Space Pirates and Zombies

 PC
User Score
7.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 158 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 97 out of 158
  2. Mixed: 45 out of 158
  3. Negative: 16 out of 158

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  1. Andrew_Paterson
    Dec 9, 2012
    6
    The premise is interesting and the combat is generally fun (not to mention it's one of the few games where I've read the dialog). It's slightly let down by it's own size - there's a lot of grinding to get the more powerful ship hulls and weapons.

    Also the second half of the game could (I think) have been more strategic - or have been dropped entirely. Nevertheless the difficulty is    The premise is interesting and the combat is generally fun (not to mention it's one of the few games where I've read the dialog). It's slightly let down by it's own size - there's a lot of grinding to get the more powerful ship hulls and weapons.

    Also the second half of the game could (I think) have been more strategic - or have been dropped entirely. Nevertheless the difficulty is fair: attacking something many levels above one is going to end badly and attacking something levels below won't net you anything worthwhile and as one always knows the level of the system one's entering...

    All-in-all a solid effort that could have had just a little more polish.    … Expand
  2. LeonidasRex
    Dec 18, 2012
    5
    SPAZ is really two games on top of each other, and they don't mix well. One of the games is a complex space combat model. Beams work well against shields but not armor, point defenses stop missiles, scanners negate cloaks, and so forth. Somebody put a lot of thought into that space combat system, and it could have been the foundation of a great game similar to Faster Than Light. But thenSPAZ is really two games on top of each other, and they don't mix well. One of the games is a complex space combat model. Beams work well against shields but not armor, point defenses stop missiles, scanners negate cloaks, and so forth. Somebody put a lot of thought into that space combat system, and it could have been the foundation of a great game similar to Faster Than Light. But then there's the second game, an arcadey space shooter in which you blast your way through endless waves of enemies while amassing experience points to acquire better equipment with which to defeat bigger enemies. So the delicate rock-paper-scissors of the first game gets trampled by the second game's rush to XP. There's no point thinking too hard about ship layout and other tactical decisions, because most of the time the fleet with superior tech simply crushes the opposition. And even when the battles are close, there are no tools to help you understand why you won or lost. There's no combat log, no slowing of time, no rewind to review the battle. I often lost ships and battles without having any idea why. Was my fleet poorly designed? Did I use the wrong tactics? Was the enemy fleet simply too powerful? I didn't mind losing, but it was unsatisfying not to know why I had lost. And it was even more unsatisfying not to have much reason to care. There's no risk of losing in this game. There are no real setbacks. You just spend ten minutes fighting a battle, and if you lose then you spend ten minutes in tedious resource acquistion so that you can try the battle again, or try another battle. There are no real defeats and therefore no real victories. No emotional arcs. The flashy lasers and explosions become drudgery. You don't win this game with superior tactics or loadout decisions. You win this game with raw patience. If you grind away at battles that are not too easy and not too difficult, then eventually I assume you'll win. After 32 hours, I don't have any more patience for it.… Expand
  3. Zedben
    Apr 24, 2012
    5
    This game is okay. I realize it was developed by a very small team, but it seems more like a grind than a game. "Here we are in this section! Grind your faction with so-and-so so we can move on." From there it turns into a "you can't continue through the story until you are this level. Good concepts, but not too good of an immersive experience or story line.
  4. Ceps
    May 4, 2012
    5
    Well it looks like I'm going to oppose some of the fanboys here, but this is my take: Overall the game is ok - there are about an even number of things the game does well as it does not so well. On the bright side, it can be quite rewarding to out-maneuver and crush fleets far larger than yours, steal blueprints, blow up space stations, and leveling and tech-ing up on top of it. TheWell it looks like I'm going to oppose some of the fanboys here, but this is my take: Overall the game is ok - there are about an even number of things the game does well as it does not so well. On the bright side, it can be quite rewarding to out-maneuver and crush fleets far larger than yours, steal blueprints, blow up space stations, and leveling and tech-ing up on top of it. The technologies are quite balanced, well thought-out and rewarding, and resource acquisition is simple and easy - especially if you choose to fly with large cargo hold ships and lose ships minimally. Therefore even if you do suffer a crushing defeat, you can always bounce back for some revenge without too much hassle (mining is very boring however). The usage of specialists is an interesting and nice twist on fleet capabilities.

    However, there are quite a few nuisances. I don't know what people are talking about superior AI. Ships you aren't immediately commanding will frequently rush off to their immediate deaths. While you may choose certain ships in your fleet because they can theoretically create a superior combination, in reality the AI will be controlling them most of the time and frankly uses them terribly (not firing as much as your reactors support, terrible evasion, charging through bullet/laser salvos, targeting things they have no hope of destroying or ignoring things that are pwning them), therefore its important to consider how the AI might use the ships you include in your fleet. The becon which serves as your base when visiting space stations ALWAYS spawns right next to the space stations. This can be convenient if you are friendly with the station, but absolutely stupid and annoying if your aim is to blow the station to smithereens (a very cheap way to acquire tons of tech). If the becon is destroyed, you cannot repair or drop off captured resources/slaves, and can't rebuild...and it spawns right within range of station weapons. Frankly, as a pirate, I really think its lame if I'm expected to bribe every single time as the range of the becon indicates I should. People have definitely got it right when they say the game is repetitive. As you move from star system to star system, its basically rinse and repeat the same actions with a very short list of mission variation. If you've traveled 5 star systems, you've probably seen every single mission except ones that progress the plot. There's also an annoying feature where you cannot leave a scenario so long as there as an enemy ship on the map, which means you will be using the mass retreat function for 9/10 engagements just to end it within a decent amount of time. You might think, well why not blow it up? Well, its about 17000 of whatever distance units they use away from me when a typical engagement is about 2000 distance units. If every battle requires some amount of minutes just to chase down one mostly dead fighter, it really starts to add up the time I'm drumming my fingers on my desk. Mostly dead fighters will often do this much to my annoyance in chapters 3 and 4. There are a few other things I could critique, but thats probably too much to ask from a 2-man company mainly in terms of story line, dialogue, ambience and general mood. Overall a decent game - I've spent over 100 hours on it already and intend to spend a bit more.    … Expand
  5. Lokathor
    Dec 8, 2013
    5
    SPAZ is an alright asteroids-like space game. You can customize your ship with different upgrades that you pick up as you play. You get more than one ship in your little fleet and can swap control between them if you want. Usually you always wanna play as your biggest and toughest ship, but not always. There's several types of weapon that you can focus on using, and the game allows you toSPAZ is an alright asteroids-like space game. You can customize your ship with different upgrades that you pick up as you play. You get more than one ship in your little fleet and can swap control between them if you want. Usually you always wanna play as your biggest and toughest ship, but not always. There's several types of weapon that you can focus on using, and the game allows you to "rebuild" your level ups for a cost if you realize that you made a mistake.

    The writing in this game is pretty deadful though, and the gameplay gets very samey after just a few hours of play. Some of the time you have to take a break from constant space fighting to go and restock on your resources, which gets a little dull.

    It's a good game to play while listening to a podcast or audiobook or something like that.    … Expand
  6. jim109109
    May 11, 2013
    5
    This game just isn't that good. What it all boils down to is, you move ships with WASD, and shoot other ships with the mouse. The ship modifications are boring and useless. Having more than 3 different weapons might have redeemed this game. What it is now is a cool space exploration game maimed by extremely shallow, repetitive gameplay.

    That being said you might enjoy it if you have a    This game just isn't that good. What it all boils down to is, you move ships with WASD, and shoot other ships with the mouse. The ship modifications are boring and useless. Having more than 3 different weapons might have redeemed this game. What it is now is a cool space exploration game maimed by extremely shallow, repetitive gameplay.

    That being said you might enjoy it if you have a hard-on for space exploration and getting in the atmosphere of a space game. It is definitely playable but really at the bare bone basics of gameplay.    … Expand
  7. askewreviews
    Aug 29, 2013
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Space Pirates and Zombies could so easily be a great game. The first five hours or so actually were great but then I started to notice the repetitive nature of SPAZ's missions and the slooow upgrade progression. More content, particularly a more fleshed out range of mission and event types, would really improve this game.… Expand
  8. Tritonio
    Oct 21, 2012
    6
    Great idea, nice humor, nice mechanics in most cases but this gets boring very soon. After a point you'll find yourself kicking ass when suddenly you'll get stuck at a place, loosing all rez in the fight, and then having to fall back and gather more rez in various boring ways or fall back and kill the same enemies over and over trying to level up so that you can actually play the game. IGreat idea, nice humor, nice mechanics in most cases but this gets boring very soon. After a point you'll find yourself kicking ass when suddenly you'll get stuck at a place, loosing all rez in the fight, and then having to fall back and gather more rez in various boring ways or fall back and kill the same enemies over and over trying to level up so that you can actually play the game. I even tried at easy, but again, some missions are way out of their surrounding difficulty.… Expand
  9. Kluge
    Oct 7, 2011
    5
    There's just a lack of content. It takes a great deal of effort to marginally improve your fleet's status after you hit around level 15 or so - and if the randomly-generated map, in which your don't know where blueprints are scattered, doesn't have anything beneficial for you within your level range of solar systems, you end up stuck - which isn't okay when you've invested 5+ hours in thatThere's just a lack of content. It takes a great deal of effort to marginally improve your fleet's status after you hit around level 15 or so - and if the randomly-generated map, in which your don't know where blueprints are scattered, doesn't have anything beneficial for you within your level range of solar systems, you end up stuck - which isn't okay when you've invested 5+ hours in that map. Combat gets old fairly quickly, shooting the same weapons at the same handful of ships who utilize the same tactics over and over, on missions you've already done 5+ times. With more variety, more AI programming, and more upgrade mechanics, this game can be something great. The first few hours, I loved the game, but it felt much more like grinding after those few beginning hours when there was a strong sense of novelty.… Expand
  10. MrSniker
    Jan 5, 2012
    6
    Game starts off good but quickly get's very repetitive with similar missions structures and constantly ransacking similar stations. Game is easily a 7 or so until you reach the final quarter of the game when you reach the core with different enemies and it just gets annoying. I found the game extremely easy but found it annoying that my Beam build was given the shaft on the last enemiesGame starts off good but quickly get's very repetitive with similar missions structures and constantly ransacking similar stations. Game is easily a 7 or so until you reach the final quarter of the game when you reach the core with different enemies and it just gets annoying. I found the game extremely easy but found it annoying that my Beam build was given the shaft on the last enemies and was forced to switch. Annoying and once I switched to an alternate weapon the game was ridiculous easily and the last quarter consisted of me raiding enemy outposts and pressing the fire button repeatedly. The last quarter of the game really just showed me how little there was to the game and really brought out the repetitive nature of it. Decent game but don't go playing full price until they add some content to the later levels.… Expand
  11. nallath
    Oct 1, 2012
    5
    I'm not quite sure what to think of this game. The start is rather confusing and it has some really bad voice acting (It sounds like one of the devs recorded it). The controls are quite frustrating and the game itself has no redeeming qualities. It has nothing "new" to it. Overall it feels like a big flash game.
  12. 4-6-4-9
    Aug 30, 2011
    6
    I found the game to get repetitive quickly. At the beginning of the game it let's you set size of the random generated universe. Missions are random but there are only a handful of different ones. So after playing for awhile you'll run into the same missions quite a bit. There is also no point in exploring either since missions and star systems are the same. Because of that I found noI found the game to get repetitive quickly. At the beginning of the game it let's you set size of the random generated universe. Missions are random but there are only a handful of different ones. So after playing for awhile you'll run into the same missions quite a bit. There is also no point in exploring either since missions and star systems are the same. Because of that I found no reason to play on any map size besides the smallest available. Also with larger maps it spreads upgrades far apart, so it forces you to travel and repeat everything a lot more if you want a certain upgrade.

    Towards the mid of the game I grew frustrated with the repetitiveness and rushed through missions; blowing everything up regardless of faction, not caring about relations. It got interesting again when zombie were introduced along with new missions. Again though, there are only handful of zombie missions, and it starts to get repetitive.

    It may sound as if I hated the game but I did enjoy it. I am impressed that it was only made by two people, but I wished they compressed the world size (even smaller than the smallest available) or added more variety of missions.    … Expand
  13. Coeco
    Jul 22, 2012
    7
    SPAZ really manages to grabs one by the balls in the first couple of hours but along with it being the games greatest strength, It is also its biggest flaws. As fun as the first couple of hours will be if you're into space, zombies and all that good stuff, it becomes repetitive real fast. especially if you're having a blast and progressing faster than normally but I guess that's what IndieSPAZ really manages to grabs one by the balls in the first couple of hours but along with it being the games greatest strength, It is also its biggest flaws. As fun as the first couple of hours will be if you're into space, zombies and all that good stuff, it becomes repetitive real fast. especially if you're having a blast and progressing faster than normally but I guess that's what Indie games are made for. Other than that, It manages to be a bit linear with unlocking new goodies along with a few balance issues here and there but nothing that heavily affects the actual game-play. Buy it on a sale and you won't regret it.… Expand
  14. Timber
    Jan 25, 2013
    7
    This is really fun. 2D space battles with progression and ship customization, fast action and nice visuals. Not sure I like the bounty hunter addition though, boring fellows.
  15. suneater
    Dec 13, 2012
    6
    This is very reminiscent of older space exploration games I used to play (whose names I can't remember which is why I picked this up on a whim). You start off piloting a flying trash can and through the tutorial fix it up enough to control a small fleet. There is some seriously deep customization with your ships. With carriers that can support their own miniature fleets to turret coveredThis is very reminiscent of older space exploration games I used to play (whose names I can't remember which is why I picked this up on a whim). You start off piloting a flying trash can and through the tutorial fix it up enough to control a small fleet. There is some seriously deep customization with your ships. With carriers that can support their own miniature fleets to turret covered behemoths that can shoot 360°, both the pea-shooters you get at the beginning and the imperial destroyers you get near the end all have their uses throughout the whole game. The devs have released tons of free patches with new content and fixes since release and is worth picking up if you enjoy old-school space sims.… Expand
  16. ibitato
    Sep 8, 2013
    7
    The game is good in short bursts, but it gets repetitive really fast, once you've learned the basics.

    That is, after the first 4 hours, your will only be moved by the desire of unlocking new ships, since everything else becomes a (repetitive) grind fest. Every system seems similar in structure and quests. The combat is fun, since every ship behaves different, but balancing issues    The game is good in short bursts, but it gets repetitive really fast, once you've learned the basics.

    That is, after the first 4 hours, your will only be moved by the desire of unlocking new ships, since everything else becomes a (repetitive) grind fest.

    Every system seems similar in structure and quests.

    The combat is fun, since every ship behaves different, but balancing issues on game's difficulty are there.    … Expand
  17. eponymous
    Aug 21, 2013
    7
    I really enjoyed this game until it got way out on the impossibility scale. The battles are involved and entertaining until you progress the storyline far into the 'space-zombie' end of the game Then it just becomes more difficult than it is fun. So this one will sit in the 'almost complete' basket labeled 'too hard'. Shame that, could've been better.
  18. SupaChigga
    Nov 19, 2013
    6
    Single Player/Multi Player (2/2)

    (If the single player is better than the multiplayer, review this section as if it had no multplayer) (If the multiplayer is better than the multiplayer, review this section as if it had no single player) Gameplay (1/2) Visuals/Story (1/2) (If the visuals are better than the story, review this section as if it had no story) (If the story is    Single Player/Multi Player (2/2)

    (If the single player is better than the multiplayer, review this section as if it had no multplayer) (If the multiplayer is better than the multiplayer, review this section as if it had no single player)

    Gameplay (1/2)

    Visuals/Story (1/2)

    (If the visuals are better than the story, review this section as if it had no story) (If the story is better than the visuals, review this section as if the visuals didn’t matter)

    Accessibility/Longevity (0/2)

    (Review this section only on Accessibility if the game has no longevity) (Review this section only on longevity if the game isn’t accessible)

    Pricing (2/2)

    Wildcard (0)

    This is a guideline for how to properly review games. Many reviewers like to get a “feel” for a game, and arbitrarily give a game a score that they believe it deserves. This results in wildly different scores between different reviewers, and vastly different scores between similar games. This guideline addresses these problems and scores games fairly and consistently. This guideline also gives scores that are usually similar to the metacritic score.

    The review score is based out of 10 points. There are no “half” or 0.5 increments. It is impossible to have a score above 10 or below 0. The review score will change as the game gets new dlc, drops in price, or if more secrets are found through the game increasing its appeal.

    The scoring is split into 6 sections. The first five sections can add a possible 2 points to the final score. The first 5 sections are Single Player/Multi Player, Gameplay, Visuals/Story, Accessibility/Longevity, and Pricing.

    Notice that 3 of these sections have two parts. These particular sections will be scored based on the stronger part of the game of the two. For example, if a game has a lousy single player campaign, but an excellent multiplayer component, that section will be based solely on the multiplayer as if the single player did not exist. This allows games to be based on their own merits, as many unnecessary features are shoehorned into video games by publishers to reach a “feature quota”. Games that excel in both areas of a section don’t receive should be noted in the written review, but cannot increase the score past 2 in that section. However, it can be taken into account in the final section

    The final section can add 1, add 0, or subtract 1 to the final score. This final section is the “wildcard” section. This section is for how the reviewer “feels” about the game, but limits this only to this section, rather than the entire 10 point review. This section can include any positive or negative point that was not covered in the previous 5 sections.    … Expand
  19. PanaCZech
    Dec 10, 2013
    6
    I was pleasantly surprised with this game. The ship building and tech upgrades are nice, randomly generated space is also great. But it becomes kind of repetitive when you play it for more than 10 hours. Maybe there could be more of the main and secondary quests and less of those which are generated automatically.
  20. carlosgtardon
    Jun 10, 2014
    6
    Entretenido juego de gestión y habilidad, aunque satura sus mecánicas al poco tiempo. Como compra se queda tal vez un poco corto pero en grandes rebajas puede valer la pena.
  21. HydrophobikFish
    Jun 9, 2023
    7
    A really fun space combat game that is buried under extensive grinding because it feels the need to be a palpably vast struggle. Its a double edged sword, the scale of the galaxy comes across and leaves an impactful impression on the story, but it really drags down game time.

Awards & Rankings

90
#90 Best PC Game of 2011
77
#77 Most Discussed PC Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
74

Mixed or average reviews - based on 12 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 12
  3. Negative: 0 out of 12
  1. PC PowerPlay
    Oct 3, 2011
    70
    Admirable, but maybe not lovable. Requires stubborn determination on the part of the player. Then it's rewarding. [Nov 2011, p.50]
  2. Gamereactor Denmark
    Sep 12, 2011
    80
    If you're into strategi, roleplaying, action and science fiction, Space Pirates and Zombies offers a delightful mix that, once you've grown aquinted to it, offers an insane amount of playtime and catchy entertainment.
    Read full review
  3. PC Gamer UK
    Sep 8, 2011
    67
    The germ of a cool game, not quite ready for prime time, but with plenty of potential if the right choices are made. [Oct 2011, p.90]
    Read full review
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