Zombies strike a chord in our culture. Their lack of humanity reminds us of of our own human qualities — our courage, our empathy, and sometimes our ruthlessness. With all the classic zombie movies and books in the world, it’s only natural that we also have great zombie games. Zombies are perfect video game enemies; often easily killable without remorse, and often appearing in intimidating hordes. Zombie stories in TV and film are usually all about relationships, while the games tend to be more about … killing zombies.
For the purposes of this ranking, the infected and corrupted hordes in games likeThe Last of Usqualify as zombies. If it walks like a zombie and talks like a zombie, it’s a zombie. With all that in mind, here are some of the greatest games to ever star the ravenous undead.
10. The Walking Dead
The Walking Deadgames certainly do the beloved TV show justice. Human interaction really does take center stage here, and the games are charming in their uniqueness. The characters are thoughtful and their interactions are well-written.
The only real issue here is the inherent difficulty of telling a branching story in a game. Telltale has a mixed reputation when it comes to this. It can sometimes feel like the choices matter less than they should. Still, these adaptations of The Walking Dead are worth a playthrough, more than capable of tugging on the heartstrings and delivering some grisly gore.
9. State of Decay
State of Decaywas a breath of fresh air when it came out. Along with sequel State of Decay 2, it fills a very interesting niche well. It’s an action-survival game with zombies that feel satisfying and fun to kill. The driving is also perfectly fine, and the map is nice and big. There’s a solid sense of progression throughout, and building up resources is satisfying.
Permadeath is an element that gives the game real tension and stakes, though it can be devastating when things go swiftly awry. The main issue with State of Decay is that the tasks can feel repetitive, and occasionally the focus on grinding can be problematic.
For whatever reason, Capcom and zombies are like bread and butter.Dead Risingmay have spawned some controversial sequels, but the original game from the early Xbox 360 days remains very well liked. It’s memorable for its quirky gameplay and sense of humor, but a few of its mechanics haven’t aged well.
Dead Rising is often criticized for being one big escort mission, and it sort of is. Still, it’s worth playing, because there are no other games where boat oars and gallon jugs of orange juice are considered viable weapons against the undead masses. Unlike many zombie titles, it’s low on the horror, high on the brilliant silliness.
7. Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead
Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead (or CDDA for short) is an open-source zombie survival game. It’s a roguelike in the truest sense of the word. It also has some of the deepest, most engaging mechanics of any video game ever. CDDA players love to tell awesome stories from their infinite procedurally-generated worlds. Start a farm and become the world’s first post-apocalyptic chef. Build a rolling death machine. Play as someone with a body partial crafted from adamantium. Even better, do all of those things at the same time.
CDDA is not a traditional “zombie” game. It’s a slow, strategic experience. It also has a verysteep learning curve. Even for fans of Rogue, CDDA can seem impenetrable at first. Those who have the patience to stick around and learn, however, are rewarded with an amazing game.
6. Project Zomboid
Project Zomboid is a survival game that takes place in a procedurally generated world. Zomboid is very similar to Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead. Both are open-world zombie survival games, and both have had very long development periods. The difference is that Zomboid is more approachable, and lacks the depth and complexity of CDDA. It’s certainly much easier for new players to hop into Zomboid, and it edges out its counterpart for that reason. In a perfect world, we’d have both: an endlessly deep and complex game that’s simple to learn.
Funnily, one of the Zomboid scenarios (“A Really CD DA”) starts the player character off naked and falling out of the shower. Also they’re drunk, and sick, and their house is on fire. This is a direct reference to the CDDA scenario “A Really Bad Day”.
Not technically a game, rather a game-sized DLC, Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare is fun and imaginative. Far from the gritty drama that theRed Deadseries is known for, this self-contained story puts John Marston into a grindhouse horror movie. Taking out hordes of zombies with nothing but a torch and a cattleman revolver is immensely satisfying. The story is compelling, and worthy of the Read Dead moniker.
It’s a shame Undead Nightmare is only DLC. A fully-realized game in this genre would be amazing. However, Rockstar is unlikely to release anything else that compares to this bizarre title’s imagination and scope. The horror material that hasbeen released for Read Dead Online is limited to a special Halloween event.
4. Resident Evil 4
Resident Evil4 revolutionized both tank controls and the survival horror genre as a whole. Until the release of Resident Evil 7, the control scheme from RE4 was the series standard. When people think of Resident Evil, they’re often thinking of this classic and its brilliant gameplay. A similar over-the-shoulderthird-person viewwas used for the remakes of its two series predecessors.
Regardless of its remake, the original RE4 is still very much worth playing. Having to stop and carefully aim is an iconic and terrifying experience. Years after its original release, only a few zombie-ridden classics can top it.
3. The Last of Us
There isn’t much to say about The Last of Us that hasn’t already been said. It’s a beautiful, thought-provoking game. Other studios should take a lesson here; TLOU shows us that players are not only willing to play a flawed protagonist, they love it when it’s done well. The gameplay, graphics, acting, storytelling, and music are all top-notch.
Some might knock the game for its grimdark tone, and that may be fair. It can feel heavy-handed, and comic relief is in short supply. Even more might knock TLOU for its multiple remakes, which feel tiresome considering not much time has passed since the initial release. It’s difficult to deny, however, that The Last Of Us is a masterpiece of a game.
2. Resident Evil
Resident Evil is, without a doubt, one of the greatest zombie games of all time. All Resident Evil fans owe it to themselves to go back and play the series' first entry if they haven’t already. From its classic manor setting to its unique undead to its awesome action set pieces, the game is a treat from start to finish.
Its remake is excellent and comes highly recommended. Iconic as it may be, though, there are some very minor issues. Those dated controls, ever-present in the remake, can be difficult to grapple with. So, too, can the inventory system (those limited slots can be frustrating). Resident Evil’s cachet speaks for itself, but being a product of its time just holds it back from the top spot.
1. Left 4 Dead
Left 4 Deadis Valve’s classic squad-based shooter. Other games have tried, but to this day no one has successfully recaptured the magic of Left 4 Dead or its sequel. Players work together (in theory) to mow down hordes of zombies. An “AI Director” (who is regarded as a godlike figure by some) makes each run of the game unique.
Every playthrough is tailored to the players' skill level, and the action never lulls too much. L4D was actually so revolutionary that itsunique zombies (tank, smoker, etc.) are still copied by other games to this day. Both titles in the series are up for sale on Steam regularly, and for any gamer with the remotest interest in blasting zombies, there’s no excuse not to play them.
