I’m all for some mindless fun and World War Z has that in spades, but telling actual stories in the style of Left 4 Dead would make the world feel more worth saving. Cause, y’know, friendly fire is a pretty common mishap when you’re fighting thousands of zombies in claustrophobic areas and the characters will never not comment on it. In fact, I feel like 90% of the time I heard a character speak, they were politely reminding me not to accidentally shoot them in the head. Precisely zero characters are fleshed out or interesting in any way, and their dialogue is campy and mostly serves as background noise while you run around shooting things. Compared to the fairly straightforward design of Rome, it was really nice seeing the developers have some over-the-top fun with Russia.Įven when the new episodes are at their best, though, Aftermath still fails to improve in the way of storytelling, which is still as disappointing as it’s ever been. Fairly straightforward tasks quickly become formidable undertakings with the constant threat of zombie hordes, and the best-laid plans can become a comedy of errors in no time at all. There’s also some great puzzle sections that require teamwork, like one where your crew has to use a flamethrower to melt doors that’ve been frozen shut while the others provide cover fire, or another where you have to fix an electrical grid by finding and pulling levers in the right order. The frozen tundra of Kamchatka, on the other hand, has some really memorable moments, like one area where a blizzard causes you to take damage just for being outside for short periods so you’ve gotta race between heaters while fighting off waves of brain-eaters. Nothing really stuck with me very long after I beat it, though, except maybe those flaming pits filled with dead zombies those might give me nightmares. It’s still good ol’ fashioned face-smashing fun with a few highlights, like when you have to guide and refuel a van through the streets of Rome while under constant undead assault. Aside from the new sights, sounds, and giant flaming pits filled with zombies, there isn’t much to distinguish Italy from other destinations. Rome is the more by-the-numbers of the two: it takes a well-known destination, gives it whatever the opposite of a facelift is, then lets you and your friends blast your way through it for a laugh. It’s rare to see it go beyond the roots of its very clear inspiration, and there’s not a whole lot of variety when it comes to the missions, the special zombies, or the weapons, but what is there works and is enough to fill the Left 4 Dead-shaped hole in all our hearts, for a little while at least. The best way to experience World War Z is to fire up your microphone and find yourself a four-person crew to play through its brief but fun campaign.
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