experience that is fun, and you will need quick reaction time. The production values are really well done too. The game is relatively short, and seems to fly by with not much replayability. For $2.99 it’s worth it, but its shortness keeps it from being more highly recommended.

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