Rebellion has finally released the brand new title in the Zombie Army franchise, Zombie Army 4: Dead War and this is our review of this brilliant zombie shooter. Zombie Army is one of Rebellion’s oldest franchises and every title has been a really great addition to the franchise. With Zombie Army 4: Dear War, Rebellion brings the franchise to the current generation and makes the game even better than before. This is our review of Zombie Army 4: Dead War and we played on a PS4 Pro for our review.
Zombie Army 4: Dead War is a third-person zombie shooter survival title that heavily emphasizes on using sniper rifles. Rebellion is known for its Sniper Elite franchise and the Zombie Army franchise brings a completely new twist to the whole zombie-slaying formula by focusing more on snipers. Since we played the game on a PS4 Pro, the game offers a Performance mode and a Quality mode. In Quality mode, the frames are locked at 30FPS but the game offers better visuals however Performance mode reduces the visual fidelity but ensures that the game runs as smoothly as possible on the PS4 Pro.
The game looks pretty good in both modes, however. If you prefer higher resolution, you will end up sacrificing the fluid gameplay for greater visual fidelity. Even in the performance mode, the game looks really beautiful as you explore the varied landscapes the game offers. During the performance mode, you will notice a major increase in your headshots as the game is smoother and thus allows for a better judgment. During Quality mode, sometimes you might end up missing a headshot because of a last-second frame dip due to increased activity on the screen.
I was a little skeptical about the gameplay at first because zombies and snipers do not really mix with each other. Zombies are fast while snipers take a little time to aim and shoot even if you are really good with them. However, Rebellion has actually thought about that and tailored the gameplay in such a way that you never feel that your sniper is useless in the game. The zombies are pretty fast but not too fast that they would just rush you. The game gives you a decent time to aim at shoot at the zombies and when you become overwhelmed by them, you can quickly switch to your secondary weapons and start shooting with them.
Builds play an important role when it comes to gameplay in Zombie Army 4: Dead War. Your build consists of a primary weapon which is your sniper rifle, a secondary weapon which is either an LMG, SMG or a shotgun and then you have your pistol. All of the weapons in the game come with their own upgrades which are purchased by finding Upgrade Kits in the Campaign mode. Apart from the weapons, you have your Super Melee Attacks which must be charged before using. They give you health and ammo when used.
Completing your build are Perks and Item Mods which will further provide different bonuses to you while playing Campaign or the Horde mode. Perks are passive and could include different offensive or defensive bonuses such as Second Chance which allows you to jump back in action by killing a zombie after you die or giving you more stamina to perform different actions in the game. Item Mods are specific to items and they will make different items more efficient such as the medkit or making grenades deal additional damage to zombies.
Zombie Army 4: Dead Army also features different characters as characters and not just skins. Each of these characters comes with their own strengths and weaknesses. These are pretty prominent in different stages of the battle. For example, if you pick the character Karl, who is the iconic Sniper in most Rebellion’s Sniper Elite games, you will get slower Health Regeneration but Empty Lung mechanic uses less stamina, Overkill requires less kills and Critical Hits chances are also greater. Each of the characters in the game comes with their own pros and cons and you pick the character according to your own playstyle.
One of the best aspects of Zombie Army 4: Dead War is the zombies. The game features some of the most terrifying zombies ever features in any zombie game. The undead army returns this time around with some brand new additions as well. As you play through the campaign, you will come across zombies that can survive underwater, zombies that can shoot weapons including LMGs mounted on zombie half-tracks and even use tanks to their own advantage. Zombie Officers will ensure that the zombie horde is enraged enough to take you down while zombie snipers will try to pick you off from afar. Each new chapter brings brand new horrors for you to face.
Coming to the game modes, the first major gameplay mode is the Campaign which spans over 9 unique missions. Each mission will take you across a variety of locations that feature its own unique bosses, minibosses and zombie types. The generic zombies are pretty much the same in every locale but some zombies are specific to locations such as the underwater zombies are only found in maps that feature water. Each of these missions further features chapters which are separated from each other with Safehouses. These Safehouses are safe zones where you can resupply, upgrade your gear and get a break from all the action.
The game will also provide different checkpoints in longer chapters but they are not Safehouses and sometimes you will find zombies there as well. The campaign follows the story of your character, as you travel to different countries in order to defeat the zombie army of Hitler. Hitler raised the army of dead when he saw his plan failing and now it is up to you to stop the evil plans of Hitler and his newly formed undead army. The campaign is pretty solid and each mission will really test your mettle. Each chapter will throw a bunch of different tasks apart from killing zombies. You will be required to open locked doors, find missing components and raise bridges and much more to finally progress in the chapter. Apart from the checkpoints and safehouses, there are no save spots as well so if you die here, you will need to restart from the last checkpoint or safehouse that you passed.
While playing the Campaign, you will normally find a decent amount of zombies to kill and there is calm mostly but in certain locations and while attempting certain tasks, the game will unleash absolute hell on you and you will be stuck trying to complete objectives all while trying to survive the onslaught of zombies as well. During these phases, sometimes you will have to simply focus on the task at hand and escape. The chapters are extremely well-designed and they are pretty big which means that you will get to see different bits of the city that you travel through.
The second main playing game mode is the Horde Mode. Horde mode forms another vital part of the game. It plays much like any other game’s horde or survival mode. You, along with four other friends, or random players from around the world, team up to take the undead horde face to face. Unlike the Campaign, where you head into the game with your own custom builds, there are no builds here. You start with a Pistol and must play the game and collect better weapons, grenades and other equipment by defeating enemies as you complete wave after wave of enemies.
At this point, Zombie Army 4: Dead War features 5 unique maps, each with their own layout and challenges for the Horde mode however the developer might add more maps later to the game in the form of DLC. Each map is really good and offers the best of the game. Each map has different types of zombies attacking you in different waves with each wave getting harder than the previous one. After certain waves, a big zombie appears by destroying a previously locked area, giving you access to the new area which has better weapons and gear for you collect and use against the horde.
Apart from these crates and random pickups, the game will also drop random Supply Drops during the match which will come with grenades, medkits, and better weapons. Every drop is unique so you might find what you are looking for or not in these Supply Drops. Each map is also littered with different traps that can be triggered on-demand while you are fighting the horde. Some of them are one-time use only however some of them can be used after a certain cooldown period has passed. These traps play a vital role in your survival and will quite often help you get out of different tricky situations.
As you progress through the waves, higher tier zombie enemies will continue to join the fight against you in greater numbers making the fight even tougher. Spitters, Gunners, Armored Giants appear more often while the normal zombies appear in even greater numbers making it a really challenging mode to survive in especially at later waves. It is a really great mode that will surely keep you and your friends busy for a long time. It is excellent for quick, short sessions as well and the addition of new maps means that you have a solid zombie-slaying game that never ends.
You will need to keep a good balance of using your supplies and the traps available on each map. While the ammo supplies are infinite, grenades, medkits and some of the traps do not. You will need these at later waves more than ever so you do not have the liberty of just eating through them right from the start of the game. While the game demands that you through everything you’ve got at the enemies, you must also be extremely careful with your ordinance and traps because in the later waves when you need them the most, you will run out and eventually die like the normal weapons.
Apart from the weapons, all of your builds carry to the game. Your perks, Super Melee Attacks and Item Mods all are available in the Horde mod. Even when you find your favorite weapon in Supply Drops in the game or from weapon racks, you will find all your upgrades purchased during the Campaign in Horde mode as well. This means that if you play Campaign mode first and then head to Horde mode after ranking up enough and purchasing upgrades for your favorite weapons, you will have a much easier time in the Horde mode rather than jumping straight in the Horde mode where you won’t have any weapon upgrades unlocked.
After completing a certain amount of waves in the Horde mode, you will finally unlock the exit and it is at this point when you will have to decide whether you want to escape or continue fighting the undead horde. Once the exit is open, the zombies become extremely tough and the waves are relentless but at the same time, you get the most XP and better rewards if you continue to fight the horde. The game allows you to stay in the battle if you want an increased challenge but better rewards. This mechanic will certainly allow hardcore players to set new records for high scores in the maps.
Apart from the Campaign and the Horde, the game also contains many smaller activities and challenges for you to complete. The game comes with tons of Collectibles for you to find in each level. Each level has five unique types of collectibles which include Heroic Actions, Upgrade Kits, Comics, Documents, and Zombie Hands. Each one unlocks further Perks for you and then you also have the Sticker Album. This can be considered as a challenge board that has different challenges for you to complete and once you complete each challenge, you get to unlock a Sticker showcasing different elements of the game such as zombie types, locations, weapons and more.
Final Verdict:
With Valve sleeping on Left 4 Dead 3, Rebellion has come to our rescue with Zombie Army 4: Dead War. It is a solid zombie-slaying title which offers a great deal of variety for players to play in. The Zombies are brutal and greatly designed, the levels are extremely well-made and the gameplay is solid. Whether you play solo or with your friends, Zombie Army 4: Dead War is a great title if you’ve been looking forward to something to quench your zombie slaughtering thirst. The Campaign offers story-linked gameplay with objectives but if you want senseless zombie slaughtering, gather your friends, fire up the Horde mode and you can spend the entire night playing Zombie Army 4: Dead War and not get bored with it. Couple that with a solid campaign and you’ve got hours and hours of brutal zombie slaying. If you’ve yet to purchase your first game for 2020, I will highly recommend that you start with Zombie Army 4: Dead War. It will not disappoint you.
Final Score: 9.5/10
