ZombiU

 Wii U
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 791 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 578 out of 791
  2. Mixed: 108 out of 791
  3. Negative: 105 out of 791
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  1. ItsMuchMore
    Feb 4, 2015
    6
    “How long will you survive?” Ubisoft’s Zombi U is a fresh and surprisingly innovative addition to the first person survival horror genre and a good attempt at showing that the Wii U isn’t just for family friendly Nintendo party games.

    This boastfully British game follows an army of disposable protagonists all hoping to survive a zombie apocalypse under the guidance of what might as well    “How long will you survive?” Ubisoft’s Zombi U is a fresh and surprisingly innovative addition to the first person survival horror genre and a good attempt at showing that the Wii U isn’t just for family friendly Nintendo party games.

    This boastfully British game follows an army of disposable protagonists all hoping to survive a zombie apocalypse under the guidance of what might as well be the hard balled love child of Ross Kemp and Bear Grylls called ‘The prepper’, called so because he seems to be the only person suitably prepared for the oncoming swarm of London guard clad zombies.

    He gives you a place of shelter in the London Underground system after he sees you through a security camera dramatically cornered by a wave of your infected neighbours. His instruction teaches you survival skills and drives the story forward by giving new locations to travel to, all at the hope of new equipment or solace to be found throughout the hellish streets of London. Along the way you’ll encounter other characters who put your ‘fate of the world’ role into perspective, with the root of all the chaos deriving from one biblical prophecy telling of the purification of the world.

    The game was an interesting pick from the list of games the Wii-U had available early to launch. Right off the bat, the hell-scape atmosphere of the game is thrust onto the player having you rapidly maneuver through the dimly lit London underground with infected at every turn, and the games various settings and everlasting night time does maintain this feel, through and through. Controls get shaky at times because you must break you focus and connection with the surroundings to make of the Wii-U gamepad quite often, however the the feeling of uncertainty you get while looking away from your stationary character proves that the game is achieving a feeling of stress and dis-composition as a survival horror should invoke in a player. Similarly, the early scarcity of ammo also accentuates the survival aspect of the game. Combat is a breeze if there is only one zombie around, however using the single melee weapon you get in game becomes a tedious task despite it being the easiest option for single combat (Prepare bat, swing, prepare bat, swing, prepare bat, swing, prepare bat, swing). But when two or more zombies should appear you have an adequately sized arsenal of upgradeable guns and explosives to fight back with, however you’re limited to what you can carry in your “bug out bag” and pockets. And with a slot being taken up for each weapon, and a second slot being taken by it’s ammunition type, you never find yourself with more that 4 firearms at a time. The curve of difficulty seems to skyrocket when faced against special or armored infected but not to an extend that can’t be beaten, it makes for a change of pace and rethink of strategy in combat, which makes for challenging gameplay.

    In terms of smaller features, the game takes a nod to the dark souls series in the form of having to re-retrieve your inventory after death by going back to the location of your last death and kill your zombified old character. It also has the same system of other players leaving cryptic hints and messages around if you connect to the Miiverse.

    However this realistic feature comes with a drawback. The fact that throughout your play-through your protagonist will be killed and replaced anywhere between 4-40 times means you will lose any sense of connection with your survivor and my find yourself quickly throwing away another in your effort to speed-run your way to your best firearm that you left with your past infected incarnation. The graphics lack something to be desired. While the caved in skulls are suitably gruesome and the lighting keeps things as spooky as slender, the protagonist looks like it’s missing a few polygons (If ya know what I mean). The Wii U is an HD console and for a game that boasts it’s realism with zombie activity, some of the textures just don’t agree with that. The chosen settings of bogs, sewers and buildings old and new are a treat though.

    The Graphics get a fair 6 out of 10 for their worthy but still lackluster presentation.

    The Gameplay gets a 7 out of 10. While the controls are not brilliant with the shaky but innovative usage of the Wii U gamepad, it’s challenging, dynamic and varied in execution and environment. However the detachment from the protagonist really didn’t sit with me well.

    (Granted the do have a one life ‘survival mode’ available where you 1st life is your only life).

    The lifespan gets a 5 out of 10. The story is quite short and the only other feature is what I’m going to assume is a very underplayed multiplayer mode where one is ‘King of zombies’ and must send hordes at a lone survivor.

    Full Review @ItsMuchMore    … Expand
  2. SuperkenGaming
    Jan 14, 2018
    6
    Zombi
    Just another Zombi Game
    Zombi is a First Person Shooter Survival Horror Game with an obvious inspiration from the souls games. Here you play as a random character out to basically do chores in a thruway world, with throwaway characters in a throwaway story… This is a chores games set in london, of go from point a to b, collect what you can along the way and try not to die.. You    Zombi
    Just another Zombi Game
    Zombi is a First Person Shooter Survival Horror Game with an obvious inspiration from the souls games.
    Here you play as a random character out to basically do chores in a thruway world, with throwaway characters in a throwaway story…
    This is a chores games set in london, of go from point a to b, collect what you can along the way and try not to die..
    You start with an unbreakable melee weapon, and a pistol with 6 bullets…
    You then set out to gather whatever from a location given to on the map..
    And along the way youll find health pick ups, new weapons and ammo…
    And there are zombies all over the place in your way from completing your task…
    This game is sortve delivered in the style of a souls game..
    Everything feels connected, youll be unlocking shortcuts as you run around the areas collecting key cards and completing tasks…
    Youll be unlocking shortcuts for when you die..
    Which brings me to this games twist…
    Once you die you respawn as a new character… all level progression is gone…. its then up to you to go back to where you died, kill the zombi version of yourself to re collect your materials and go…
    But if you die on your way back, you lose everything.. youll be in the middle of the game feeling like a fresh spawn…
    Which isn’t all too bad, but the fact you lose every weapon you picked up along the way stings..
    It hurts losing your shotgun or crossbow..
    It happened to me about an 2 hrs away from this games ending..
    The game by the way only takes about 6 hours to complete…
    And that’s with being thurough..
    Thankfully thuroughness isn’t that difficult as youre given a scanner for lootable items…
    The game sounds pretty simple enough, but it can absolutely feel frustrating at times…
    This is a survival game in every sense of the word…
    You have to be mindful of your ammo and health.. you have a pretty small backpack and weapons take up space.. some youll have to just leave behind so you have that extra health on you…
    And pick ups are actually pretty rare.. especially health pick ups..
    Enemies hardly ever have anything on them… which again makes this game feel frustrating especially when youre deep into the map and havnt found any shortcuts, and the game wants to throw cheep exploding enemies at you that you don’t realize are explodable until its too late…
    it just breaks your heart and makes you want to quit…
    And sadly this game feels more stressful than fun and addictive…
    The focus is on chores rather than exploration…
    The thing that makes souls games so hard to put down is youre dying to see whats around the next corner..
    While here in zombie, every corner is the same so that hook just isn’t there…
    I did ultimately enjoy my time with zombie.. but those moments of cheapness and feelings of unfun frustration cant be overlooked…
    I give Zombi
    a 6/10    … Expand
  3. Epik_Ninnja
    May 22, 2015
    6
    ZombiU succeeds at being a suspenseful survival-horror game. there's no doubt it's scary and there's no doubt it requires your full attention to survive. If you're looking for a nerve-racking game like this, you've found it with ZombiU. However, it's not quitethe ideal one. irst off, ther e a number of copy/paste rooms in the game which actually caused me to get lsot once wondering how I'dZombiU succeeds at being a suspenseful survival-horror game. there's no doubt it's scary and there's no doubt it requires your full attention to survive. If you're looking for a nerve-racking game like this, you've found it with ZombiU. However, it's not quitethe ideal one. irst off, ther e a number of copy/paste rooms in the game which actually caused me to get lsot once wondering how I'd gotten back to a preivous spot only to realize it was a different but identical room. Also, the game is just frustrating. Twenty minutes of progress can disappear upon one mistake. I know some people enjoy that, but it's just cruelty in my opinion. There's also local multiplayer in which one player plays as a survivor and the other controls zombies with their gamepad. It's fun for a few rounds but that's all. All in all, it's a true survival horror game and it's very frustrating at times.… Expand
  4. AMMANN7
    Sep 6, 2015
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. 6/10

    Zombi U deserves a treat for being different and criticism for that as well

    + Great use of the Wii U Gamepad
    + Atmosphere
    + Stay dead mechanic

    - Gameplay
    - Ending
    - Graphics    … Expand
  5. TylerDurden85
    Apr 30, 2013
    5
    I found this game to be pretty poor and I don't know how it passed nintendo's QA. 1st off, the game is full of bugs. My first play through, I fell through the floor near a save point. The game auto-saves due to it's quasi-perma-death mechanic. So it said I died, falling through the floor, auto-saved with no way to get my stuff back, but then it kept spawning me at the hole in theI found this game to be pretty poor and I don't know how it passed nintendo's QA. 1st off, the game is full of bugs. My first play through, I fell through the floor near a save point. The game auto-saves due to it's quasi-perma-death mechanic. So it said I died, falling through the floor, auto-saved with no way to get my stuff back, but then it kept spawning me at the hole in the floor. So each time I tried to start from that save again it just threw me through the floor. So that was several hours lost after I had to delete my game and restart. I also ran into plenty of other game-breaking bugs in my several hours with the game.

    The graphics are just awful. I'd say they're comparable to launch xbox 360 games like condemned: criminal origins. They're just really bad and it's often hard to see what you're doing.

    The sound is awful too. Guns sound pathetically weak, zombies don't sound scary.

    Some reviewers here are saying this is a "true survival horror" game. I found the game neither scary, nor having any real aspect on survival other than the quasi-perma-death and 1-bite-death mechanics. Other than that many areas of the game can be beaten simply by tossing a flare and sprinting away. If you make it to a sewer hole it acts as a checkpoint. No real survival here...

    The gameplay is extremely basic. Melee weapons are boring consisting of one swing move. Guns are boring and feel unrealistic. The scanning mechanic to find items and stuff is cool...for about the 1st 5 minutes. Then after the 50th time you have to stop and scan a room using the wii u's game pad, it gets old and tedious.

    Honestly I'd say skip this game entirely. A select few may find something to like here, but the majority of people are going to find this a shockingly low quality, boring game that uses none of the wii u's functionality well at all.    … Expand
  6. Magejutsu
    Jan 25, 2013
    5
    A great idea but very dissapointing. ZombiU amazing captures what we all love about survival horror. You always feel a bit on edge. In my eyes this is what newer Resident Evil's SHOULD have been like. But the game is falls short with repatitive combat and difficulty to the point of just being annoying to some. But it really does show what the gamepad can do and I'd love to see a sequelA great idea but very dissapointing. ZombiU amazing captures what we all love about survival horror. You always feel a bit on edge. In my eyes this is what newer Resident Evil's SHOULD have been like. But the game is falls short with repatitive combat and difficulty to the point of just being annoying to some. But it really does show what the gamepad can do and I'd love to see a sequel with little more polish.… Expand
  7. sd11
    Dec 13, 2012
    5
    One of the best and worst games I have ever played in one package. Firstly i found the game to be amazing when i first played it. The atmosphere is intense. This is not an action shooter, if you want a shooter play call of duty. This is a slow paced atmospheric game that breaks new ground. Graphically it works to set the scene. I have seen better, but i have also seen far worse. PeopleOne of the best and worst games I have ever played in one package. Firstly i found the game to be amazing when i first played it. The atmosphere is intense. This is not an action shooter, if you want a shooter play call of duty. This is a slow paced atmospheric game that breaks new ground. Graphically it works to set the scene. I have seen better, but i have also seen far worse. People that dislike the graphics most likely dislike the game due to the setting. I didnt find it repetetive and i loved walking around waiting for the zombies to appear from nowhere. I think in total it made me jump 3 or 4 times, which is more than any other game has for years. With the score I would have given this a 9 easily, like i said for me this is a new type of game that i loved. The gamepad sound effects, coupled with surround sound really set the scene.

    There is one major problem....BUGS.....I spent 14 hours playing this slowly with every intention of revisting it to play survival mode. I never replay games.....this game made me want to replay it before i had even completed it....But near the end i died working on the panacea level. When i restarted i completed the objective, but nothing happened. It still says i need to complete the objective. I googled the walkthrough and videos to be sure. I did everything right. The game wont unlock a door to allow me to leave and nothing happens. This means after 14 hours i cant continue or do anything. So for the first time i emailed a game maker, because i Ioved playing this game. Their response google walkthroughs.....even more annoying.... its a bug. I have completed the objective but the things that are supposed to happen dont. So not only are there bugs stopping me completing it but ubisoft wont acknowledge them. I could start again, but what then 14 hours to find a new bug. With all bugs fixed 9/10 easily. As is... you make up your own mind. I gave it 5. Play if but if you die ( you will die) be aware a bug might surface stopping you from completing a key action. Other users have said the same. ( I didnt belive it until it happened to me). So frustrating, a great game that should have been tested. Technically the item is faulty and everyone could legally get their money back, so ubisoft fix it.    … Expand
  8. Wargears
    Mar 2, 2013
    5
    Sadly I am one of the wii u owners who rode the hype and bought this game day one. The game is pretty average but it has its terrifying moments. You would either love or hate this game but still this game is far better than what RE or SH series has become today.
  9. Miz_Gamer
    Nov 20, 2022
    5
    Graphics 5/10
    Sounds 6/10
    Gameplay 7/10
    Story:4/10
    Good game but not for everyone
  10. ThinkinGamer
    Feb 24, 2013
    4
    Disappointing

    Anyone who has had any substantial experience playing video games will immediately notice the many horrible game designs used in this subpar game. Allow me to elaborate, in detail, why this game is horrible and you should save your money for a more enjoyable game: 1. Controls (5/10) Aiming with a thumbstick is a horrible and outdated way of aiming in 3D games on a next    Disappointing

    Anyone who has had any substantial experience playing video games will immediately notice the many horrible game designs used in this subpar game. Allow me to elaborate, in detail, why this game is horrible and you should save your money for a more enjoyable game:

    1. Controls (5/10)
    Aiming with a thumbstick is a horrible and outdated way of aiming in 3D games on a next generation console. It’s ineffective, slow and frustrating. The technology the WiiU has makes it possible to make aiming a much more pleasant and enjoyable experience than fumbling around with a thumbstick. One only needs to look at the Zelda Archery minigame in Nintendoland to see that aiming projectile weapons in games on the WiiU can be both easy, fun and accurate rather than backwards, clunky and inaccurate.
    The rest of the controls such as map, inventory management, “pinging” for nearby zombies, scanning a room are all executed on the WiiU gamepad. Many of these features are used very often making looking down at the gamepad a common occurrence that detracts from the immersion in the game and makes it more difficult than necessary to accomplish simple and always repetitive tasks.
    It seems that Ubisoft went to great pain to make sure their game used EVERY SINGLE NEW FEATURE of the new WiiU regardless of if it actually even added any value to the title. Just because your game can utilize a feature of the WiiU console/gamepad doesn’t necessarily mean it has to. The scanning feature is cool the first two or three times you use it, but pulling out your scanner and waving your arms around every single time you enter a new room gets repetitive, boring and slows the gameplay and action to a crawl. Over 50% of the time you play this game you will be spent either scanning each and every new room you enter or collecting the items you find during said scans. This makes the core of ZombieU feel mostly like a easter egg hunt game rather than a zombie survival game.
    For a title that makes it’s main selling point the game controls, ZombieU leaves a lot to be desired on the controls front.

    2. Graphics (5/10)
    The game actually looks pretty nice when you can actually see it.
    ZombieU has this persistent dirty screen effect that puts random circles on the screen that look akin to viewing the entire game through a dirty piece of glass. This I feel detracts from the game or was put in to obscure the overall average polygon counts in ZombieU.
    ZombieU also has a habit of making light sources look like someone installed nuclear powered light bulbs in every socket. Being blinded by overly bright lights is just another graphics gimmick that makes actually seeing the environment difficult.
    The game is also notoriously dark making the viewing area in such areas just as wide and as far as your non nuclear powered flashlight can shine. Flashlights in games are cool but only if they are used sparingly here and there such as in games like Metro 2033. ZombieU has a heavy reliance on flashlights making it even more difficult to view your environment.

    3. Combat (3/10)
    I hope you like that pretty cricket bat you get at the start of the game because 90% of all combat in this game will be you bashing zombies over and over and over with the damn thing. Between scanning rooms and bashing zombies over and over with your cricket bat, 80% of the time you spend in this game will be doing one of these two repetitive actions.
    Aiming is difficult and the firearms in the game are weak. A headshot to a zombie (if you can even manage to hit a moving zombie in the head with a crappy thumbstick aiming device) doesn’t kill a zombie, it takes upwards of three headshots to kill a zombie. With ammo being scarce as it is already coupled with crappy and ineffective alternatives you are pretty much stuck with that crappy bat.
    Speaking of that crappy bat, your character really really sucks at using it effectively. The animation (not animations) to swing it are slow, boring and repetitive making combat a thing of timing seeing as it can take a whole 4-6 seconds from the time you push the swing attack until the time you can swing again. Timing combos, varying bat animations and effects and not to mention just different melee weapons (knives, swords, hammers) could have made the melee combat more enjoyable.

    4. Gameplay (4/10)
    I hope you like a linear roller coaster gaming experience. This game is not open in the least, it does not give you choices to make you simply hop in the ZombieU roller coaster and tackle each and every problem it throws your way in the proper order it wants you to. There isn’t even any dialog choice to make, the only voice characters in the game simply talk at you rather than talk with you.

    Overall, this game doesn’t feel so much like a fun well designed game but rather a gimmick to show off all the new features of the WiiU that will drive you utterly insane with frustration at it’s backwards game design.    … Expand
  11. Gar
    Jan 1, 2013
    4
    Looking at gameplay videos/reviews I could tell that ZombiU is not a good game, but still got it since I was desperate for christmas present ideas. I was right about the game being rather poorly made. Now those crazy people that compare ZombiU with the "master piece" that Dark Souls is, should be quite embarrased. A car broken in half and an F1 car are both difficult to handle, BUT onlyLooking at gameplay videos/reviews I could tell that ZombiU is not a good game, but still got it since I was desperate for christmas present ideas. I was right about the game being rather poorly made. Now those crazy people that compare ZombiU with the "master piece" that Dark Souls is, should be quite embarrased. A car broken in half and an F1 car are both difficult to handle, BUT only one is hard because its good.

    Dark Souls had great varied combat with some actual tactics and enemies that were fair if you knew what you were up againts. ZombiU on the otherhand relies on zombies spawning from nowhere (monster closets are considered out of nowhere), poor unresposive controls and a ridiculously narrow field of view. A game with good mechanics like Dark Souls can be challenging even if you are going 1 vs 1 againts an enemy. ZombiU on the other hand relies on "surprising" you with enemy encounters which shoudlnt happen and at least in the beginning, making those encounters "hard" by explaining the controls too late. The scanner funcionality is also pretty atrocious. Why on earth would I want to almost turn around in my seat to scan my enviroment? Looting corpses and dragging stuff on the touchscreen isnt thad bad, except when you just want to close the menu on an empty corpse and wind up having to move your hand instead of just pressing a button. More of an annoyance really.

    If you want a good zombie game/expirience, get Dead Island instead.
    If you want good combat mechanics in a hard game, get Dark Souls instead.

    The game is also very buggy. I've had my menu item to open my backpack disapper completely for half an hour, now I'm expiriencing a game breaking but that is preventing me from completing the game. After 6 hours of gameplay, my game is giving me 2 objectives (the one I completed last time) and a new one. However I cannot complete my next objective since the my scanner refuses to scan a code for a keypad I have to get open. Before purchasing the game, I recommend visiting the official forum to see if "game breaking bug" is still a the most common name for thread...    … Expand
  12. Caldini
    Nov 30, 2012
    4
    The graphics are bad, the animations are bad, the combat is dull and repetitive, and the game is incredibly buggy. I have run into two separate game breaking bugs. Other than that there was general buggyness, things like context sensitive actions sometimes not showing up. I cannot even complete the final mission because a mission critical item disappeared from my inventory. This game hadThe graphics are bad, the animations are bad, the combat is dull and repetitive, and the game is incredibly buggy. I have run into two separate game breaking bugs. Other than that there was general buggyness, things like context sensitive actions sometimes not showing up. I cannot even complete the final mission because a mission critical item disappeared from my inventory. This game had so much promise, and even though i prepared myself for disappointment I cannot believe how badly this game was made.… Expand
  13. tipsypants
    Jan 24, 2013
    4
    Okay, the amount of 10s here is kinda baffling. The game starts out good, but quickly goes downhill. The combat system is clunky and dull, which I thought was fine at first, because I wasn't playing a highly skilled character (except for the policemen, majors, generals, etc, who were just as useless with a gun as the musicians and clerks), but the kind (and amount) of enemies they throw atOkay, the amount of 10s here is kinda baffling. The game starts out good, but quickly goes downhill. The combat system is clunky and dull, which I thought was fine at first, because I wasn't playing a highly skilled character (except for the policemen, majors, generals, etc, who were just as useless with a gun as the musicians and clerks), but the kind (and amount) of enemies they throw at you after a while makes killing them a chore. You have zombies in riot gear, which is understandable, at least some people would have been wearing riot gear when the infection spread, but there are tons of them. And they take like 20 slow slow slow hits to kill (also, they're bullet proof). Then you have zombies that spit acid.. and zombies that self detonate. Which makes absolutely zero sense if they're normal zombies. Maybe someone is controlling them? I won't find out, since I quit playing after 10 hours, which, normally, I NEVER do... but there are so many missed opportunities and bad decisions in this game. You'd think having a map/pad thingie with motion sensors would offer the player some sort of strategic advantage, and would allow for creative solutions to maps, but it only serves to warn you about the zombie's presence (except for when zombies are just waiting for you to approach them before they start moving, which .. doesn't make sense T_T).. you'll have to take the same route regardless. Throughout the game they use cheap tricks to scare you, like loud aggressive music, sounds that get triggered (every time) you walk past certain areas, flashlight going out in some areas. Which wouldn't have been necessary if they got the basics right. Sorry about the messy review, it's not often I'm so mad at a game that I quit playing it halfway through, so I won't waste too much time on this review. OH, and one time when I jumped off a six feet pier into two feet deep water, I died from the fall damage. I was at full health. GG Ubisoft, GG.… Expand
  14. pinball123
    Nov 18, 2014
    4
    Picked this up because it was $15 and there wasn't much else to play on my wii u, even at that price I felt let down. The game feels dated and it just isn't very fun at all. Not sure why people are reviewing this one so highly....
  15. pablol
    Jan 1, 2013
    3
    My adventure was finished around 6 hours by a game killer bug at brick-lane market door-code. That tower of London helicopter just keeps hovering there although I have already completed that area.
  16. WhiteTalpa
    Dec 28, 2012
    3
    This game is good and uses the game pad well however there are a few problems for example, the lack of online co-op multi-player, the graphics seem to be lacking, the game is also to linear for my liking. Overall the game is good however i still think it could do with a few more features and updates.
  17. mykdee
    Aug 9, 2013
    2
    good idea, poorly executed. 10's people...really?! this game belongs in the 90's. I guess they thought that people would get caught up in the current zombie-craze, and not realize that this game sucks. Its graphics are terrible(think PS2 in HD), its extremely clear that they used an old engine with no attempt to supply anything that looked good. the zombies are repetitive and all look thegood idea, poorly executed. 10's people...really?! this game belongs in the 90's. I guess they thought that people would get caught up in the current zombie-craze, and not realize that this game sucks. Its graphics are terrible(think PS2 in HD), its extremely clear that they used an old engine with no attempt to supply anything that looked good. the zombies are repetitive and all look the same, aside from different genders and a couple of outfits. If you knock a zombies head off, it literally looks like a broken pencil. i saw better textures on N64. The environment is the only thing that i can't complain much about, except i really dislike when developers try to make the game scary by making it hard to see(i.e. always dark), rather than making the actual gameplay scary or intense. Overall this was a flop, and a terrible choice to bundle with the console.… Expand
  18. CJUnderwood
    Jan 27, 2013
    1
    The game started off great. But then zombies that explode on contact simply because they're wearing a tank on their backs even if you don't actually hit said tank, and a plethora of game breaking bugs just made this a pointless purchase really. With no official word on a patch to fix the various issues with the game, I'd say skip this. Don't even ask for it as a gift.
  19. prophazard
    Jan 1, 2013
    1
    I love this game and this game has game breaking glitches that can completely destroy your progress and force you to restart from scratch several times over. So to be very clear: I love the slow horror-filled progress of the game, the clunky process of killing zombies with a cricket bat, the search for ammunition, all of that. The death of your character and the process of going to killI love this game and this game has game breaking glitches that can completely destroy your progress and force you to restart from scratch several times over. So to be very clear: I love the slow horror-filled progress of the game, the clunky process of killing zombies with a cricket bat, the search for ammunition, all of that. The death of your character and the process of going to kill your old zombified self to get a backpack full of stuff is great.

    The problem is when you go back to kill yourself but can't retrieve from your old self things that are absolutely required in order for the game to continue. Essentially you can take 50 hours worth of game progress and throw it right out the window. This is because ZombiU does not retain any intermediate saves that you could go back to if something goes wrong, and because players have discovered and reported that many game-breaking glitches just crop up that destroy the game. Each time that happens you have to go back to the very very beginning. When you hit a problem like this, contact Ubisoft for support and this is what I got back:
    "Unfortunately, you are most likely going to need to create a new save profile. We are not able to recover lost or damaged saved files from either the cloud or other methods. We have reported this issue to the devs. Contact us again if you have additional questions." [there was no "lost of damaged" save file. My character died and there was no way to obtain a particular item that he was carrying that was necessary for plot progress"]

    Take a look at the ZombiU forums (http://forums.ubi.com/forumdisplay.php/383-ZombiU)
    :
    "Game breaking bug - ladder disappears!!"
    "Another ZombiU Game Breaking Glitch"

    And this nice statement, in a 2-page series of posts by frustrated gamers:

    "Ubisoft, as far I can see, you received your first notifications of game breaking bugs over a month ago on this forum.
    Since then, this forum has been flooded with further reports which have mostly fallen upon deaf ears.
    While admittedly the Forum Manager Ubi-Mush has been acknowledging these reports on occasion and reportedly forwarding the issues described, there has been absolutely no indication that the developers have been acknowledged any of these issues."

    In essence, excellent gameplay is ruined by the complete and total loss of your campaign if you fall prey to any number of serious programming bugs. Ubisoft has not acknowledged the problems, has not issued a patch, and has not offered even a hint as to whether they will patch the game at all. For some who play this, it turns out great and they don't get nailed by the many programming bugs. I have had to repeat 40 hours of campaign twice and after the third game-ending crash, I have to give up.    … Expand
  20. cptps1204
    Feb 28, 2014
    1
    By the way, you can piss off wth stupid, futile, invisible assistant. He's not only a ball buster but a morale destroyer as well. He doesn't help. When does he help? Exactly. Other than scanning doors and **** constantly about cameras and good riddance if a survivor dies because the makers of this program basically sat around a conference table and decided "what if we made a zombie firstBy the way, you can piss off wth stupid, futile, invisible assistant. He's not only a ball buster but a morale destroyer as well. He doesn't help. When does he help? Exactly. Other than scanning doors and **** constantly about cameras and good riddance if a survivor dies because the makers of this program basically sat around a conference table and decided "what if we made a zombie first person shooter that could become uh......"the most unbeatable" in the WORLD." We'll be rich by Xmas next year for gods sake people will clamber for it just to prove they can do it!, the American market is ours! Sound familiar? I think so.
    And no. Give a challenge, but you gotta play fair. Otherwise, it's not a real game. It's a joke.    … Expand
  21. FireHorsePrime
    Feb 26, 2014
    1
    Use of the gamepad was intuitive, music and sound effects are well designed. I've heard multiplayer is good, but I don't play well with others so I wouldn't know.

    Use of the gamepad was counter intuitive during fight sequences in that you need it to switch weapons, and for a game that punishes you for dying, it's spiteful to put you in a powerless position for even just a moment, all    Use of the gamepad was intuitive, music and sound effects are well designed. I've heard multiplayer is good, but I don't play well with others so I wouldn't know.

    Use of the gamepad was counter intuitive during fight sequences in that you need it to switch weapons, and for a game that punishes you for dying, it's spiteful to put you in a powerless position for even just a moment, all while trying to cover yourself on the fly with no ammunition.

    In general the controls are just terrible. Let's face it, the gamepad is basically a tablet computer in your hands, and with the controls it brings your arms far enough apart that you have to get used to playing with it as if it were a standard controller and there is a comfort level you have to find in this configuration. That being said, L3 for running was truly a bad idea as L and LZ are just below it, and were constantly disrupting my progress. I had to mentally remember to keep my left index finger snuggly under L so I didn't accidentally trigger it or LZ while running, especially during the circus time trials, which are forced on you when you just think you're getting a hang of the game. The option to invert look on the game pad was a glaring omission, as I'm an old school gamer and have always used flight-sim style controls on my FPS's. Mentally switching between the two view formats was such a headache that I literally re-programmed myself to play with standard controls. It's been an adjustment that has literally re-defined how I play games now.

    Graphics are substandard, with poor textures and a garish "looking through a dirty car window" aspect to them. Because of this I truly wasn't scared, feeling as if I was watching some animated Zombie movie where poorly rendered dead things were being thrust at me.

    Zombi U is blessed with at least one horrible programming snafu, such as when I was locked in a safe room in Buckingham Palace and was unable to do anything but quit my game and lose all my progress. Load times are also questionable.

    Logic seems to be an option in this world, as you are left with nothing when you reincarnate and you start at level 1, but your weapons retain their upgrades and you always have a pistol and a bat. Additionally, zombies are typically lumbering unfocused creatures. Regardless of this fact, in Zombi U they keep up with you at an irritating rate, even when you run. They might as well be alive.

    Disappointing character development puts a damper on the emotional draw of the game. The Prepper seems to be in his own little world, eventually falling under the illusion I'm working against him. The doctor in Buckingham Palace has an interesting flare, but his character is so undeveloped that we don't really care when his predicament comes to a dead end. Finally there are these spoken messages throughout the game that are intended to engage the player in the evolution of the "Blight", but they seem more like sprigs of parsley on a dinner plate; sure you can eat them but they are hardly satisfying. All of these factors augment the feeling that you're not interacting with anything, just running around bashing Zombies.

    While I don't mind the next aspect so much, game play has been compared to Metroid where you backtrack for additional items and clues, and Zombi U is all about retracing your steps. But at least Metroid has tight controls that give you a fighting chance and doesn't compound the punishments if you don't play the game a specific way, such as this game where if you fail to survive during the final sequence, your shortcuts are removed.

    While you're free to travel almost anywhere in London, I would have suggested a better chronological flow to the game, where we experience the passage of day and night, such as in Skyrim. I think this urgency to get under cover when night falls would have added an amazing dimension to the game, but time seems to be a prisoner along with us, where it's always night or always day depending on where you're at.

    Some have said the game should be looked at as true survival horror but even the original "Resident Evil" gave you a save system to fall back on, Zombi U gives you a learning curve for wrapping your head around the idea that you are playing a body, not a character, even though they all have names. If they die, you can move onto the next one so having any feelings for these automatons is pointless. Yeah, it probably looked good on paper, but I think just like the lack of connection with the Prepper, all of these elements enhance ones indifference to the experience, and it totally works against the game.

    A challenge for many and I do respect that, Zombie U is definitely a game that will monopolize your mind and give you plenty of work to do to get through it, but it could easily have been put on a mobil device and called "Bash the Zombies" and would have been just as effective.

    FHP    … Expand
  22. Matthew2436
    Apr 18, 2016
    1
    This game is not enjoyable and is a disappointment for the wii u. The graphics are horrible and make you sick. The death penalty is way too harsh and it is very hard to understand.
  23. stingrayBR
    Feb 3, 2015
    0
    ZombiU was an entire mistake, controls are confusing, game difficult is not ok and the game does not worth the price as day one. Another fiasco as the wii u. I was very upset after bought the console and game
  24. DoobyDoobyMoo
    Apr 11, 2020
    0
    The graphics are bad, ammo is way too scarce, and the scanner keeps disappointing me because it only finds empty trash bins. Also, this unique mechanic of how when you die, your past self turns into a zombie is terrible. Although it is cool and unique, sometimes I die before I get my loot. And what happens? All of my loot disappears. Sure, some respawn, but each is almost impossible toThe graphics are bad, ammo is way too scarce, and the scanner keeps disappointing me because it only finds empty trash bins. Also, this unique mechanic of how when you die, your past self turns into a zombie is terrible. Although it is cool and unique, sometimes I die before I get my loot. And what happens? All of my loot disappears. Sure, some respawn, but each is almost impossible to find and some don’t respawn. This ruins the game for me, and that’s why I’m giving it this score. They probably won’t even read this and have no regard over their community, and they won’t ever update this crap-shack of a game again.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

15
#15 Best Wii U Game of 2012
1
#1 Most Discussed Wii U Game of 2012
2
#2 Most Shared Wii U Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 70 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 49 out of 70
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 70
  3. Negative: 1 out of 70
  1. Riot Pixels
    Feb 1, 2013
    51
    It takes a couple of hours to fully realize that ZombiU – not an eerie game, but a rather eerily boring one – is a goner. I hope that Ubisoft will hack the head off this franchise before it turns into ZombiU 2 and starts biting people’s wallets.
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  2. Pelit (Finland)
    Jan 23, 2013
    86
    An intense experience. ZombiU delivers one of the most intense experiences in recent history. Moody, violent and suitably tough, it managed to keep me playing long into the night. [Jan 2013]
  3. Universo Nintendo
    Jan 16, 2013
    90
    For fans of the survival horror genre, ZombiU is filled to the brink with challenges and many hours of gameplay.
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